Inquiry Activity Sequence for 9th Grade Biology

Names: Eric David Overarching question for driving the unit: We have many breeds of dogs around the world today. Yet we know that all of them have 1 common ancestor: The Wolf. How is it that we now have so many different breeds if they all came from the wolf?
Comment [ED1]: TOOL USE: I would put this question up on the board or overhead with a picture of a wolf and several breeds of dogs and following some individual thought time, I would utilize a small group model to allow students to talk about their ideas. Comment [ED2]: I chose this particular question because of its relevance to students lives. Many of my students either own dogs themselves or are at the very least familiar with them. So, right from the beginning it grabs their interest.

Trajectory of Inquiry Sequence Focus Objective

Objective Michigan State Standard: B4.1c Differentiate between dominant, recessive, codominant, polygenic, and sex-linked traits. National Standard: HS-LS3-3. Apply concepts of statistics and probability to explain the variation and distribution of expressed traits in a population. Data Analysis and Simulations Inquiry Trajectory (or Trajectories)

Comment [ED3]: I chose both a Michigan state standard and a national standard to focus on for this activity sequence because they contain overlapping ideas. Both standards are linked to the big question and in meeting these standards, students will have what they need to form a well-reasoned science explanation. Comment [ED4]: Students will be looking at a variety of data sets and simulations in order to observe patterns. Through several activities directly tied to the dog problem, students can use their observations to help support an explanation for larger question.

Big Ideas and examples

The Big Ideas here are the ideas I want my students to be able to understand following this activity sequence. When organisms reproduce, genetic information is transferred to their offspring, with half coming from each parent in sexual reproduction. Thus sexual reproduction gives rise to a new combination of chromosome pairs with variations between parent and offspring. Inheritance is the key factor causing the similarity among individuals in a species population. However, not all genes are inherited with the same probability. Whether or not the trait in question is autosomal or sex-linked as well as dominant or recessive will affect how that trait is expressed in a population. My goal is for students to think about the dog problem in this way. In order for the many dog breeds to have come into existence, they must have inherited some of the same traits from the wolf. But because they all look different from one another, they must not have all inherited the same traits. When one wolf pup was born that had slightly different traits that were favorable, people must have bred that wolf with other wolves to try and pass on those desirable traits, until finally a whole variety of dog breeds existed that no longer resembled their common ancestor, the wolf. Students will be able to construct this explanation based on the following patterns that they will observe in data sets: Meiosis vs Mitosis Video Simulations video simulations demonstrating the differences between mitosis and meiosis.

Pedigrees at least 3 examples of the following pedigrees will be presented to the students without any information regarding the trait that is being traced through it: o o o o Autosomal Dominant Pedigree Autosomal Recessive Pedigree Sex-linked Dominant Pedigree Sex-linked Recessive Pedigree

Activity Sequence Stages

Purpose of Activity Establish a problem / Engage Brief Description of Activity I will ask the students the problem question. I will then put them into groups and allow them to draw out their ideas. This will be followed by a gallery walk in which the students will have a chance to view their classmates work. It will conclude with a discussion about which Ideas we agreed were the best and that we should save as a class set of ideas to revisit. A small group model such as this one can create many student questions, which is good. Students will be allowed to use sticky notes to ask their questions, which will be attached to the model. Formative Assessment Small group model. This will allow me to assess student prior knowledge based on initial ideas that each group comes up with Scientific Practices - Hypothesizing - Modeling - Predicting - Using personal experience as data

Comment [ED5]: CONNECTION TO TOOL: Following each activity, I would like students to revisit their class model and reflect on their initial ideas. This is a great opportunity for students to use sticky notes to modify their original ideas or questions. Comment [ED6]: Notice the many scientific practices that students will be engaged in throughout the activity sequence. The practices are useful not only for biology, but are applicable across multiple subjects. Comment [ED8]: These groups will be made up of roughly 4 students each.

Comment [ED7]: This will be a whole-class discussion, open to all ideas. I will begin by asking one person from each group to share one idea they thought was really good. From there we can decide to change, get rid of, or add ideas to our class model.

Questions

Each student will need to come up with at least one question. After I have looked at the questions, I will determine if any patterns exist. The questions that occur most frequently will be added to the model Following each activity, the sticky notes will be used again to revisit students original ideas and modify them. In addition,

- Questioning - Recognizing the extent of their knowledge - Justifying Ideas with Evidence

Comment [ED9]: The first time that we use sticky notes I will model the proper usage of them. I will also provide several sentence starters for so that they can practice speaking and writing like a scientist.

Evidence: Data and patterns

Meiosis vs mitosis simulations: students will observe several simulations of mitosis and meiosis and determine the pattern differences between the two. From this activity, they will gather evidence for how genetic variability

- Hypothesizing - Revising models based on Evidence - Predicting

Comment [ED10]: Because the processes of mitosis and meiosis are very difficult for students to see in the real world, I use a variety of video simulations to help them visualize and compare the processes.

can occur among a population. Pedigree examples: students will define patterns in the groups of pedigree examples and use this as evidence for dominance and autosomal/sex-linked inheritance of traits. Students Explanations /models Here students will have one last opportunity to modify their ideas and view how their thinking has changed. This will be accomplished through the use of two activities:

daily exit slip will be used to collect more individualized assessment data.

- Questioning - Justifying ideas with evidence - Analyzing and Interpreting Data - Obtaining, evaluating and communicating information - Revising models

Comment [ED11]: The use of a daily exit slip keeps students focused and allows them some time for metacognition (i.e. they have a chance to reflect on their learning). It also helps me to see how students have progressed at the end of each lesson.

The revised model will be act as a formative assessment along with students 1. Sticky Notes will be used one written explanations last time to allow students to make final modifications to their ideas. 2. Students will write out their final explanations for the original dog problem. The goal of this activity is to allow students a chance to practice communicating their ideas

Comment [ED12]: CONNECTION TO TOOL: Again, after we have completed all of the activities, the students are given another opportunity to edit their model as they see necessary

Comment [ED13]: I feel that it is very important for students to be able to communicate their ideas. By having them write out their explanations, it gives them valuable practice and also provides me with an opportunity to help them improve.

Scientific theories or models

After reading over the students written explanations to the dog question, we will review important terminology that I have recognized to be misunderstood or improperly used by a significant number of students. They will then have a final chance to edit their explanations. At this stage of the sequence students will write a short essay describing how they would go about breeding a new dog. They will also be presented with the scenario that one of the traits they are breeding for is sex-linked recessive and they must explain how this will affect their undertaking.

Edited explanations

Communicating science ideas - Revising models

Comment [ED14]: After students have written their individual explanations, it is important to address any misconceptions that may still exist and to correct improper usage of key terms. I want my students to have the correct understanding of the concepts by the end of the activity sequence so that they can apply the knowledge to other situations. Once these issue have been addressed, students will have the opportunity to re-write their explanations to help reinforce their understanding and communication skills.

Communication

Communicating science ideas

Comment [ED15]: I end the sequence by presenting students with a new scenario. By applying the ideas they learned and developed throughout the activity sequence, they can solve other similar, but slightly different problems. I use this portion of the sequence as my summative assessment.