Biology Partnership
(A Teacher Quality Grant)
Title: Heredity and the Environment (Albino Tobacco Seed Activity)
Length: 55 minutes or 1 Class Period
Course Level: 10th Grade Biology (Regular Biology)/ Biology Honors
Group Members: MELVIN FLORES, LARIE LAUDATO, GLENN SOLTES
Mentor: LISA J. DAVIS
Motivation:
A. Motivational Video Clip:
Students will watch video clip to activate prior knowledge about the interaction of genes with
environmental factors, and the impact of these interactions on health using the link below:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QJ__X1HEKeU
B. After viewing video clip students will fill-out the graphic organizer below based on the
information obtained from the video (5 minutes). Identify the genetic disorders caused by
environmental factors.
C. Pre-Test
SC.912.L.16.1 - Genetics
●
SC.912.L.16.1 Use Mendel's laws of segregation and independent assortment to analyze
patterns of inheritance.
●
●
1
Also assesses SC.912.L.16.2 Discuss observed inheritance patterns caused by various
modes of inheritance, including dominant, recessive, codominant, sex-linked, polygenic,
and multiple alleles.
Other related benchmark: HE.912.C.1.4 Analyze how heredity and family history can
impact personal health.
Hemophilia is a sex-linked, recessive trait. Which of the following describes the probability
of hemophilia in the offspring of a man who does not have hemophilia and a woman whose
father is a hemophiliac?
2
a
A. Each of their sons will have hemophilia.
b
c
d
B. None of their daughters will have hemophilia.
C. Their sons have a 25% chance of having hemophilia.
D. There is a 50% chance that their daughters will have hemophilia.
Alleles for the A and B blood cell antigens are codominant. The condition where no antigens
are present on the blood cells (type O blood) is a recessive trait. Which set of parents can
most likely produce a child with type O blood?
A. one parent with type AB blood and the other parent with type O blood
B. one parent with type AB blood, and the other parent with type A blood
C. one parent with heterozygous type A blood, and the other parent with type O blood
D. one parent with homozygous type A blood, and the other parent with homozygous
type B blood
3
One of the parents of a child has phenylketonuria (PKU), which is caused by recessive
alleles. The other parent does not have the PKU alleles. What is the chance that the
couple will have a child with phenylketonuria?
A. 0%
B. 50%
C. 75%
D. 100%
4
Hitchhiker's thumb (H) is dominant to no hitchhiker's thumb (h). A woman who does not
have hitchhiker's thumb marries a man who is heterozygous for hitchhiker's thumb. What
is the probable genotypic ratio of their children?
A. 0% Hh: 100% hh
B. 50% Hh: 50% hh
C. 75% Hh: 25% hh
D. 100% Hh: 0% hh
5
A human baby boy inherits a recessive allele from his mother. In which circumstance would
he most likely show the trait coded for by the recessive allele?
A.
B.
C.
D.
6
The
The
The
The
allele is on the X chromosome.
allele is on the Y chromosome.
baby inherits the dominant allele from his father.
allele is on an autosomal chromosome and the baby is a twin.
This diagram shows a pedigree for a recessive genetic disorder.
What is the genotype of individual 6?
A.
B.
C.
D.
Xh Y
XHY
XHXh
XHXH
7.
This diagram shows a diploid cell with two pairs of homologous chromosomes.
Due to independent assortment, what is the possible genetic make-up of gametes
Produced by this organism?
A.
B.
C.
D.
8.
SsTt
Ss, Tt
S, s, T, t
ST, St, sT, st
The table lists the trials for fruit color where allele R exhibits incomplete dominance
over allele R'.
Heterozygous fruit have orange phenotypes. What percent of offspring are expected
to have an orange phenotype if the parent plants are orange (RR') and yellow (R'R')?
A.
B.
C.
D.
25%
50%
75%
100%
9. Mendel hypothesized that reproductive cells have only one factor for each inherited
trait. This hypothesis is supported by which observation?
A. Diploid cells are produced by mitosis.
B. Diploid cells are produced by meiosis.
C. Haploid cells are produced by mitosis.
D. Haploid cells are produced by meiosis.
A N S W E R
K E Y
1 B
2 C
3 A
4 B
5 B
6 A
7 D
8 B
9 D
Needed Materials & Set-Up:
A. Materials:
2 petri dishes per group
2 filter paper per group
1 small packet of tobacco seeds per group
1 pipet
25 mL water per group
B: Set-Up
The set-up for the science classroom is shown below. For this lesson, students will primarily
work at their desks. Student movement is limited to getting supplies and placing their finished
work on the side counter.
