Hannah Moriarty

Hannah Moriarty Teaching and Learning LAP: DNA Origami Dr. Letina Jeranyama 1/27/14

LAP: DNA Origami

I. Content: Describe what it is you will teach. What is the content?

In this lesson students will learn about the shape of a DNA double helix and the four different nucleotide bases that make it up. Students will learn to match up these different bases together and they will learn about DNA replication. Students will be exposed to the semi-conservative nature of DNA strands during DNA replication as well as the overall process that takes place. Students have already been exposed to the function of DNA and the different nucleotide bases that make it up. They will now take a closer look at DNA and the process of DNA replication.

II. Learning Goal(s): Describe what specifically students will know and be able to do after the experience of this class.

After this class students should be able to describe the nucleotide bases that make up DNA and describe how they match up with one another during DNA replication. Students should also be able to explain what semi-conservative means and know the double helix structure of DNA. Students should understand that DNA is the “blue-print” of life and it codes for genetic information that makes up our gene. Finally DNA’s structure is described as a double-helix shape. Students will now have a deeper understanding as to what this means and will be able visualize this new knowledge.

III. Rationale: Explain how the content and learning goal(s) relate to your Curriculum Unit Plan learning goals.

This is the third lesson in this particular unit. The lesson before students were taught how to match up different DNA nucleotide bases using sour patch kids. This helped students gain a basic understanding as to what DNA is, what are its main functions, and the various components that make it up. This will help to introduce the lesson we will do today where students will learn about the semi-conservative nature of DNA strands during DNA replication as well as why DNA replication is important to helping create our genetic code. In the next lesson students will be extracting DNA from strawberries, this will help students to be able to identify DNA and understand it’s importance to all types of organisms.

IV. Assessment: Describe how you and your students will know they have reached your learning goals. I will assess if my students have reached their learning goals throughout this lesson in various ways. First I will ask them to answer a warm-up questions pertaining to information that we as a class had learned the day before. Next students will be asked to construct an origami DNA model. In order to do this correctly they must be able to explain what semi-conservative means and match each DNA nucleotide base up correctly with one another. If students are able to do this correctly then I know they are able to grasp the main processes of RNA replication and why it is important. Finally students will be asked to answer an exit ticket where they will be asked to define “semi- conservative” and its importance to DNA replication.

V. Personalization and equity: Describe how you will provide for individual student strengths and needs. How will you and your lesson consider the needs of each student and scaffold learning? How specifically will ELL students and students with learning disabilities gain access and be supported?

I.E.P:

Students in my class with I.E.Ps will receive similar accommodations as the entire class. Each student will receive, written and oral instructions as well as be exposed to a model and a youtube video that goes through the steps they must follow in order to complete the model correctly. Students will also be sitting in groups so they will be able to ask one another for help as well. Each student will be required to answer a warm-up question that we will go over together. This activity is a very hands-on activity that taps into the students’ creative abilities and helps students who may be less academically focused to show off other skills they may possess. Finally, each student must fill out an exit ticket in order to help me assess which students need more help grasping the concepts we have been learning in class.

E.L.L:

Students in my class who are E.L.Ls will receive accommodations similar to my students who have I.E.Ps or to the entire class as a whole. My students who are E.L.Ls will receive a warm-up ticket and written instructions in Spanish. They will also view the same youtube video as their peers with Spanish subtitles. They will also receive a model of the DNA double helix model I am asking them to create. This will help students to grasp the mechanics of this activity as well as understand how to construct their model. E.L.L students will also be working with students who speak Spanish and will receive an exit ticket in Spanish. The hands-on nature of this activity has been designed to reach each student to some degree regardless of their academic or linguistic abilities.

VI. Activity description and agenda a. Describe the activities that will help your students understand the content of your class lesson by creating an agenda with time frames for your class. Be prepared to explain why you think each activity will help students on the path toward understanding. a.i. Warm-up:  What are the 4 nucleotide bases that make up DNA and during DNA replication how do these base-pairs match up with one another?  We will go over this question as a class and it will help me to assess which students need more help understanding the concepts at hand a.ii. Video:  The students will view a youtube video explaining to them how to make the DNA origami model a.iii. Activity  Students must construct a DNA double helix model  They will each be given a template  They must fill in the correct DNA nucleotide bases and color the corresponding squares to match up with one another  They must finally fold the template making a double helix structure a.iv. Exit Ticket:  What does semi-conservative mean and how is it important to DNA replication?  This will help me to assess which students were able to understand the vocabulary word “semi-conservative” and how this relates to DNA replication and which students need more direct attention

b. What particular challenges, in terms of student learning or implementing planned activity, do you anticipate and how will you address them?

Making models especially origami can be hard for some students because of the various steps they are required to follow. I plan to rectify this situation by showing them a youtube video of someone going through the steps of making this model. I will also provide each student with written instructions, my own model and we will go through the activity together step by step. Hopefully with enough guided instruction the students will be able to do the activity correctly.

VII. List the Massachusetts Learning Standards this lesson addresses.

3.1 Describe the basic structure (double helix, sugar/phosphate backbone, linked by complementary nucleotide pairs) of DNA, and describe its function in genetic inheritance.

3.2 Describe the basic process of DNA replication and how it relates to the transmission and conservation of the genetic code. Explain the basic processes of transcription and translation, and how they result in the expression of genes. Distinguish among the end products of replication, transcription, and translation.

VIII. Reflection a. In light of all areas of planning, but especially in terms of your stated purpose and learning goals, in what ways was the activity(ies) successful? How do you know? In what ways was it not successful? How might the activity be planned differently another time?

Although this was a rather fun and interactive lesson I don’t think I will ever do it again. Art projects can be very time consuming and students can become to stressed about designing a perfect model that they lose sight of the scientific importance behind the lesson. I don’t think that I would ever do this lesson again, for some students it was too stressful and others were more focused on coloring and designing a perfect model then about matching up the correct nucleotide bases. Also, some students seem stressed about having to make up their own nucleotide sequence. If I were to do this activity again I would stress the importance of completing the scientific portion of the lesson. I would also give the students the initial DNA sequence and they would need to find the corresponding bases to help get them started and avoid any confusion. b. What did you learn from the experience of this lesson that will inform your next LAP?

This experience has taught me to avoid any in-depth art projects because all too often the scientific lesson behind the activity is lost. Also, with this particular class doesn’t feel comfortable having freedom making up certain aspects of this activity on their own. Therefore, I should structure my lessons to give them more concrete guidelines and slowly take these guidelines away until as a class they feel more comfortable doing this on their own.