Dear SEP Families,
The students in Session 3 were excited to have the opportunity to discuss the Harry Potter universe with their peers and with me. We had many wonderful conversations regarding the physical traits of many Harry Potter characters and creatures. The students took a quiz on the first day to be sorted into their Hogwarts house and worked as a team with their house throughout the class, completing genetic activities and earning house points. The students completed three-generation pedigrees for Pygmy Puffs and focused on the way traits are passed from parent to offspring in Mendelian, codominant, and incomplete dominance inheritance. Through these pedigrees, we were able to predict which traits would be present in future generations of Pygmy Puffs.
Once students had a grasp of the vocabulary and using Punnett squares, the class had a discussion regarding the possible way magical ability may be passed from parent to child in the wizarding world. After viewing quotes from J.K. Rowling and information about forms of inheritance, the class came to the consensus that although magical inheritance seems rather complicated, it may be explained by the genetic phenomenon of epistasis.
During their final project, I enjoyed watching students work through the process of selecting traits for their Fantastic Beasts, completing Punnett squares to determine the probability of traits being passed to offspring, and creating drawings, models, and written descriptions of their Fantastic Beasts.
The students were competent in completing single trait Punnett squares. As a future challenge in developing their skills, students can continue practicing a dihybrid (two-factor or trait) cross Punnett square. For the students who are able to easily complete two-factor crosses, a trihybrid cross Punnett square may provide an interesting challenge. More practice with non-Mendelian forms of inheritance would be beneficial for many of the students in the class as well as these “rule-breaker” forms of inheritance can be more difficult.
I hope that the students’ interest in further study of genetics has been sparked and that they had a wonderful time here at SEP!
The students in Session 3 were excited to have the opportunity to discuss the Harry Potter universe with their peers and with me. We had many wonderful conversations regarding the physical traits of many Harry Potter characters and creatures. The students took a quiz on the first day to be sorted into their Hogwarts house and worked as a team with their house throughout the class, completing genetic activities and earning house points. The students completed three-generation pedigrees for Pygmy Puffs and focused on the way traits are passed from parent to offspring in Mendelian, codominant, and incomplete dominance inheritance. Through these pedigrees, we were able to predict which traits would be present in future generations of Pygmy Puffs.
Once students had a grasp of the vocabulary and using Punnett squares, the class had a discussion regarding the possible way magical ability may be passed from parent to child in the wizarding world. After viewing quotes from J.K. Rowling and information about forms of inheritance, the class came to the consensus that although magical inheritance seems rather complicated, it may be explained by the genetic phenomenon of epistasis.
During their final project, I enjoyed watching students work through the process of selecting traits for their Fantastic Beasts, completing Punnett squares to determine the probability of traits being passed to offspring, and creating drawings, models, and written descriptions of their Fantastic Beasts.
The students were competent in completing single trait Punnett squares. As a future challenge in developing their skills, students can continue practicing a dihybrid (two-factor or trait) cross Punnett square. For the students who are able to easily complete two-factor crosses, a trihybrid cross Punnett square may provide an interesting challenge. More practice with non-Mendelian forms of inheritance would be beneficial for many of the students in the class as well as these “rule-breaker” forms of inheritance can be more difficult.
I hope that the students’ interest in further study of genetics has been sparked and that they had a wonderful time here at SEP!
Resources for Continued Learning
https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLwL0Myd7Dk1Hj8WCDlDVBlkqT-ZVdj7Js- Two sisters from Texas, both educators, have created a YouTube channel to help students learn about science in a creative way. This link is to their playlist of genetic videos, some of which were watched during the Heredity and Hogwarts class, for students to review at home. Some of their other playlists that would be extensions of the topics discussed in class are DNA Replication, Cell Cycle, and Cell Division; and DNA, RNA, and Protein Synthesis.
http://web.ornl.gov/sci/techresources/Human_Genome/posters/chromosome/index.shtml On this part of the Human Genome Project Information Archive website, students can view images that list which genetic disorders are found on that chromosome.
The main page of the website has an overview of the Human Genome Project, goals of the project, a timelines of events, and benefits of the research.
http://www.decodingcancer.org/ For students interested in how genetics can affect cancer, this website has a series of PowerPoint lessons focused on a fictional family as they learn about cancer (specifically breast cancer) after the mother is diagnosed. The lessons are written with 9-12th graders in mind, but some of the 5-6th grade students may be able to grasp the concepts well.
https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PL7A750281106CD067 Within this biology playlist, there are several videos that walk students through various genetic topics.
Thank you for being a part of SEP 2016 Session 3!
http://web.ornl.gov/sci/techresources/Human_Genome/posters/chromosome/index.shtml On this part of the Human Genome Project Information Archive website, students can view images that list which genetic disorders are found on that chromosome.
The main page of the website has an overview of the Human Genome Project, goals of the project, a timelines of events, and benefits of the research.
http://www.decodingcancer.org/ For students interested in how genetics can affect cancer, this website has a series of PowerPoint lessons focused on a fictional family as they learn about cancer (specifically breast cancer) after the mother is diagnosed. The lessons are written with 9-12th graders in mind, but some of the 5-6th grade students may be able to grasp the concepts well.
https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PL7A750281106CD067 Within this biology playlist, there are several videos that walk students through various genetic topics.
Thank you for being a part of SEP 2016 Session 3!
