Biology Lesson Plans- Genetics Unit

NGSS Science Standard

HS-LS3-1
Ask questions to clarify relationships about the role of DNA and chromosomes in coding the
instructions for characteristic traits passed from parents to offspring. [Assessment Boundary:
Assessment does not include the phases of meiosis or the biochemical mechanism of specific steps in
the process.]
● Students will determine genotypes and phenotypes given pairs of alleles for various
traits. They will also start an activity where they determine their own genotypes and
phenotypes for certain traits.

InTASC Standard #5: Application of Content

The teacher understands how to connect concepts and use differing perspectives to engage
learners in critical thinking, creativity, and collaborative problem solving related to authentic local
and global issues.
● In this lesson, students will apply concepts and information they learned from in-class
notes and activities to further their understanding about genes and the alleles that they
consist of and how the alleles determine genotype and phenotype. The activity will allow
them to see that offspring get one allele from each parent. The students will also explore
how the presence/absence of dominant and recessive alleles determine genotype and
phenotype that an organism possesses.

Materials
● Warm-up sheet
● Access to digital genetics note packet (printed for those who do not have iPad). Master
copy attached and answer key attached.
● “Determination of Genotypes from Phenotypes in Humans” lab (paper). Master copy will
be attached soon.

Procedure
1. (5-10 minutes) Students will begin class with a daily warm-up. This warm-up is a part of
the action research I am doing. The students have been given warm-up partners and will
start by taking a couple minutes to complete the warm-up on their own and then will take
a minute or two to compare answers and discuss with their partner. Once discussion
dwindles, I will ask the students to volunteer to give part of the answer to the warm-up. If
no on volunteers, then I will call on a student.
2. (5-10 minutes) After warm-up, we will do about 5-10 minutes of notes. We started the
Punnett Square Practice Problems assignment yesterday and numbers 13-14 (not doing
15) they were not asked to do because there are a few more terms they need to be
exposed to before completing the activity. Once those additional terms are covered in
the notes, then I will give the students about 5-10 minutes to finish the assignment.
Notes are being done on the iPads and the students downloaded the notes from google
 classroom and use Notability or Notetaker to fill in the notes. I use my iPad and the
adapter and projector on the technology cart to fill in the notes with the students.
3. (15- 20 minutes) Once we finish notes, I will give the students 5-10 minutes to finish the
Practicing Punnett Squares assignment that was started yesterday. In addition to going
over numbers 13 and 14 (because they involved new information from the notes) I will
ask the students which ones they would like to go over. After going over the assignment,
I will have the students turn them in and will grade the assignment based on completion
4. (the remainder of the hour) I will introduce the “Determination of Genotypes from
Phenotypes in Humans” lab. I will read aloud the introduction to them and then highlight
important aspects of the lab. For the first part of the procedure, we will do the PTC paper
tasting as a class. Each student is instructed to take a piece of paper towel and label on
side with a “C” for control and “P” for the PTC paper. This is so the students do not get
them confused because the two paper sample looks exactly alike. Then, a the same
time, each student put the control paper on their tongue, tastes it, and put it back on the
paper towel. They are to do the same thing with the PTC and will discoverly quickly if
they are “tasters” for PTC or “non-tasters”. After that, the students work with others in
continuing the rest of the lab. It is likely that the students will not finish the lab today so it
will be continued tomorrow.
 Heredity- Inheritance of Traits

DNA Review

Each cell in every living organism contains _________________________________ that is

encoded by a molecule called _____________.

__________ is an extremely long molecule. When this long skinny DNA molecule is coiled up
and tightly bunched together it is called a _________________________.

A _________________ is a segment of the long DNA molecule. Different genes may be

different lengths.

2 Types of Proteins

The ____________________ produced by the genes can generally be sorted into two different
types:
1. Proteins that run the ___________________________ (enzymes) in your body, and
2. Proteins that will be the ________________________________ of your body

The way an organism looks and functions is the result of the _______________________ effect
of the the protein molecules

Examples of chemical proteins

Examples of structural proteins

Sexual Reproduction
● Any organism that has “_______________” has an ___________ number of
chromosomes.
● ______________ of the chromosomes come from the “________________” and the
other half from the “_________________.”