To minimize movement, laboratory activity packets will be
distributed to the students (passing them down the rows).
Students may get up and get
materials needed for the activity. All materials will be spread on the right lab counter. After
the students finished their work, they will place it on the left lab counter.
SCIENCE LAB SET-UP
RESOURCE PERSON:
The teacher can invite a resource person from a reputable university or college to make a
presentation on interaction of genes with environmental factors. This presentation will include
a short discussion of important concepts and a related hands-on activity.
Outcomes
Dimensions of K-12 Science Education Standards
Scientific & Engineering Practices
Asking questions and defining problems
Developing and using models
Analyzing and interpreting data
Constructing explanations and designing solutions
Obtaining, evaluating and communicating information
Crosscutting Concepts
Patterns
Cause & effect: Mechanism and explanation
Scale, proportion, and quantity
System and system models
Structure & Function
Stability and change
Disciplinary Core Ideas:
LS3: Heredity: Inheritance and Variation of Traits across generations, focuses on the flow of
genetic information between generations. This idea explains the mechanisms of genetic
inheritance and describes the environmental and genetic causes of gene mutation and the
alteration of gene expression.
Next Generation Sunshine State Standards:
Standard 16: Heredity & Reproduction
SC.912.L.16.1 Use Mendel's laws of segregation and independent assortment to analyze
patterns of inheritance.
SC.912.L.16.2 Discuss observed inheritance patterns caused by various modes of inheritance,
including dominant, recessive, codominant, sex-linked, polygenic, and multiple alleles.
SC.912.L.16.3 Describe the basic process of DNA replication and how it relates to the
transmission and conservation of the genetic information.
SC.912.L.16.9 Explain how and why the genetic code is universal and is common to almost all
organisms.
Content Literacy Standards:
Common Core Literacy Standards
Reading Standards: Science & Technical Subjects - Integration of Knowledge & Ideas
Speaking & Listening Standards: Comprehension & Collaboration
Key Ideas and Details
CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RST.9-10.1 Cite specific textual evidence to support analysis of science and
technical texts, attending to the precise details of explanations or descriptions.
Craft and Structure
CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RST.9-10.4 Determine the meaning of symbols, key terms, and other
domain-specific words and phrases as they are used in a specific scientific or technical context
relevant to grades 9–10 texts and topics.
Integration of Knowledge and Ideas
CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RST.9-10.9 Compare and contrast findings presented in a text to those
from other sources (including their own experiments)
Specific Learning Outcomes:
1. Using germinating tobacco seeds, students should be able to explain other patterns of
inheritance in genetics with 100% accuracy.
2. Using the data gathered from this activity, students should be able to prove the relationship
between genes and the environment with 100% accuracy.
3. By observing the inheritance patterns of tobacco seeds, the students should be able to
interpret observed inheritance patterns cause by various modes of inheritance.
Presentation and Participation:
Methods
Part 1: Pre-Lab activity
A. (Behavior)
The teacher will distribute the activity worksheets and should make sure that all groups have a
complete set of materials they need for the activity. Ask the students to read the procedure
by asking them to take turn in reading it aloud. (Group 1 will read Steps 1 and 2, Group 2 will
read steps 3 and 4, group 3 will read, steps 5 and 6, group 4 will read steps 7 and 8, group 5 will
read step 9)
B. (Application)
After reading the procedure, allow the students to prepare the set-up. Students will place the
set-up in the germinating room; assign a specific place in the class room where they can put the
Petri dishes undisturbed for one week to allow the seeds to germinate.
Part 2
C. (Application/Process)
Let the students observe the germinating seeds after one week and make sure they are writing
down data they need for this activity.
Procedure:
1. Label the bottom of one Petri dish “light” and the bottom of another Petri dish “dark.”
Label both with your name and date.
2. Place a piece of filter paper into the bottom half of each Petri dish. Trim the paper as
necessary so that the paper lies flat in the bottom of each dish.
3. Soak the filter paper with tap water using a pipet. Remove or drain any excess water
that is not absorbed into the paper.
4. Sprinkle tobacco seeds evenly over the moistened paper in each Petri dish. Be sure the
seeds are nicely spread out in the two dishes.
