What did you learn this week?
I learned a simplified version of the very complex process of transcription and translation. We learned the process of central dogma and why it is important. We also created a candy DNA model out of gumdrops and twizzlers. Another activity we did was flipping a coin to see if my partner and I had dominant or recessive alleles to determine the genotype of our "baby". It was a fun activity and a lot easier than I thought it would be. From this activity, I learned there are so many more genotypes to determine than I thought.
Are you able to relate what you learned to what you already knew?
I am able to relate the process of translation and transcription to what I learned in high school. I took an anatomy class 6 years ago in my junior year of high school and we learned a lot about mRNA, tRNA, and rRNA that help these processes we learned about today. I also knew how the genotypes and phenotypes are related, but doing another activity with that helped solidify my knowledge.
How can you apply what you've learned to your teaching in the future?
Depending on what age I teach, the activity of flipping a coin to determine alleles and traits for a baby would be appropriate. If I taught an older science class then this would be a really fun activity to use. I think for younger children it wouldn't be appropriate because it is too advanced to explain the whole process, but maybe a more simplified version of it would be better.
I agree that the phenotype activity we did would be best for slightly older kids. Even though it can be simplified through models and other contexts, it is still a very complex process and is almost not necessary to try and teach to younger children since they won't be able to apply it as easily. But, with the older kids, they will be able to grasp understanding of this topic easier and these activities would encourage that.
ReplyDeleteHi Meredith! I also remember learning about genotypes and phenotypes in high school. I enjoyed doing this activity as it was a great refresher on the subject and I could see myself utilizing it in my future classroom.
ReplyDelete