Summary
This lesson is part of a series titled "Woman Crush Wednesday" in which we look at how female scientists have shaped our view of science. In this biology lesson, students will explore the contributions of Terese LaRose, a histotechnologist. Students will learn about the different levels of organization and how they interact within and between systems.
Essential Question(s)
How have female scientists shaped science today? How do different cells affect specific systems within a multicellular organism?
Snapshot
Engage
Students watch an ICAP video of Terese LaRose, a histotechnologist.
Explore
Students watch a video on how cells become specialized and then research a specific type of specialized cell.
Explain
Students gather information about the other types of specialized cells from their peers.
Extend
Students research the effects of a disease from the cellular level to the organism level. Students then design a model of the hierarchical levels of organization within an organism and compare the disease's effects at each level with normal functions at each level.
Evaluate
Students present their findings and explain how specialized cells affect interactions between systems.
Materials
Lesson Slides (attached)
3-2-1 handout (attached; one per student)
Specialized Cells Speed Dating Profile (attached; one per student)
Specialized Cells Note Catcher (attached; one per student)
Levels of Organization Project Instructions (attached; one per student)
Levels of Organization Rubric (attached; one per student)
A setup that allows videos and slideshows to be played for everyone to view
Engage
30 Minute(s)
Use the attached Lesson Slides to guide the lesson. Begin with slide 3 and briefly read aloud the essential questions. Display slide 4 to go over the lesson's learning objectives. Review these slides with students to the extent you feel necessary.
Go to slide 5 and pass out the attached 3-2-1 handout. Inform students they are going to learn about a profession that involves working with the tissues that make up the human body. Let students know they are going to watch a video of Terese LaRose, who is a histotechnologist at Thomas Jefferson University Hospital in Philadelphia.
Invite students to watch the interview video, titled "Histotechnologist Terese LaRose ICAP." As they watch, have students use the 3-2-1 strategy to complete their handouts.
After the video, encourage students to share out their responses.
Explore
30 Minute(s)
Display slide 6 and pass out the attached Specialized Cells Note Catcher. Have students watch the "How Cells Become Specialized" video until the 2:15 mark. As the video plays, have students take notes in the "Stem Cell" box at the bottom of the Note Catcher.
After the video, inform students they are going to explore the different types of specialized cells that stem cells can become.
Go to slide 7 and organize students into groups of seven. Within each group, have each student choose one of the following specialized cells:
Blood
Bone
Epithelial
Fat
Immune
Muscle
Nerve
Pass out the attached Specialized Cells Speed Dating Profile handout to each student. Have each student fill out their handout by researching information about their chosen cell.
Explain
30 Minute(s)
Display slide 8 and have students refer back to the Specialized Cells Note Catcher. Inform students they are going to learn about the other specialized cells through a speed-dating game using the Speed Dating Profiles they created.
Inform students they will have 1 minute with each person across from them: 30 seconds to share information about their own cell and 30 seconds to gather as much information as they can about their partner's cell. Have students record the information they learn from each partner on the Specialized Cells Note Catcher.
After ringing the bell, have students on one side rotate to the next partner to share and gather information about a different cell. Repeat.
Extend
60 Minute(s)
Go to slide 10 and pass out the attached Levels of Organization Project Instructions and Levels of Organization Rubric. Pair up each student with someone else who has the same cell.
Have student pairs choose one of the diseases that they discovered is related to their cell. Ask students to research and develop a model, poster, or slideshow presentation that shows the effects of the disease from the cellular level to the organism level. In addition, have student pairs write a 1-page report about the disease's effects at each level and how these compare with normal functions at each level.
Evaluate
60 Minute(s)
Display slide 11. Have students pairs present their findings to the class.
To conclude the lesson, go to slide 12. Ask students to answer the Exit Ticket question on a sheet of notebook paper: How do different cells affect specific systems within a multicellular organism?
Resources
Amoeba Sisters. (2017). How cells become specialized [Video]. YouTube. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t3g26p9Mh_k
K20 Center. (n.d.). 3-2-1. Strategies. https://learn.k20center.ou.edu/strategy/117
K20 Center. (n.d.). Exit ticket. Strategies. https://learn.k20center.ou.edu/strategy/125
K20 Center. (n.d.). Gallery walk. Strategies. https://learn.k20center.ou.edu/strategy/118
K20 Center. (2022). Histotechnologist Terese LaRose ICAP [Video]. YouTube. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pbP3qazvJy0
Medical Cortex. (2017). Ovarian teratoma [Video]. YouTube. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pMua1d5BE4g