Author (s): Billy Volle
Team Members:
Lesson #1
Date lesson will be taught: March 12/14
Grade level: 9
Lesson Source (kit, lesson) : Michael Ralph
– Students should understand the benefits of using models and artistic renderings of scientific ideas and processes, especially in molecular biology when what is being studied is too small to see. Students should also know the relative strengths of hydrogen and covalent bonds, as this is an important concept for understanding how DNA is able to unzip and pull apart during replication. Students should be able to use improvised models to represent molecules for which they know the structure.
The Students Will Be Able To:
…represent structures that are too small to be seen using models.
…explain the benefits of representing scientific structures and concepts through art.
…compare and contrast hydrogen bonds and covalent bonds.
There are check points built into the lesson, when student work must be approved before they can move on to the next step. I will be free to circulate around the room during activities. This will give me a chance to observe student work and communicate with students to get a better understanding of their grasp of the material. A set of post-lesson questions will also be given on the second day, and collected before the students leave.

Kansas Science and Math Standards- Include standard, benchmark and indicator where applicable
Science : (standard, benchmark, indicator)
STANDARD 2A: CHEMISTRY Grades 8-12
CHEMISTRY – The student will develop an understanding of the structure of atoms, compounds, chemical reactions, and the interactions of energy and matter.
Benchmark 2: The students will understand the states and properties of matter.
Grades 8-12 Indicators Additional Specificity
The student …
2. ▲ understands the periodic table lists elements according to increasing atomic number. This table organizes physical and chemical trends by groups, periods, and sub-categories.
1b. Intermolecular attraction (attraction between molecules) determines the state of the molecule. Examples of intermolecular attraction include hydrogen bonding, permanent dipole interaction, and induced dipole interaction. Gases have the weakest and solids have the greatest intermolecular attraction. The hydrogen bond is an intermolecular attraction responsible for the properties of water and many biological molecules.
3. ▲ understands chemical bonds result when valence electrons are transferred or shared between atoms. Breaking a chemical bond requires energy. Formation of a chemical bond releases energy. Ionic compounds result from atoms transferring electrons.
Molecular compounds result from atoms sharing electrons. c. Covalent bonds form when two or more atoms share one or more pairs of electrons to achieve a more stable electron configuration. The two classifications of covalent bonds are nonpolar and polar. The greater the electronegativity difference between atoms involved in the bond, the more polar the bond.
STANDARD 3: LIFE SCIENCE Grades 8-12
LIFE SCIENCE – The student will develop an understanding of the cell, molecular basis of heredity, biological evolution, interdependence of organisms, matter, energy, and organization in living systems, and the behavior of organisms.
Benchmark 2: The student will demonstrate an understanding of chromosomes, genes, and the molecular basis of heredity.
1. ▲ understands living organisms contain DNA or RNA as their genetic material, which provides the instructions that specify the characteristics of organisms.
1. a. Nucleotides (adenine, thymine, guanine, cytosine and uracil) make upDNA and RNA molecules.

for Whole Class:
(BE SPECIFIC about quantities) per Group: 10 large white marshmallows, 10 small white marshmallows, 2 green marshmallows, 2 yellow marshmallows, 3 pink marshmallows, 3 orange marshmallows, 30 half-toothpicks, 10 whole toothpicks, at least 4 different colors of crayon, colored pencil, or marker, 1 pair of scissors, and 1 set of tinker toys marshmallow model instructions.
ELL students will be assured to understand the instruction. A small demonstration will be provided, if necessary.
per Student: One sheet of DNA origami template paper and one origami instruction sheet. One post-lesson questions sheet.
Advance preparation: Print off origami template papers, origami instruction sheets, and the tinker toys marshmallow model instructions. Buy marshmallows.
Include handouts at the end of this lesson plan document (blank page provided)
Students should follow regular classroom safety guidelines. This lab includes the handling of sharp scissors and toothpicks. Food used during the completion of this lab is not to be eaten.

Estimated Time: ___45 min___
What the teacher does AND how will the teacher direct students: (Directions)
As an engage and introduction to DNA model building, students will be constructing an origami DNA double helix.
Engage students with examples of elaborate origami, while assessing the students’ knowledge of the art of paper-folding.
Reveal the plan to construct an origami DNA molecule while introducing the concept of model-building as a useful tool in molecular biology and chemistry.
Assign a materials manager to gather colored pencils (or crayons, or markers) enough origami templates for their table, one pair of scissors, and as many origami instruction sheets as needed (they can likely share)
Probing Questions: Critical questions that will connect prior knowledge and create a “ Need to know”
Could it be?
What do you know about origami?
Have you ever done origami before?
In what country did origami originate?
Why do people make origami?
Is origami ever used for a purpose other than entertainment or decoration?
Observe the students as they begin to construct their origami DNA models.
Clarify instructions as necessary.
Ensure that the students are getting the base pairs matched up correctly when coloring the model.
Spark conversation and assess understanding as able.
Teacher Decision Check Point: how do you know your students are ready to move forward?
Expected Student Responses AND
Misconceptions - think like a student to consider student responses INCLUDING
misconceptions:
That it involves folding paper swans.
When I was a little kid.
Japan, China, Asia,
They’re bored. For decoration. Tradition.
Not that I know of.
I’m sure it could.

