Investigation Planning and Documentation Template

Please include your initials in the file name of this document.

Your Name__Christina Coffey_____Date___October 28, 2009

Grade(s) taught___7th______

Key Parts of an Investigation

 Question(s)  Goals  MA state frameworks  Overview & approximate time  Dataset(s)  Analysis tool(s)  Main steps for analysis techniques  Background information  Example product(s)  Student handouts for data collection & analysis  Support for student inquiry  Reflections on Implementing the Investigation (complete after implementing)

Investigation Question(s) Are all cells created equal? Are they all the same size? Do they all look exactly like the diagrams that we see? Are all organelles the same size?

Investigation Goals  Students will develop an appreciation for the diversity and complexity of cells in living things  Students will recognize differences and similarities in size and structure of different types of cells  Students will gain a better understanding of the basic structure and function of cells and their organelles 

MA State Frameworks Life Science: 2. Recognize that all organisms are composed of cells, and that many organisms are single-celled (unicellular), e.g., bacteria, yeast. In these single-celled organisms, one cell must carry out all of the basic functions of life.

3. Compare and contrast plant and animal cells, including major organelles (cell membrane, cell wall, nucleus, cytoplasm, chloroplasts, mitochondria, vacuoles). 4. Recognize that within cells, many of the basic functions of organisms (e.g., extracting energy from food and getting rid of waste) are carried out. The way in which cells function is similar in all living organisms.

Overview & Approximate Time  Students analyze digital images of cells, measuring lengths of a variety of cells  Two class periods, but could be extended if time permits.

Dataset(s)  Images of cells with scale bars

Analysis Tool(s)  ImageJ  Excel 

Steps for Data Analysis  Open up an Excel spreadsheet and set up column titles - cell or cell organelle, size (um)  Open ImageJ and cheek cell image  Set scale in ImageJ according to the scale bar on the image  Measure the length of the cell and record data in Excel Spreadsheet  Measure nucleus of the cheek cell and record data  Students can then choose the next cell image to open, measure, and record data  Students need to be careful and reset the scale for each image  Once students have at least four measurements recorded in Excel, they can then create a graph of their measurements

Background Information  On the first day of the lesson, students will familiarize themselves with ImageJ by following the Mona Lisa lesson.  Students have already learned about plant and animal cells and have knowledge on cell organelles. Example Data Analysis Product(s) (i.e. graph, map, image, etc.; something you expect students to be able to create during the investigation)

Cell or cell organelle size (um) cheek cell 33.515 cheek cell Cell Measurements nucleus 5.513 human red blood cell 9.769 300 white blood cell 12.409

) 250 penguin blood m 200

(length) 13.126 u ( penguin blood 150 e

(width) 6.84 z i 100

Paramecium S (length) 280.695 50 Paramecium ) ) 0 ll ) ) ia s e ll th th h r ll u e g t th d (width) 85.644 c id g d e le d c n i n c c d e (w n o human lung k u o (l le (w h lo o d ( c e n lo d e ll b o o m m to mitochondria 0.556 h e d b lo iu i c c e lo b iu c m re t b c k i n e e g e n h in i m n e a w u u m a u h g a r l c m g n r a n u n e a P h e p P a p m u h

Student handouts for data collection & analysis (can attach these separately):

I didn’t have any handouts for the lessons. I had my examples on the SMARTBoard so that they students could follow along with what I was doing.