5. Replace the cover on each Petri dish. Place the dish labeled “light” in a well-lighted area
as directed by Mr. James. Place the dish labeled “dark” in a completely darkened area
where it will receive absolutely no light.
6. Allow the seeds to germinate for one week. Let the dishes sit undisturbed except to add
water if the filter paper should become dry. If the dish in the dark needs added water,
add it quickly and in a reduced light environment.
7. Observe the Petri dishes at the end of one week. Some seedlings will be pale in color
(albino) with little or no green pigment. Other seedlings will have green areas forming.
When nearly all the seedlings have germinated, count each seedling as either green or
albino. Record your results in a data table like the following.
8. After counting the number of green and albino seedlings in both the “light” and “dark”
Petri dishes, reverse the location of the dishes for 2–3 days. Place the “light” dish in
the dark environment and the “dark” dish in the light environment.
9. After several days observe the seedlings in the Petri dishes again and record the
number of each kind of seedling (green vs. albino) in the data table.
Questions:
(3 higher order—analysis, synthesis, evaluation)
1. How do you explain what happened when you reversed the environmental conditions from
light to dark and dark to light? Use the words allele and phenotype to explain your
answer.
2. Predict which factor seems to be most important for tobacco seedlings: its heredity or
its environment. Use your data to justify your answer.
3. If albino seedlings do not survive long enough to reproduce and pass their genes on to
the next generation, how is it possible that albino seeds are produced? Explain your
answer by providing justifications based on the data observed from the experiment.
Reflection:
Teacher will give posttest to the students. The post test is the same questions as the pre-test.
The results will be recorded and the paper will be given back to the students during the next
meeting.
Safety:
Prior to doing the lab, the teacher should remind the students to observe the General
Guidelines in doing a laboratory activity. Reiterate the importance of observing proper decorum
at the lab. In addition to the existing guidelines, the teacher should remind the students the
following:
1
Never eat, drink or smoke while working in the laboratory.
2
Read and follow the procedures carefully.
3
Do not use any equipment unless you are trained and approved as a user by your teacher.
4
Wear safety glasses or face shields when working with hazardous materials and/or equipment.
5
Keep the work area clear of all materials except those needed for your work.
6
Students are responsible for the proper disposal of used materials in appropriate containers.
Clean your work area before leaving.
Transformative:
(Accommodations for at least 2 special needs students)
On Level: Logical/Mathematical Learners (Reinforcing Effort)
Ask on-level students to make a table for the data they collected from the three trials and
present their data to the other members of the group. The data table must be easy to
understand and must be presented in a logical manner. After presenting the data in a tabular
form, encourage them to make a bar graph showing the results of the experiment.
ELL: English Language Learners (Cooperative Learning Activity)
Brainstorm among the members of the group then, answer the question below.
Review your observations from the activity. Comment on the following statement: heredity can
determine what an organism may become, not what it will become.
Less Proficient Readers: (Cognitive)
Instruct students to make an outline of the lesson, using the green headings for the main
topics and the blue headings for the subtopics. As they read the lessons, they can add details
to their outline.
Utilize:
UTILIZE:
Reteaching:
If 60 percent of the class wasn’t able to answer the posttest correctly, the teacher must go
back to the PowerPoint presentation and emphasize the concepts related to the questions that
the students missed. If students missed questions 1, 2, 3, 4, 7, and 8, go back to the
PowerPoint presentation on Mendel’s Law’s of Inheritance and provide more exercises on
solving inheritance problems using Punnette squares.
1. A dominant gene for a specific trait is inherited along with a non-dominant gene for the
same trait. Which gene’s “building instructions” will be used to assemble the specific
protein?
2. In guinea pigs black coat is dominant to white. Is it possible for a black guinea pig to give
birth to a white guinea pig? Explain your answer
For Advanced Students, Construct a hypothetical family tree to do a pedigree analysis of the
condition. (A pedigree is used to trace inheritance of a trait over several generations.)
What is a genetic condition? Choose a condition from one of the more well-known conditions,
such as achondroplasia, cystic fibrosis, hemophilia, Huntington’s chorea, Marfan syndrome,
dwarfism, Down syndrome, Fragile-X syndrome, Tay-Sachs disease, sickle cell anemia,
neurofibromatosis, etc. You may wish to investigate a condition with which you are personally
familiar.