Tristen Hinkle Lesson Plan:

Unit of Study:
Cellular Reproduction

Lesson Topic:
Mitosis and Cytokinesis

Summary:
The purpose of this activity is to give students the opportunity to explore Mitosis. In this activity students will have the opportunity to use creative expression to develop their own study books or act out a skit using the phases of mitosis.

Learning Standards:
Learning Standards: 12.A.3b Developing and Using Models: Students use conceptual models rather than mental models) to represent their current understanding of a system (or parts of a system) under study, to aid in the development of questions and explanations, and to communicate ideas to others Planning and Carrying Out Investigations: Students will develop and test theories and explanations of how the world works. The goal requires investigations to test explanatory models of the world and their predictions and whether the inferences suggested by these models are supported by data.

Grade Level:
7th grade science

Credits:

A big thank you for the ideas in this laboratory goes out to www.sciencespot.com. They provided templates for the flip book and the ideas for acting out mitosis. Another thank you for the example of a power point that could be used came from Liz Belasic of MiddleSchoolScience.com .

Performance Objectives:
The objective of this activity is to understand the phases of mitosis and cellular reproduction. Looking Back: In this unit we will be building on our knowledge of cell theory, structures and organelles, and cellular transport to learn how cells use energy and reproduce. Looking Ahead: In this lesson we will be building knowledge of cells and reproduction. By gaining knowledge of mitosis I will expect that upon completion of the next unit, Meiosis, you will be able to differentiate between the two. In the next unit we also will be looking at cell cycle regulation and how cancer cell cycles differ from normal cells.

Expectations:
Students will be expected to work both independently and as a group to demonstrate their understanding of mitosis and the movement of chromosomes throughout cellular reproduction. Students acting out their mitosis phase will be expected to act in an appropriate manner. No horse play with the pool noodles! Students conducting a skit will be graded on depth of knowledge displayed, correct display of the phase, and the creativity put into acting out the skit. For those students able to complete the flip book they will be graded based on a rubric given at the start of the unit. Points will be earned for completeness, correct order, and correct depiction of the phase. All students understanding will be assessed at the end of the unit by the completion of a mitosis worksheet and by filling in the learning step in there KWL assessment.

Materials:
Pool Noodles- 2 per student in four different colors. String Blank Mitosis diagram outlines for students to fill out Colored pencils Staples Computer to do research on each step and check out the interactive activities (part of an interest center)

Prerequisite Skills 1. 2.
In order to ensure all student have ample background knowledge, before beginning our mitosis activities I will do a pre assessment KWL chart for each of the students. After reviewing the KWL sheet, I will present the needed material in a power point. The power point will contain diagrams and discussion questions to get the students thinking about mitosis and what it is. I will also hand out a mitosis notes page with diagrams.

3.

To further build their background knowledge I will allow the students some class time to explore mitosis interactively using such websites as: http://www.cellsalive.com/mitosis.htm

Lesson Presentation:

4. 5.

Then I will create a couple of stations for students to choose from. In order to appeal to students like Sasha, I we will create mitosis flip books to model the process. This project is based on the old cartoon flip book idea. Students use template cards (printed on cover stock or glued to index cards) to create a booklet that illustrates the steps involved in cell division. I provide a set of templates (see Mitosis Book attached)

for them to use to make a flip book. From phase to phase, they must draw diagrams to show the changes that occur throughout the process. I encourage "color coding" to make the end effect easy to follow. Once all the pages are completed and in the correct order, students use a heavy duty stapler to bind them together. They can flip through the pages and "see" mitosis in action. For those students looking to earn extra points they can add a written description to the back side of each of their cards in the flip book.

6.

For students; including Derrick, I would set up a group activity where they work together with other students and get to move around. Their job would be to do a little more research on the phases and create a skit using pool noodles as chromosomes. They would then have to present the phases of mitosis to the class acting out how the chromosomes move in each phase. Lastly, these students will also be asked to write a quick summary of what happens in their phase of mitosis.

7.

For Troy I would allow him to independently do research on cancer cells. I would have him focus on cancers rapid division and growth and write up a summary on what he learned.

8.

For those students who complete an activity early, they will be allowed to use the cells alive website http://www.cellsalive.com/mitosis.htm to learn more about mitosis. During this time they can complete some of the puzzles and quizzes about the material.

Independent Practice/ Assessment 9.

Lastly all students will be asked to independently complete the mitosis worksheet and to fill in the learning portion on their KWL chart to see just how much they have learned.

10.

After evaluating the students worksheets and KWL charts I will decide on if

further instruction in needed in order for all students to understand the topic.

Modifications/ Accommodations:
1. Sasha is a student with learning disabilities. She has very poor reading skills. Despite her poor reading skills, Sasha learns well when material is presented orally and enjoys interactive, handson activities. 2. Troy is a student with mild intellectual disabilities. Troys IEP accommodations include a modified curriculum that emphasizes life skills and career education.

3. Derrick has ADHD. He is often out-of-his seat, talks excessively and is very impulsive. Derrick responds well to novelty and when physical movement is incorporated into a lesson.

I believe that by having these different learning stations for students to choose from all of my students special needs will be accommodated. Sasha does poorly with reading, so creating the flip book and its pictorial images will be an excellent tool to help her understanding of mitosis. I think she will really enjoy this hands on activity. Troys situation is a little different so I created an individual assignment for him to complete. This assignment will also be graded using a given rubric. Points will be earned for depth of research, understanding of the topic and proper grammar and spelling. Seeing cancer is something that is prominent in most people lives this may be a way to relate cell growth to a real life scenario. I also believe that Derrick will enjoy creating a skit about mitosis. Well he will still have to do a little research on the topic; he will have ample oppertunity to be up and moving around designing his skit. These students will also be presenting to the class and the material will again be reiterated in another form to help students further understand the process. Here students will be graded based on the information presented in their skit, it will be evaluated for being correct information, how detailed its description was, and for the creativity involved.