Support for student inquiry (List strategies this investigation will use to promote student inquiry)

Allowing them to use ImageJ for measuring cells tied what they were learning from the book to real pictures of cells. Also, letting them investigate ImageJ and allowing them to make the graphs promoted technology inquiry. ______

COMPLETE THIS LAST SECTION AFTER YOU HAVE IMPLEMENTED THE INVESTIGATION

Today’s Date__November 14, 2009______

Number of classes that used the investigation_____5______

Approximate number of students who completed the investigation___92_____

Paste an example of student work (final graph, student analysis, etc.) from the investigation

Cell or cell Parts size (um) cheek cell 29.2 cheek cell nucleus 5.192 Euglena 66.332 elodea 61.333 Human white blood cell 12.739

size (um)

70

60

50 s t n

e 40 m

e size (um) r

u 30 s a e

M 20

10

0 cheek cell Human white cheek cell Euglena elodea nucleus blood cell size (um) 29.2 5.192 66.332 61.333 12.739 type of cell or part cell or cell part length (um)width (um) Cheek Cell 29.245 31.765 Cheek Cell Nucleus 5.149 4.412 Amoeba 224.561 183.333 Elodea 83.333 60.667 Euglena 66.268 28.787 Paramecium 281.086 82.178

Cell or Cell Part Length or Width

Paramecium t r

a Euglena P

l l

e Elodea

C width (um)

r o

l length (um)

l Amoeba e C

f

o Cheek Cell Nucleus

e p y

T Cheek Cell

0 50 100 150 200 250 300 Length or Width

Reflections on Implementing the Investigation

 How you feel the investigation went with students? The investigation went well. The majority of the students were engaged and following along with the procedure. They seemed to be interested and the use of technology intrigued them. The one real problem that I had was on the 1st day with the Mona Lisa lesson. At first one or two students in the 3rd or 4th class ended up with the contrast too dark. I first thought that they had done something without listening to me, but by the end of that class all the computers images of Mona Lisa seemed to be too dark. I believe that many of the students were saving the contrast changes and then causing more changes, by trying to undo what they had done. The computer lab teacher and I ended up reloading the image half way through the day from my flash drive. As usual, there didn’t seem to be enough time. It would have been good to have one more day in the computer lab to look at the graphs in more depth, to compare graphs, and to answer questions.

 Were you satisfied with the level of student engagement? What sorts of questions did student ask? What insights did they have? How proficient are they in using the software? For the most part the students were all engaged and following the protocol. There were a few all together that were just playing with the software and not measuring. I think doing the Mona Lisa lesson for the 1st day helped with the playing factor. I had given them approximately 10 minutes at the end of that lesson to ‘play around’ with ImageJ. The types of questions that they had were to do with the cells. “Do I measure just one of these or all of them?”, “Is each one an individual cell?” They also seemed to ask how to undo something to the pictures that they had mistakenly done, i.e. lines, boxes, shading, etc. Some of the students figured things out in ImageJ on their own. They even figured things out that I wasn’t showing them in the lessons! It’s actually amazing how some students can investigate a program that is new to them and figure it out so quickly. Some students wanted to know if they could download and use ImageJ at home. I did not do any pre-teaching of Excel. Since we were doing just the basics I figured that there would be enough students familiar with it to help each other. That is exactly what happened. The students that had a better understanding of Excel helped those that didn’t.

 How will you carry out this investigation differently in the future? If I were to do this lesson again, instead of using the Mona Lisa as an intro lesson for ImageJ, I think I would use something like this corn leaf cell image for measuring practice. It would then be tied in to what they were learning in class. Some of the students were confused as to why we were measuring an image of a famous painting. http://library.thinkquest.org/3564/Cells/cell93.gif

I would also plan at least one more day in the computer lab. I think at least one more day would have allowed me to tie it all together better and allow for better understanding from the students. But of course these is only so much time for activities and minimal available time in the labs.

Images for Cell Sizes Lesson Human Cheek cell: http://www.bioscience.heacademy.ac.uk/imagebank/uploaded_images/Cheekcellphasecontrastop tics.jpg Human Lung Mitochondria http://www.sciencedaily.com/images/2009/09/090924123308-large.jpg Human Red Blood Cells Human White Blood Cells Penguin Blood Cells Elodea cells http://www.exploratorium.edu/imaging_station/gal_media Corn plant leaf cell http://library.thinkquest.org/3564/Cells/cell93.gif