● Example #1: In plants, a pollen grain is the “father’s” contribution and an egg (ovule) is
the “mother’s” contribution.
○ These two cells combine to make a single cell, which will grow into a seed (the
offspring).

https://www.sacsplash.org/sites/main/files/flower3color.gif

● Example #2:
○ In humans, a sperm is contributed from the father and an egg is contributed from
the mother.
■ The sperm contributes _________ chromosomes
■ The egg contributes ___________ chromosomes
■ The egg and sperm fuse together forming a _________________ that
contains __________ chromosomes

http://learn.genetics.utah.edu/content/basics/diagnose/images/fertilization.jpg
● List 5 more organisms that reproduce sexually

● Humans have 46 chromosomes. 46 is the ___________________________ number.

○ Diploid: ________________________________________________________

● The chromosomes sort into __________________________. One chromosome in each

of the 23 pairs is from the person’s father, the other from the person’s mother.

● Homologous chromosomes: _____________________________________________

____________________________________________________________________

http://ib.bioninja.com.au/_Media/meiotic-sister-chromatids_med.jpeg

● Since chromosomes come in pairs, ______________ do too. One gene is located on

one member of chromosome pair, the other gene is in the _______________________
on the ___________________________________. The gene “pair” is technically
referred to as a gene, as both members of the pair code for the same ______________.
 ○ Example: Flower color is the TRAIT , an ALLELE is a form of that trait, each
parent contributes ___________________ per _______________. Therefore,
the offspring carries _____________ alleles for every trait.

○ List 4 examples of traits you have

Gene Combinations

● A gene can consist of a ___________________ of different forms, but only __________

forms are ever present per gene (one from the mother, the other from the father).
● The two different alleles for a gene on the pair of chromosomes may be…
○ Identical or _________________________
○ Different or _________________________

Alleles

● An _______________ is one of the several _______________ or forms of a

__________
 ● Look at the picture above.In location A we have an allele “A” on the father chromosome
and an allele “a” on the mother's one. Both locations at B have the same allele “B”. The
chromosome pair is said to be ________________________ for trait “A” and
__________________________ for trait “B”.
○ Example: decide whether each gene is homozygous for a trait or heterozygous
○
Z

■ Gene Z -
■ Gene T -
■ Gene A -
■ Gene O -
■ Gene R -

Dominant vs. Recessive Traits and Genotypes

● The capital letters stand for a ___________________ trait. This is the stronger trait that
shows up in the offspring. The lower case letter stands for a ____________________
 trait – one that can be masked by the dominant trait.

○
● The allele combination an organism contains is known as its _________________. The
organism from the picture below has the genotypes of Aa and BB.

● Practice problems. Refer to the chromosomes below to answer the questions that follow
a a
b B

C C

E e
○ What genotypes does the organism possess?

○ Which genes have homozygous alleles?

○ Which genes have heterozygous alleles?

○ Using the following information, draw the face of a person that possesses the
chromosomes from the previous picture Remember capital letters implies
dominance.
■ The “b” gene locus codes for hair color. The B allele represents brown
hair and the b allele is red hair
 ■ The “a” gene locus codes for eye color. The A allele represents brown
eyes and the a allele represents gray eyes.
■ The “c” gene locus codes for the presence of freckles. The C allele
represents the absence of freckles and the c allele represents the
presence of freckles.
■ The “e” gene locus codes for the presence or absence of a tooth gap. The
E allele represents a presence of a tooth gap and the e allele represents
the absence of a tooth gap

● The way the organism ________________ and ____________________ is called

because of their genotype is called their ________________________.

