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Product Highlights

• Use a model of chromosomes, featuring simple-to-manipulate pop beads and magnetic centromeres, to understand and model the phases of mitosis and meiosis.
• This hands-on simulation helps address student misconceptions about cellular division.
• High school modeling activity with manipulatives and additional materials.
• Carolina Kits 3D® —Labs that use phenomena to support NGSS and 3-dimensional instruction.

Starting with the phenomenon of planarians multiplying by both asexual and sexual reproduction, students make sense of the differences between mitosis and meiosis. In Part 1, chromosome models are used to answer the driving question, "What happens to chromosomes when a cell divides to make a copy of itself?" Chromosome models are developed and evaluated again in Part 2 to answer the meiosis driving question, "How is the chromosome number reduced in sperm and egg cells so when they combine their chromosomes, the new organism has the correct number?"

Time Requirement
Making sense of mitosis and then building and evaluating models of mitosis and meiosis, 5 class periods.

Digital Resources
Includes 1-year access to digital resources that support 3-dimensional instruction for NGSS. Digital resources may include a teacher manual and student guide, pre-lab activities and setup videos, phenomenon videos, simulations, and post-lab analysis and assessments.

Performance Expectation(s)
HS-LS1-4 and HS-LS3-2

Crosscutting Concepts
Structure and Function

Disciplinary Core Ideas
LS1.B: Growth and Development of Organisms
LS3.B: Variation in Traits

Science and Engineering Practices
Developing and Using Models

Learning Objectives

• Make sense of what happens to chromosomes during mitosis and why it is important in the growth and development of organisms.
• Create, present, and evaluate models of mitosis and meiosis.
• Make sense of what happens to chromosomes during meiosis and why it is important to sexual reproduction and variation of traits.
• Compare and contrast mitosis and meiosis.

Prerequisite Knowledge and Skills
Students should be familiar with the size, scale, and function of the cell, nucleus, and chromosomes. They should be familiar with the relationship between DNA, genes, alleles, chromosomes, and with the basic understanding of asexual and sexual reproduction and how they benefit organisms.

*Next Generation Science Standards® (NGSS) is a registered trademark of WestEd. Neither WestEd nor the lead states and partners that developed the Next Generation Science Standards were involved in the production of this product, and do not endorse it.