Julia DeFelice's Biology Blog

  In this lesson, which should take one day, the students will learn about the central dogma, the explanation for how genetic information flows through our biological system. This can be a confusing concept for the students, as they are learning new words and the letter nucleotides  can get jumbled up in their heads. To me, the best way to learn this information is starting informally and then moving to the formal instruction. As before, my goal for this lesson is to lecture less and get the students involved more. I hope to do this by having students transcribe and translate into words they understand and then do the process again with actual nucleotides. HS-LS1-1. Construct an explanation based on evidence for how the structure of DNA determines the structure of proteins which carry out the essential functions of life through systems of specialized cells.   TIMELINE OF ACTIVITIES: To start the lesson, I will ask the students to do an informal transcription and translati...

In this lab, which will take a double period, the students will be able to visualize the effects of biomagnification. Biomagnification is when a toxin accumulates in the food chain, with the most found in our tertiary consumers. The students will already have gone through a lesson about the overall causes of loss to biodiversity, and pesticide/ toxin is one of those causes. As an introduction to the lab, students will also have already gone through a smaller powerpoint discussing the main points to biomagnification. This is a hands-on activity to display the passing of toxins in the food chain because students have trouble understanding how a toxin could only be dangerous to specific levels of species on the energy pyramid. As before, my goal for this lesson is to lecture less and get the students involved more. I hope to do this by making up for the longer lecture with a longer hands-on lab. HS-LS2-2: Use mathematical representations to support and revise explanations based on evidenc...

In this lesson, which I foresee occurring over a few days, the students will learn how to demonstrate the processes of photosynthesis and cellular respiration while acknowledging the inputs and outputs of each and the distinct differences between cycles. To me, the best way to learn this information is drawing out the process so that students can follow a visual when studying the processes. As before, my goal for this lesson is to lecture less and get the students involved more. I hope to do this by having students model the different cycles. HS-LS1-7: Use a model to illustrate that aerobic cellular respiration is a chemical process whereby the bonds of food molecules and oxygen molecules are broken and the bonds in new compounds are formed resulting in a net transfer of energy. HS-LS1-5: Use a model to illustrate how photosynthesis transforms light energy into stored chemical energy. TIMELINE OF ACTIVITIES: The class will start with a premade/ internet found diagram of aerobic respira...

In this lesson, students will be gaining knowledge about how to regulate homeostasis. We will learn what homeostasis is and the feedback mechanisms that help us reach it. As before, my goal for this lesson is to lecture less and get the students involved more. I hope to do this by having students model different types of negative and positive feedback in the classroom. HS-LS1-3. Plan and conduct an investigation to provide evidence that feedback mechanisms maintain homeostasis.   TIMELINE OF ACTIVITIES Before class begins, I will put a fan in the classroom in order to get the room temperature down. The hope is that students will get goosebumps and I can ask them about how this relates to negative feedback. The class will start with a 2 minute 30 second video from YouTube that goes through the basic concepts of homeostasis. It discusses what it is, why it is important to our body function, and the different feedback loops that our body takes to regulate itself. This video will serv...