Max, Reflection 6

My first lesson plan idea is about an online Genetics activity. It is geared towards high school Biology I students. I would use an activity online that is very entertaining. It is called 'DNA Fingerprint Lab'. In this lab the students will try and solve a crime by using DNA samples found at the crime scene. The objective of this lab is to get the students to understand DNA fingerprints and how they are used in many every day applications. This follows the standards because they say that they need to understand molecular biology and genetics/heredity and this could be used for both. This could be tied into the whole section on DNA. A computer lab would be needed to do this lab though. The website with the lab is http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/nova/sheppard/labwave.html


My second lesson plan would deal with the heart. My goals would be to have students start to learn and understand about the heart and the circulatory system. It would be geared towards middle school science, probably 8th grade. My main objective would be to have the students understand that the heart is the key organ in the circulatory system and how it has 4 chambers that allow blood to be pumped effectiently. I would also try to get them to understand how one way valves are key and how high cholerstol and an unhealthy diet and very bad on the heart. This would follow the standards that want students to begin to understand the human body and anatomy. Some video's of the heart would be played to help the students visually see the heart working. A computer and some sort of projection system would be needed for this.

My last lesson plan idea covers Charles Darwin and his development of the theory of evolution. This would be geared towards Biology I students also. We would start by covering his voyage on the HMS Beagle and his study of finch's on the galapogo's. This lead to his book The Origin of Species. This book was widely accepted almost immediately after it's publishing because of it's sound scientific reasoning and evidence. My goal would be to get the students to start thinking of evolution and lay the groundwork for later, more complicated lessons on evolution. This lesson would cover several of the standards in the Historical Perspectives section of the biology standards. I would use powerpoint to go over this lesson so I could incorporate pictures, maps, and other things like this to make the lesson more intertaining and interactive.