Example #1: Eye color (B = brown, b = blue)

Bb =
BB =
bb =

Example #2: Hair type (C = curly, c = straight)

CC =
cc =
Cc =
 Example #3 Knuckle hair (K = knuckle hair, k = no hair)
kk =
Kk =
KK =

Monohybrid Cross
● is a mating between individuals who have different alleles at one genetic locus of
interest.
● A monohybrid cross involves only ____________ gene.
● A _________________________________ is used to determine the possible genotypes
and phenotypes of the offspring from a set of parents
●

● _________________________: the ratio of homozygous dominant, heterozygous, and

homozygous recessive genotypes that result from a monohybrid or dihybrid cross.
● __________________________: the ratio of the phenotypes that result from a
monohybrid or dihybrid cross.

Types of Dominance and Inheritance

● ___________________________ a form of dominance in heterozygous condition where
the allele that is regarded as dominant completely _________________(covers up) the
effect of the allele that is recessive.
○ Example:
● Incomplete Dominance: A heterozygous condition in which ______________________
at a gene locus are _______________________ expressed and which often produces
an intermediate phenotype.

○
https://biologydictionary.net/wp-content/uploads/2016/11/Incomplete-dominance.png

● _________________________ is a form of dominance where the alleles of a gene pair

in a heterozygote are fully expressed.\

○
http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-xhrVvTHkpVQ/UyWlePEUqZI/AAAAAAAACzk/lwDMxatKLOs/s1600/codominance.jpg

● ____________________________________. the inheritance of traits that are located on

genes on the ___________________________________. Since males and females do
not have the same sex chromosomes, there will be differences between the sexes in
how these sex-linked traits—traits linked to genes located on the sex chromosomes—
are expressed.
○ Recall…
 https://image.slidesharecdn.com/05-sex-linkedinheritance-111204191025-phpapp02/95/05-sexlinked-inheritance-9-728.jpg?cb=1323026959

● ____________________ Inheritance: occurs when one characteristic is controlled by

two or more genes.

The Work of Gregor Mendel

● Gregor Mendel is known as ___________________________________.
● After working with garden __________________________, he developed 2 laws
governing the transmission of traits from parents to offspring.

● The Law of Segregation states that the members of each pair of

_____________________________________ when
___________________________are_______________________.
A sex cell will receive one allele or the other.
 ● The Law of ______________________________________________ states that two or
more genes ___________________________ separate from one another when
reproductive cells develop.

Dihybrid Cross
● A _______________________ is a genetic cross between individuals with different
alleles for two gene loci of interest.
● Mendel’s pea plants
○ Round or wrinkled (R, r)
○ Yellow or (Y, y)
Steps for completing a dihybrid cross
1. Determine your parents genotypes. Look at which traits are dominant and recessive and
if the parents are heterozygous for a gene or homozygous
2. Create a 16 square Punnett Square (if its not done for you)
3. On the top and left side of the Punnett Square, write down all possible allele
combinations.
4. Take the letters that correspond with each box and bring the letters into the boxes.
Remember, capital letters always go in front of lowercase letters since they dominate
over them. Keep same letters together to represent the trait assigned for each of the 16
offspring.

Example:
● The first parent pea plant that is homozygous dominant for color and homozygous
dominant for shape
○ Genotype: _____________________________
○ Phenotype: ____________________________
○ Allele combinations :_____________________________________
● The second parent is heterozygous for both color and shape
○ Genotype: _______________________________
○ Phenotype: ______________________________
○ Allele combinations: __________________________________
 Heredity- Inheritance of Traits (Answer Key)

DNA Review

Each cell in every living organism contains __hereditary information_____ that is encoded by
a molecule called ___DNA____.
_DNA___ is an extremely long molecule. When this long skinny DNA molecule is coiled up and
tightly bunched together it is called a __chromosome____.

A ___gene_____ is a segment of the long DNA molecule. Different genes may be different
lengths.

2 Types of Proteins

The ___proteins_______ produced by the genes can generally be sorted into two different
types:
3. Proteins that run the _chemical reactions___ (enzymes) in your body, and
4. Proteins that will be the ___structural components____ of your body

The way an organism looks and functions is the result of the __cummulative______ effect of
the the protein molecules

Examples of chemical proteins

● Lipase
● Lactase
● Protease

Examples of structural proteins

● Collagen
● Actin
● Myosin

Sexual Reproduction
● Any organism that has “_parents__” has an __even____ number of chromosomes.
● ___Half_____ of the chromosomes come from the “__mother____” and the other half
from the “__father____.”

