Virginia Department of Education
Genetic Variation and Mutations
Young scientists demonstrate their creativity while completing several activities, to assess genetic variations and mutations. Instructors provide a list of options and scientists choose to write a comic strip, create a book, construct a...
Curated OER
Genetics Survey Project
Complete a survey on genetics and the mechanics of heredity.and review the list of human traits observed. Practice interviews are conducted with each other so that noone feels unconformable if they don't have one trait or another. One...
Howard Hughes Medical Institute
How Novel Icefish Genes Can Improve Human Health
Designed to accompany the 13-minute video The Making of the Fittest: The Birth and Death of Genes, this handout serves as both a viewing guide during the video and an analysis of how the adaptations of the icefish might help treat some...
Curated OER
Genetically Modified Food (GMF)
Explore genetically modified foods through various experiments. In this biology instructional activity, students discuss the safety issues related to GMF's. They conduct a PCR analysis to identify the presence of genetic modification.
Personal Genetics Education Project
Scientific Themes in Personal Genetics
Humans can be tested for the presence of the BRCA gene, whose presence is an indicator that they have a greater chance of acquiring breast cancer than someone without the gene. Viewers have an opportunity to explore how genes and...
Curated OER
Variations on a Human Face Lab
Ninth graders gain an application level understanding of probability, symmetry, and ratios and rates that exists in one's everyday environment relative to human genetics.
Curated OER
How Evolution Works
Students work in groups to investigate and present genetic variation, adaptation, and sexual selection as it relates to evolution. In this evolution lesson plan, students watch a video discuss how the human eye could evolve due to...
Curated OER
Regents High School Examination: Living Environment 2009
Emerging ecologists need a full understanding of life, from the inner workings of a cell to the complex relationships among organisms. This examination is meant to assess high schoolers after an entire year course on the living...
Curated OER
Regents High School Examination: Living Environment 2007
Environmental science enthusiasts show what they know at the end of the year by taking this full-fledged final exam. They answer multiple choice, graph interpretation, and essay analysys questions, 73 of them in all. Topics range from...
LABScI
Genetic Equilibrium: Human Diversity
Investigate the Hardy-Weinberg Principle to explain genetic equilibrium. The 10th lesson plan of a series of 12 is a laboratory exploration of genetic equilibrium. Your classes use a mixture of beans to model allele and genotype...
Curated OER
Molecular Medicine Comes of Age
Students simulate the roles of employees of two fictional pharmaceutical companies to analyze how human genetic variation at a molecular level helps scientist better understand and treat disease. They explain the molecular structure of...
Western Kentucky University
Understanding Genetics: Punnett Squares
Can scientists really predict genetic outcomes or are they simply making a lucky guess? Scholars first learn about Gregor Mendel and how to make Punnett squares. Then they extract DNA from a strawberry in a lab with included conclusion...
Curated OER
Human Genome Project
Students examine the goals of the Human Genome Project. They research issues of the project such as scientific, potential and ethical implications of the project. In addition, they create a presentation to present their findings.
Curated OER
Genetic Testing for Disease Susceptibility
Students explore how testing for particular genetic variations can help people to make decisions in lifestyle and health care choices. They analyze a Web-based case study, participate in class discussion, view video segments and...
Curated OER
Genetic Variation
Students study families and their genetics. In this investigative instructional activity students explain how variations in genetics can be harmful and how some can help with survival.
Curated OER
Are You Susceptible?
Students play a game to explore the relationship between genetic variation and environmental factors in the onset of heart disease. They consider the implications for disease prevention of increased knowledge about genetic variation.
Curated OER
Exploring Human Traits
Students explore human behavior by participating in a class science game. In this human characteristics lesson, students identify different human traits that are passed down by each generation and the purpose each of them have. Students...
Curated OER
Variation in Human Skin Color
Young scholars explore factors that control variation in human skin color and the implications of this information for human society. They understand that skin color is no longer considered a credible scientific standard by which to...
Curated OER
Kernels of Wisdom: Investigating Natural Variations in Corn
Here is a brain-popper! Corn, or more appropriately, maize, was intentionally domesticated by humans around 9,000 years ago and over a period of hundreds to thousands of years! Genetics and botany researchers have collaborated to find...
Virginia Department of Education
Mendelian Genetics
How did Mendel know which pea plants would demonstrate certain characteristics? Pupils explore the answer this question, among others, as they complete Punnet squares, research dominant and recessive traits, and explore hereditary...
Curated OER
At a Glance: Genetic Variation
High schoolers conduct a class survey of a variety of human traits and construct histograms of the collected data. They explore how they are alike and different and play a game that introduces the concept of each individual's uniqueness.
Curated OER
Managing Wildlife
Young scholars explore the relationship between wildlife and humans in northern New England. They also brainstorm ideas on why they think some species are greater in population than others in a given area.
Curated OER
The Meaning of Genetic Variation
Students investigate variation in the beta globin gene by identifying base changes that do and do not alter function, and by using several Internet-based resources to consider the significance in different environments of the base...
Michigan State University
Bug Lyphe!
Introduce ecology classes to biodiversity and interdependence in ecosystems with a PowerPoint presentation. Then, they get up-close and personal with the invertebrate world by collecting insects, classifying them, and graphing their...