Today went relatively well, I thought. I took a moment in science to clarify something that I think has been stumping some people: recessiveness. To be clear, a TRAIT is recessive if we can see it skipping generations in a population. This means that the allele for that trait is being carried by some individuals and not seen. This is what recessive MEANS...you can't see it in a heterozygous carrier. It only becomes visible when it is homozygous.
The problem is we tend to talk about recessiveness like it is something you can observe in genes and allele and proteins...but we can't we can only see it when it disappears and then shows up again later in a new generation.
I will attach the PowerPoint that I threw together.
We then opened up our envelopes from the other day to determine what our genotypes really were. We then wrote a response based on whether we were right or wrong, and how we had succeeded or failed in figuring it out. I'm pleased to say, the vast majority of us were correct.
In social studies, I handed out the flashcard set for New ENgland, and we talked about how to use them effectively. To use flashcards for self-quizzing, you cannot just look at them and suppose you will retain that information. You must check the card, ask yourself what you know, verify it, and then if you got something wrong you must IMMEDIATELY review the material and try to recall it again. You must keep doing this until you know all the info on that card, and then move on. Even then, you must return through the cards to review and reinforce the knowledge. We need to get to the point where we can discuss and evaluate what all this means: but first we must know it. Overall, you will responsible for knowing 36 pieces of information if you want to get a B or a C on next weeks formative, or the summatives that will follow.
On a final note, I did not send home progress reports today since we have midterm grades going our tomorrow.
Ta!
genetics_recessive_clarification.pptx |