Must have Lessons for Threshold 5

Five Fingers of Evolution is a great little vid to show the simplicity and complexity of evolution.  I have a set of quiz question / game questions for use to reinforce the concepts and facts too.  This concept of evolution comes later in Threshold 5.

Questions for quiz games or just review

Thank you Bryan Dibble for reminding us of this video and the ad hoc activity.

 Jason Manning I do two activities that I adapted from their original online versions and that help students visualize the concepts of natural selection and DNA structure. For natural selection I get two types of candies that I place in equal numbers inside a bowl and pass it around for students to choose while we are covering the lesson. The tastier ones will be picked up first representing their reduced adaptability to survive in that environment. The least tasteful will survive the competition of predators. After two rounds of candies I look at the bowl, count the candies, and reflect upon the results.

For DNA my students build a DNA sequence pairing bases or nucleotides using twizzlers, gummies, and toothpicks. It also contributes to enhance the concept of scale and contextualization by zooming into the process. In my pedagogical sequence I do it after we read the article Crick, Watson, and Franklin, also including Rosalind Franklin story with this video. 

Boy oh boy I wish I had more class time...  Cool stuff! Laura Massa 

I saw this but have not watched myself yet! So glad to hear folks giving positive feedback! Will have to take a look before I jump into Unit 5 myself. Laura Massa do you have any segments in particular that you think you would show? I find it is so hard to segment bigger episodes - but not impossible! 

This looks like so much fun! I always show the gummy bear example up on the board, but have never actually done this. I am pretty well paced this year and have left time for fun lessons like this. How long did this lesson take you to do Laura Massa ? We have a little over 40ish minute classes in my building. My fear has always been being able to set this up and finish in time- but I think I can probably do a scaled version of this lesson. 

Adriane Musacchio 40 minutes is enough for students to do it. I recommend to set up the materials before to save time. This is what I do:

• I distribute a copy of the activity including the names of the students for each strand 
• I write on the board the colors of the gummies that correspond to each base or nucleotide (also included in the activity)
• I set up a table with twizzlers, toothpicks, and gummies (I cut them in half to have plenty and because it is easy to manipulate)
• I give each student 2 twizzlers and seven toothpicks
• Students grab the gummies they need to complete the DNA sequence

Adriane Musacchio I watched the videos after I finished the unit so I will have to watch them again to select the segment.

Thank you for linking your lesson Laura Massa ! I hope to give this a try in my classroom! Cutting the candy in half is a great idea. I have about 95 BHP students total and 7 groups per class, so this would be helpful in my case. 

I know you mentioned doing this after the Crick, Watson and Franklin lesson. What typically comes after this lesson for you? I love fun lessons like these (I tend to call them BHP Labs), but I do feel as though I can do a better job reminding them why we did our "BHP Labs" the next day. Trying to make clearer connections this year! 

No worries! I will be checking them out as well ! You sold me Adam Esrig & Laura Massa !