Multicellular+eukaryotes+and+the+sexual+revolution

Unit 4 Overview of Lecture and Discussion Topics:
This unit begins with students discussing the pros and cons of being a multicellular organism. Communication between cells (both unicellular and multicellular) is discussed. This discussion segues nicely into sexual reproduction (despite the fact that sexual reproduction is not an activity unique only to multicellular eukaryotic organisms). With an understanding of how sexual reproduction leads to variation in offspring, Mendelian genetics is then introduced. This takes the class a bit ahead in the story because higher level organisms (and their genetic traits) are discussed. While this is a divergence, it gives students real-world examples that they can connect to more readily. Non-Mendelian traits are discussed. Students then discover how allelic frequencies can change within populations.

Activities and Laboratories:
>>>> Students receive chips, marked with individual alleles for blood type, Rh, anemia, sex determination and other genetic traits. Students in the class then pair off and “mate” by combining game discs. After a gestation period of only a few minutes, they become proud “parents” of “pretend babies”, whose genetic characteristics they must determine (SP 1). >>>>
 * Cell communication activity
 * [|Pathways with Friends]: Directed by instructional cards, students kinesthetically model cell communication by acting as components in a cell signaling. Whole class discussion follows, assessing student understanding of cell communication. Animations of Cell Communication, An Example of Cell Communication, The Fight or Flight Response, How Cells Communicate during the Fight or Flight Response (These animations provide students with a model example of the concepts involved in cell signaling). (SP 1)
 * Meiosis
 * Students will use a chromosome bead kit to simulate the process of meiosis and explain when haploidy occurs (SP 1).
 * Meiosis in //Sordaria//. Students analyze outcomes of Sordaria crosses, determine phenotypes due to crossover or non-crossover, and determine percent recombination and map units. They will compare their observations with the known map distance from gene to centromere (SP 2, 5).
 * [|Descendant Discs]
 * [|NOVA PBS Video - Why Sex?]
 * This video is utilized with class discussions and activities to illustrate the role of sexual reproduction and sexual selection in evolution
 * Survival of the Fittest—Battling Beetles is a guided inquiry. This series of activities complements the [|HHMI DVD Evolution]: Constant Change and Common Threads, and requires simple materials such as M&Ms, food storage bags, colored pencils, and paper cups. An extension of this activity allows students to model Hardy-Weinberg and selection using an Excel spreadsheet. This part of the activity requires computer/printer access. The overall goal of Battling Beetles is to engage students in thinking about the mechanism of natural selection through data collection and pattern recognition (SP 1, 2, 5 and 6).
 * [|BioRad PV 92 lab]
 * Students use real–world forensic techniques to extract DNA from their cheek cells, and then use PCR amplification and electrophoresis to fingerprint their own DNA at a specific genetic locus. Using their own results, students test the Hardy–Weinberg equilibrium theory within their classroom population, then go online to compare their classroom results to genetic data of populations worldwide (SP 2, 3, 4, 5 and 6).

Chapters from Campbell and Power Points:

 * 25. The History of Life on Earth || [[file:Earth before life.ppt]] ||
 * 28. Protists || [[file:Chapter 28 Protists.ppt]] ||
 * 11. Cell Communication || [[file:Chapter 11 Cell Communication.ppt]] ||
 * 13. Meiosis and Sexual Life Cycles || [[file:Chapter 13 Meiosis.ppt]] ||
 * 15. The Chromosomal Basis of Inheritance ||  ||
 * 23. The Evolution of Populations ||  ||