Science Lesson Plan

Lesson Title: M&M activity Name: Kelli

Henderson

Content Area/Grade Level(s): 10th grade Biology

Stage 1 Desired Results
Established Goals:
MS-LS3- Develop and use a model to describe why asexual reproduction results in offspring with
2. identical genetic information and sexual reproduction results in offspring with genetic variation.

HS-LS1- Use a model to illustrate the role of cellular division (mitosis) and differentiation in producing
4. and maintaining complex organisms.

Students Understand that Essential Questions:

- Ecosystems need both sexual and
asexually reproducing organisms
-Both asexual and sexually
reproducing organisms are part of
a cell cycle
Students will know
-The advantages and disadvantages of asexual reproduction
-The advantages and disadvantages of sexual reproduction

Students will be able to

-Evaluate the genetic and evolutionary advantages of asexual and sexual
reproduction
-Identify the phases of the cell cycle; characterize the major events in each
phase
Stage 2 Assessment Evidence
Performance Task(s): Other Evidence
-Complete a chart comparing the -participation in class discussion during
advantages and disadvantage of M&M activity
asexual and sexual reproduction
-paper plate project of cell cycle

Stage 3 Learning Plan

Learning Activities (simply list here):
Each student will receive a bag of M&Ms labeled Asexual or Sexual
We will go through the following scenario:
Year1
An invasive species came into the ecosystem and took over the food source of
organism orange; they all died of starvation. (Students who have orange can eat
them).
Year2
A tornado forced a migrating predator into the ecosystem. It used the blue
organism as a food source and eliminated all the blue organisms from the
population. (Students who have blue can eat them).
Year3

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A new pesticide was used in the ecosystem and destroyed all the green vegetation.
This caused the green organism to no longer be camouflaged within its ecosystem.
Due to being vulnerable to predators, the green organism was eliminated from the
population. (Students who have green can eat them).
Year4
A new bacteria strain evolved in the yellow organism causing the yellow individuals
to be sick and they all died due to lack of resistance to the new bacteria. (Students
who have yellow can eat them).
Year5
The brown organism had a mutualistic relationship with the yellow organism, and
due to losing its companion it no longer had a food source or protection from
predators. Therefore, the brown organisms all starved to death or were eaten by
predators. (Students who have brown can eat them).

*Students will observe and record what happens to their population each year. We
will discuss how each event affected their population (comparing asexual and
sexual).

As a class, we will complete the following chart:

Asexual Reproduction
Benefits Consequences
-Happens faster -Everyone is genetically identical
-Make more in a short period -If the environment becomes unstable there is a
of time chance that your ENTIRE population can die all at
-If the environment is stable once.
you will survive
-You only need one parent
Sexual Reproduction
Benefits Consequences
-Genetic variation, everyone -Slower
looks different -You make less in a short period of time
-Better chance of survival if -Takes a lot of energy
environment becomes -Need two parents
unstable
-You are less likely to become
extinct

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Instructional Procedures:
State what you as the teacher State what the students specifically
specifically will do? will do.

OPENING
How do you activate and assess students
prior knowledge and connect it to this new
learning?

My goal for today is for you to be able

to evaluate ..
Do you remember from Friday what the (1) Survive/live and (2) Reproduce/pass on their
two things are that an organism wants to genes
do?
Organisms can reproduce in two ways:
asexually or sexually.
To get a better understanding of the
differences between these mechanisms,
we will be doing an activity using M&Ms.

Your bag of M&Ms represents your

population (M&M=species
Color=trait/gene)
can you survive?

ENGAGEMENT
How do you facilitate the lesson so that all
students are active learners and reflective
during this lesson?
What are examples of questions you can ask
or prompts for student thinking? Record in your notebook:
-Reproductive mechanism
You are to observe your population over -describe your starting population
the next 5 years to see what happens -For each year, describe what happened
when the environment becomes to the environment and observe how it
unstable. affected your population
(After each year, I will ask a couple
students from each of the reproductive
(There will be 2 asexual populations in
mechanisms to share their observations)
which all 30 organisms survive, and 3
sexual populations in which only a few
Who survived?
organisms survived)

CLOSURE
What opportunities do you provide for
students to share their understandings of the

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task(s) and reflect on their own learning?

students will use their observations to
complete a chart comparing the
Teacher lead class discussion: advantages and disadvantages of both
forms or reproduction

Transition:
Both of these reproductive mechanisms
have something in common: they are
both part of a cell cycle.

Lets look at the big picture to get a

better idea of where we are at with all
this and how it ties together
(I will do a concept map on the board so
that the students can see the connection
between the reproductive mechanisms
and the cell cycle. The students took
notes via ppt. over the cell cycle during -Students will make a paper plate model
the previous class period) of the cell cycle. The plate should show
each of the phases of the cycle AND
Now that we are all experts on the what is happening during each phase.
reproductive mechanisms, we will focus The size of the area that the phase takes
on the cell cycle. up on your plate is representative of the
amount of time the cell spends in that
phase.

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Reflection on Lesson Plan Design

Understanding by Design uses the acronym Where To as a tool to assess the

quality and scope of planning. While these are the questions to ask of the whole
unit, they also are useful in thinking about how your lesson contributes to overall
goals. You dont have to have substantive responses for each question for each
lessonbut it is a problem if you never address a question in a unit.

1. Where are your students headed? Where have they been? How will you make
sure the students know where they are going?

2. How will you hook students at the beginning?

3. What events will help students experience and explore the big idea and
essential questions? How will you equip them with needed skills and
knowledge?

4. How will you cause students to reflect and rethink? How will you guide them in
rehearsing, revising, and refining their work?

5. How will you help students to exhibit and self-evaluate their growing skills,
knowledge, and understanding throughout the unit?

6. How will you tailor and otherwise personalize the learning plan to optimize the
engagement and effectiveness of ALL students, without compromising the
learning goals?

7. How will you organize and sequence the learning activities to optimize the
engagement and achievement of ALL students?

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