● Example #1: In plants, a pollen grain is the “father’s” contribution and an egg (ovule) is
the “mother’s” contribution.
○ These two cells combine to make a single cell, which will grow into a seed (the
offspring).
 https://www.sacsplash.org/sites/main/files/flower3color.gif

● Example #2:
○ In humans, a sperm is contributed from the father and an egg is contributed from
the mother.
■ The sperm contributes __23____ chromosomes
■ The egg contributes __23____ chromosomes
■ The egg and sperm fuse together forming a _____zygote____ that
contains __46____ chromosomes

http://learn.genetics.utah.edu/content/basics/diagnose/images/fertilization.jpg

● List 5 more organisms that reproduce sexually

○ Birds
○ Turtles
○ Cows
○ Lions
○ Dolphins

● Humans have 46 chromosomes. 46 is the ___diploid_____ number.

○ Diploid: _a cell containing two complete sets of chromosomes__________

● The chromosomes sort into __23 pairs (humans)________. One chromosome in each
of the 23 pairs is from the person’s father, the other from the person’s mother.

● Homologous chromosomes: __one chromosome from each homologous pair comes

from the father and one from the mother______

http://ib.bioninja.com.au/_Media/meiotic-sister-chromatids_med.jpeg

● Since chromosomes come in pairs, ___genes____ do too. One gene is located on one
member of chromosome pair, the other gene is in the ___opposite chromosome____
on the __same location___. The gene “pair” is technically referred to as a gene, as
both members of the pair code for the same ___trait____.
 ○ Example: Flower color is the TRAIT , an ALLELE is a form of that trait, each
parent contributes _1 allele___ per ___trait___. Therefore, the offspring carries
__two___ alleles for every trait.

○ List 4 examples of traits you have

■ Eye color
■ Hair color
■ Height
■ Skin color

Gene Combinations

● A gene can consist of a ___variety____ of different forms, but only __two___ forms are
ever present per gene (one from the mother, the other from the father).
● The two different alleles for a gene on the pair of chromosomes may be…
○ Identical or _____homozygous__________
○ Different or _____heterozygous__________

Alleles

● An __allele____ is one of the several __versions_____ or forms of a ____gene____

 ● Look at the picture above.In location A we have an allele “A” on the father chromosome
and an allele “a” on the mother's one. Both locations at B have the same allele “B”. The
chromosome pair is said to be ___heterozygous______ for trait “A” and
___homozygous____ for trait “B”.
○ Example: decide whether each gene is homozygous for a trait or heterozygous
○
Z

■ Gene Z - heterozygous
■ Gene T - homozygous
■ Gene A - heterozygous
■ Gene O - homozygous
■ Gene R - homozygous

Dominant vs. Recessive Traits and Genotypes

● The capital letters stand for a __dominant_____ trait. This is the stronger trait that
shows up in the offspring. The lower case letter stands for a__recessive___ trait – one
that can be masked by the dominant trait.
 ○
● The allele combination an organism contains is known as its __genotype______. The
organism from the picture below has the genotypes of Aa and BB.

● Practice problems. Refer to the chromosomes below to answer the questions that follow
a a
b B

C C

E e
○ What genotypes does the organism possess?
aa, Bb, CC, Ee
○ Which genes have homozygous alleles?
Gene “a” (aa) and gene “c” (CC)
○ Which genes have heterozygous alleles?
Gene “b” (Bb) and gene “e” (Ee)

○ Using the following information, draw the face of a person that possesses the
chromosomes from the previous picture Remember capital letters implies
dominance.
■ The “b” gene locus codes for hair color. The B allele represents brown
hair and the b allele is red hair
■ The “a” gene locus codes for eye color. The A allele represents brown
eyes and the a allele represents gray eyes.
 ■ The “c” gene locus codes for the presence of freckles. The C allele
represents the absence of freckles and the c allele represents the
presence of freckles.
■ The “e” gene locus codes for the presence or absence of a tooth gap. The
E allele represents a presence of a tooth gap and the e allele represents
the absence of a tooth gap

● **not supposed to have

freckles

● The way the organism __looks___ and __behaves___ is called because of their
genotype is called their _phenotype_____.

