Mollie Deuel's Teaching Portfolio
Here is an example of a modeling activity.
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Topic: Human Impact: DNA Structure
Grade level: High School
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Virginia Standards of Learning (SOLs):
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Primary VSOLs for Biology:
BIO.5 The student will investigate and understand common mechanisms of inheritance and protein synthesis. Key concepts include a) cell growth and division;
e) historical development of the structural model of DNA;
Learning Objectives:
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Understand:
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Information is stored within the DNA molecule in the form of a sequence of chemical bases, each referred to by the first letter of its name (A, T, C and G).
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Know
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DNA is a polymer consisting of nucleotides.
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A DNA nucleotide is identified by the base it contains: adenine (A), guanine (G), cytosine (C) or thymine (T). DNA is a double-stranded molecule.
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The strands are composed of covalently bonded sugar and phosphate molecules and are connected by complementary nucleotide pairs (A-T and C-G) like rungs on a ladder.
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The ladder twists to form a double helix.
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Do
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describe the basic structure of DNA and its function in inheritance.
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describe the key events leading to the development of the structural model of DNA.
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Students will be: Creating a model of the DNA structure using twirlers, marshmallows, toothpicks, and labels. They will first listen to the instructions the teacher needs to give and then they will execute the activity and create their model DNA structures.
Teacher will be: Giving instructions for the modeling activity, handing out resources and materials, and circulating throughout class to informally formative assess the students and give feedback as needed.
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Assessment: The teacher can collect models and provide feedback about the structures as needed. Teacher can also give an exit card or a short quiz at the end of class assessing the students learning.
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Example Modeling Activity Overview and Directions
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