Mitosis and Meiosis are the crux of biology and genetics. Through these two processes the growth, development, and evolution of all species persists, therefore learning about these processes allows students a chance to take a look into the field of scientific research, as scientists themselves look into such processes and develop questions and investigations, and develop such questions using the flip-book they have created.
Allow students to learn through visual representation the steps of mitosis and meiosis and through learning engender questions that can be solved in a lab or the field (i.e. crossing over, inheritance, genetic errors, etc.)
Learning Resources and Materials
1) Template cards printed and glued for students (at least 21 cards per student)
3) Crayons and Colored Pencils
Development of Lesson
Mitosis and Meiosis are the crux of biology and genetics. Through these two processes the growth, development, and evolution of all species persists, therefore learning about these processes allows students a chance to take a look into the field of scientific research, as scientists themselves look into such processes and develop questions and investigations.
1) Students will use template cards (printed on sheets and glued index cards) to create a flip-book that illustrates the steps in mitosis and meiosis
2) Students will decide whether to use mitosis or meiosis for their first flip-book.
3) After reviewing the stages of cellular division, the teacher will provide a template for them to make the book, student may also bring images of their own.
4) From each step of the process students must draw their own diagrams to illustrate the processes involved throughout the cell division.
5) Encourage the use of colors and "middle" steps between phases to help transition to flip book
6) Once all pages are finished in the correct order students will then use a heavy-duty stapler to "paste" the pages
1) Students will follow steps 2-6 from Day-1 and create another flip-book for the other process.
1) Students will bring flip-books to class and instructors will encourage discussion of the processes and steps involved and eventually spur questions about what exactly happens during each phase and how the phenotypically and genotypically affect species.
1) For ELL students, allow them to understand the representation of the steps and how to follow the order consecutively. Encourage group participation with them to help foster understanding.
2) For students with physical handicap the instructor or the attendent in-charge of the student should help in the making of the cards.
3) Students can use digital photgraphs to help aid in the lab.
Gauge the results of the discussion be sure to quiz them later on the steps involved with both meiosis and mitosis and on some of the terms and theories that arised during discussion.
Also grade the flip-books either pass or fail, to see if the students actually put the effort into making the cards and followed the directions and the steps involved in each process.
Further, any questions that developed instead of completely answering in class, allow for time during lab to answer inevitable questions such as inheritance, widows peak, hitch-hicker thumb, etc.
Based on the evaluation of the students after the first exam to see whether they used the books, allow perpetual questions referring to the processes. Allow students to plan projects to discover to themselves (similar to Mendel) how variations arise through mitosis and meiosis.
I feel that the benchmarks will be supported by the results of the experiment. To allow students to generate questions that can be solved in the laboratory or field was the benchmark for this experiment. Depending on circumstances accommodations were made based on the situation. The flip-book idea I felt was a good idea for it allows for greater creativity in a subject that may otherwise seems like only facts and information.