This task will take most if not all of the students the whole first period to complete. This lesson is designed for a short day of class followed by a much longer block day of class. If students are participating in the origami model building, show that they are thinking about the applications of model building, and recognize the correct pairing of nucleotides, then they are ready to move on.
Estimated Time: ____50 min______
What the teacher does AND what the teacher will direct students to do:
(Directions)
Probing Questions: Critical questions that will guide students to a
“C ommon set of Experiences ”
Begin day two with a recap of what we did last class period.
Have the students explain what their origami models represented.
Get them thinking about ways to improve upon their models.
Introduce today’s lab of building DNA models using marshmallows.
Briefly recap the history of James Watson and Francis Crick’s discovery, and discuss how they came to build the model the way that they did.
Explain that science involves a lot of trial and error, and inform the students that trial and error is the only way they will arrive at the correct model today.
Emphasize that students will need to check in with you after each step because of this approach.
Take special care to make sure that ELL students are involved in conversation during the model building period, as this will provide them with a low-pressure environment to
What good can an origami DNA model do us?
How could you use the models we created to explain the structure of DNA to a friend?
What, if anything, is missing from our origami DNA models?
Can you think of a way to improve upon our design?
What other medium might you use to construct a more appropriate model of
DNA?
Expected Student Responses AND
Misconceptions - think like a student to consider student responses INCLUDING misconceptions:
It shows the helix shape.
It allows us to visualize something microscopic.
It looks nice.
I could show them how the base pairs match up, and they could see the shape of the molecule.
Nothing, the DNA molecules look just like I imagine them.
The paper isn’t thick enough to be a DNA molecule.
I would use something easier to handle and less tedious that folded paper.
I see you have a bunch of marshmallows on the desk up there, let’s use those.

practice with science vocabulary.
Teacher Decision Check Point: how do you know your students are ready to move forward?
Students are ready to move forward when they have completed a correct model of a double strand of DNA and can explain the structure their group has assembled. If one group begins to get ahead of the others, there is an extension to the lab that requires the students to strengthen up their flimsy models by replacing the long toothpicks of the hydrogen bonds with paper clips that are going to be stabbed through a straw.
Students will hang the new model from the ceiling and form the characteristic twist of a double helix. There is another extension at the bottom of the tinker toys handout for further scaffolding. Have groups finishing early discuss the question.
Estimated Time: ___15 min___
What the teacher does AND what the teacher will direct students to do:
(Directions)
Gather the students’ attention to recap what they have learned.
Have the students explain every part of the models they have built to the best of their abilities.
Go through the accompanying powerpoint with the students, ensuring that they can relate the topics covered to the models that they built.
Take special note to mention the different kinds of bonds, and what they are represented by in the model.
Be sure that they are able to recognize which part of the DNA is represented by each marshmallow.
Clarifying Questions: Critical questions that will help students
“C larify their Understanding ” and introduce information related to the lesson concepts & vocabulary
– check for understanding (formative
assessment)
What did each marshmallow represent?
What did the toothpicks represent?
How accurate do you think your model is?
Are there better materials yet that you would prefer to use for building a DNA model?
Expected Student Responses AND
Misconceptions - think like a student to consider student responses INCLUDING misconceptions:
The nucleotides, sugars, and phosphates
Bonds.
Hydrogen and covalent bonds.
I think we did pretty well.
The models are flimsy.
The models probably aren’t the most accurate.
We could definitely make them out of something sturdier.

Teacher Decision Check Point: how do you know your students are ready to move forward?
Estimated Time: ____5-10 minutes______
What the teacher does AND what the teacher will direct students to do:
(Directions)
Spend some time addressing how we know what we know about the structure of DNA.
Without this knowledge into how the information was obtained, the whole process seems mystical.
This mystical view of molecular biology lends itself to the creation of misconceptions that make less and less sense.
Explain the technique of x-ray crystallography
Probing Questions: Critical questions that will help students “E xtend or
A pply”
their newly acquired concepts/skills in new situations
How do you think we are able to accurately decipher the structure of something as small as a molecule?
How would you explain x-ray crystallography in your own words?
Expected Student Responses AND
Misconceptions - think like a student to consider student responses INCLUDING misconceptions:
Microscopes.
We don’t, this is just a theory.
A really difficult puzzle.

Estimated Time: _____1 hour 30 min_____
Critical questions that ask students to demonstrate their understanding of the lesson’s performance objectives.
Formative Assessment(s) : In addition to the final assessment (bell ringer or exit slips), how will you determine students’ learning within this lesson : (observations, student responses/elaborations, white boards, student questions, etc. Look at your Teacher Decision Check
Point)?
Check points are built into the lesson, and the nature of the lesson will allow me to circulate throughout the room for the entirety of the activities. I will be able to communicate with students as they work out the construction of their models, and I will get to directly observe their learning.
Summative Assessment: Provide a student copy of the final assessment/exit slips or other summative assessments you use in the lesson

Post-Lesson Questions
03/14/13
NAME:____________________________________
1) What technique was used to create photograph 51? a.
X-ray crystallography b.
Scanning electron micrograph c.
Spectrophotometry d.
Chromatography
2) ____________ bonds are much stronger than ___________ bonds, because ____________ bonds share electrons while ____________ bonds are merely reactions between partial charges.
3) A chromosome is a single molecule of double-stranded DNA. a.
True b.
False
4) Where is DNA located in human cells? a.
Cytoplasm b.
Endoplasmic reticulum c.
Golgi body d.
Nucleus e.
Centrosome
5) In your own words, briefly describe the purpose of DNA (1-2 sentences).