Give phenotypes for the following genotypes (assume complete dominance)

Example #1: Eye color (B = brown, b = blue)
Bb = brown
BB = brown
bb = blue
Example #2: Hair type (C = curly, c = straight)
CC = curly
cc = straight
Cc = curly
Example #3 Knuckle hair (K = knuckle hair, k = no hair)
kk = no hair
Kk = knuckle hair
KK = knuckle hair

Monohybrid Cross
● is a mating between individuals who have different alleles at one genetic locus of
interest.
● A monohybrid cross involves only __one_____ gene.
● A _Punnett Square____ is used to determine the possible genotypes and phenotypes
of the offspring from a set of parents

● ___genotypic ratio____: the ratio of homozygous dominant, heterozygous, and

homozygous recessive genotypes that result from a monohybrid or dihybrid cross.
● ___phenotypic ratio_________: the ratio of the phenotypes that result from a
monohybrid or dihybrid cross.

Types of Dominance and Inheritance

● __complete dominance____ a form of dominance in heterozygous condition where the
allele that is regarded as dominant completely __masks_____(covers up) the effect of
the allele that is recessive.
○ Example: Brown eyes vs. blue eyes
● Incomplete Dominance: a heterozygous condition in which __both alleles______ at a
gene locus are ___partially_______ expressed and which often produces an
intermediate phenotype.

○
https://biologydictionary.net/wp-content/uploads/2016/11/Incomplete-dominance.png

● __Codominance_____ is a form of dominance where the alleles of a gene pair in a

heterozygote are fully expressed.\

○
http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-xhrVvTHkpVQ/UyWlePEUqZI/AAAAAAAACzk/lwDMxatKLOs/s1600/codominance.jpg

● __Sex-linked inheritance_________. the inheritance of traits that are located on genes

on the __sex-chromosomes_____. Since males and females do not have the same sex
chromosomes, there will be differences between the sexes in how these sex-linked traits
—traits linked to genes located on the sex chromosomes—are expressed.
○ Recall…
 https://image.slidesharecdn.com/05-sex-linkedinheritance-111204191025-phpapp02/95/05-sexlinked-inheritance-9-728.jpg?cb=1323026959

● __Polygenic_____ Inheritance: occurs when one characteristic is controlled by two or

more genes.
The Work of Gregor Mendel
● Gregor Mendel is known as _ “The Father of Genetics” __________.
● After working with garden _pea plants_____, he developed 2 laws governing the
transmission of traits from parents to offspring.

● The Law of Segregation states that the members of each pair of _alleles separate__
when __sex cells ___are___formed____.
A sex cell will receive one allele or the other.
 ● The Law of _Independent Assortment___ states that two or more genes
__independently__ separate from one another when reproductive cells develop.

Dihybrid Cross
● A _dihybrid cross___ is a genetic cross between individuals with different alleles for
two gene loci of interest.
● Mendel’s pea plants
○ Round or wrinkled (R, r)
○ Yellow or (Y, y)
Steps for completing a dihybrid cross
5. Determine your parents genotypes. Look at which traits are dominant and recessive and
if the parents are heterozygous for a gene or homozygous
6. Create a 16 square Punnett Square (if its not done for you)
7. On the top and left side of the Punnett Square, write down all possible allele
combinations.
8. Take the letters that correspond with each box and bring the letters into the boxes.
Remember, capital letters always go in front of lowercase letters since they dominate
over them. Keep same letters together to represent the trait assigned for each of the 16
offspring.

Example:
● The first parent pea plant that is homozygous dominant for color and homozygous
dominant for shape
○ Genotype: __YYRR___________
○ Phenotype: __Yellow & Round______________________
○ Allele combinations :___YR______________________
● The second parent is heterozygous for both color and shape
○ Genotype: ___YyRr____________________
○ Phenotype: __Yellow & Round____________________
○ Allele combinations: _YR, Yr, yR, yr________________