April 29, 2012

April 29, 2012


Hello everyone!  What a dreary weekend we had.  Hopefully the weather turns around this week!

Events of the Past Week


Monday - On Monday, we did exactly what the blog last week stated we would do.  We looked at the homework from the weekend together, then learned about phylogenetics and cladograms, and then learned how to create a cladogram.  For homework, the students completed a study guide that went with Chapter 17 in their textbook.

Tuesday - No school due to PSAE testing.

Wednesday - We learned what a dichotomous key is, what it is used for, and practiced using one to identify different bacterial species.  For homework, the students had to read the lab procedure for the lab we were going to do on Thursday.

Thursday - The students were given several different pieces of hardware ranging from nails to screws to bolts.  The students had to determine the characteristics that would be best for classifying the types of hardware into different groups, and create a cladogram of their own from the decisions they made.  They found this very challenging, but I also think it was very good for their brains.  Homework was to complete the questions associated with the cladogram.

Friday - The students took a taxonomy quiz on Friday.  There were 35 multiple choice questions and one written questions.  They did pretty well as a group on the quiz.  Afterwards, they let me know whether they wanted to be a dissector or a recorder for our pig dissections.

Upcoming Events


Monday - We will begin our pig dissection.  The students will be assigned their groups and given their pigs.  They will be determining the gender of their pigs, identifying external features, and perhaps beginning to look for salivary glands.  I will need to make sure we are cleaning up with at least 10 minutes left in class for the students to get everything cleaned and done on time.

Tuesday - The students will be looking into the abdominal cavities of their pigs to identify several digestive organs, as well as some organs of the circulatory system and respiratory system.  Homework will be to complete all of the questions in the lab.

Wednesday - We will begin a poster project on the digestive system.  The students will be cutting out drawings of the organs of the digestive system, putting the pieces together like a puzzle, and color coding the pieces.  The students will be completing through number 7 in the study guide that goes along with the poster.

Thursday - We will finish our project on the digestive system on Thursday.  Homework will be to finish any parts of the project that are not completed in class.

Friday - We will be reviewing all of the parts of the digestive system and their functions on Friday.  Homework will be to study for a quiz on the digestive system that will be given on Monday.

Graba Geek of the Week


This week's Geek of the Week is Anthony Fu.  He did a great job figuring out how to put the cladogram on our quiz together, and his group did well on their Drosophila melanogaster lab report, for which he wrote an important portion.  Way to go, Anthony!