BCLN – Rev. July, 2015
BIO 12 UNIT 03: The Cell
Name: ___________________
Project 2: Cell Analogy (The Cell is Like a…)
Potential Credits:
/35
Project Goals:
 to gain and demonstrate further understanding of how organelles function and interact
within cells
Instructions:
 Please read through the Unit 3 Lessons in their entirety.
 Please create a functional analogy for the cell where you compare how the components of
a complex system interact and function similar to that of the organelles of the cell. Please
be sure that you choose a sufficiently complex system for your analogy as this will give
you more options for your analogy and thus, make it easier to create. You may choose an
analogy from the Possible Analogies list below or you may create one of your own.
 Your analogy should include the following:
o a detailed, coloured , labeled HAND-DRAWN diagram of an animal cell
o detailed, coloured, labeled pictures of the analogies
 please colour coordinate your pictures and diagrams – for example if your
analogy is that the cell is like a school and that the nucleus is like the school
office then if you colour the nucleus red in the cell diagram then you should
like-wise colour the office red in a map of the school or include pictures of
a school office with either a red border or red star or some such colourcoding
 note that your analogies do not all have to be represented within a single
picture, for example you may choose to have a single map of the school for
your analogy or you may choose to have different detailed pictures for the
different organelle analogies such as separate pictures of an office, a
gymnasium or a metal work room
o a detailed, well-thought out, clear and connected analogy
 Please remember that you are creating an analogy, so everything will not
line up perfectly (the only way that would work is if your analogy was "The
cell is like a cell!"). However, you need to do your best to describe how
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BCLN – Rev. July, 2015
BIO 12 UNIT 03: The Cell
the different components within your system interact and function like the
various organelles within a cell. The more complex a system you choose
and the more familiar you are with that system the easier it will be to create
your analogies.
 Please focus your analogies on the functions of the organelles as opposed
to the structures of the organelles…for example it more important to say
"that the nucleus is like the school office as it is where all the key decisions,
controlling the fate of the school, are made just as the nucleus controls the
fate of the cell" than it is to say "that the nucleus is like the school office as
it is found in the middle of the school just as the nucleus is typically found
in the middle of cell". Hint: Your analogy for the nucleus should be more
detailed than the example just given but that is the starting point.
o the analogy should include a discussion of the following organelles and
components:
 nucleus
 DNA (chromosomes/chromatin)
 Nuclear envelope
 Nuclear pores
 Nucleoplasm
 endoplasmic reticulum
 Rough
 Smooth
 Golgi Apparatus
 Cis face
 Trans face
 vesicles
 vacuoles
 lysosomes
 peroxisomes
 mitochondria
 ribosomes
 cytoskeleton
 cytoplasm
Possible Analogies:
The cell is like a(n)…
 movie/book/TV Show
o Star Wars, X-Men, Spiderman, Batman, Twilight, Hunger Games, Harry Potter,
Winnie the Pooh, Whosville, Little Mermaid, Lion King, Lord of the Rings,
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BCLN – Rev. July, 2015
BIO 12 UNIT 03: The Cell





Despicable Me, CSI, Glee, Arrow, Grey's Anatomy, The Vampire Diaries, Big
Bang Theory, Game of Thrones…
building(s)
o mall, school, university, factory, hospital, airport, hockey arena, sport stadium,
theater, circus, zoo, jail, mental hospital, haunted house, casino, ancient Rome,
medieval castle, old west town, your home town…
vehicle
o car, motorcycle, airplane, boat, ferry, aircraft carrier, tank, space ship…
nature
o forest, ocean, mountain, tree, desert, tundra, other biome…
organization
o boy scouts/girl guides, government, military, police, sports teams, major
companies…
other/creative (note: because these are creative you can sometimes create things to meet
your analogy needs a little better)
o computer, cell phone, space colony, Atlantis, Garden of Eden…
Marking Guide:
 a detailed, colour-coded , labeled HAND-DRAWN diagram of an animal cell
 detailed, coloured-coded, labeled pictures of the analogies
 a detailed, well-thought out, clear and connected analogy for:
o nucleus
 DNA (chromosomes/chromatin)
 Nuclear envelope
 Nuclear pores
 Nucleoplasm
o endoplasmic reticulum
 Rough
 Smooth
o Golgi Apparatus
 Cis face
 Trans face
o vesicles
o vacuoles
o lysosomes
o peroxisomes
o mitochondria
o ribosomes
o cytoskeleton
o cytoplasm
Total =
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/5
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/5
/2
/2
/2
/2
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/2
/2
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/2
35