The Gift of Life

It is recommended that this lesson be taught after students learn the basics of genetics concerning alleles, dominant versus recessive genes, basic Punnett squares, and protein synthesis. This lesson will allow students to apply what they have learned about genetics to a real-world scenario, centering on codominance as an exception to the rules of heredity. This lesson focuses on the process it takes to receive an organ donation and how to appropriately determine and match blood types.

Grade(s) Subject Time Frame Duration Course Modality
9th - 10th Science 203 Minutes 6 Class Periods Biology

Face-to-Face

Standards

B.LS3.1 Ask questions to clarify relationships about the role of DNA and chromosomes in coding the instructions for characteristic traits passed from parents to offspring. Emphasis is on using data to support arguments for the way variation occurs.

B.LS3.3 Apply concepts of statistics and probability to explain the variation and distribution of expressed traits in a population. Emphasis is on distribution and variation of traits in a population and the use of mathematics (e.g., calculations of frequencies based on data from Punnett squares, graphical representations) to describe the distribution of traits in a population, not individuals.

Essential Question

5E Snapshot:

1. Engage

Students reflect on what they already know about organ donations. Students watch a video on an organ recipient and their donor.

2. Explore

Students analyze truths and myths about being an organ donor.

3. Explain

Students watch a video on how to determine or predict an individual's blood type, then explore Punnett squares in an interactive blood typing game.

4. Extend

Students watch an ICAP video in which a panel of individuals from LifeShare, an Oklahoma transplant center team, discuss their careers. Students engage in a quick write over the video.

5. Evaluate

Students explore data of organ donations and create a flyer that shows what they've learned.

The modules are set so that students must complete the previous model before they can view the next. However, if you do not want learners to see an activity before another in the same module, simply assign an “Available From” date to that assignment to lock learners out until it is ready to be viewed. “The virtual environment provides students the ability to work ahead or the flexibility to catch up on activities and assignments without penalty. Although some students see this as a benefit, others perceive it as an increase in workload and struggle to keep up with course expectations” (Beese, 2014).

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