Organelle Dating Profile For Website
Organelle Dating Profile For Website
Organelle Dating Profile For Website
MS-LS1-1: Conduct an investigation to provide evidence that living things are made of cells;
either one cell or many different numbers and types of cells.
● All living things are made up of cells, which is the smallest unit that can be said to be alive.
An organism may consist of one single cell (unicellular) or many different numbers and
types of cells (multicellular). [Clarification Statement: Emphasis is on developing evidence that
living things are made of cells, distinguishing between living and non-living things, and
understanding that living things may be made of one cell or many and varied cells.]
MS-LS2-2: Develop and use a model to describe the function of a cell as a whole and ways the
parts of cells contribute to the function. [Clarification Statement: Emphasis is on the cell functioning
as a whole system and the primary role of identified parts of the cell, specifically the nucleus,
chloroplasts, mitochondria, cell membrane, and cell wall.] [Assessment Boundary: Assessment of
organelle structure/function relationships is limited to the cell wall and cell membrane. Assessment of
the function of the other organelles is limited to their relationship to the whole cell. Assessment does
not include the biochemical function of cells or cell parts.]
CCC’s:
● Scale, Proportion, and Quantity
● Phenomena that can be observed at one scale may not be observable at another scale.
SEP’s:
● Planning and Carrying Out Investigations
Planning and carrying out investigations in 6-8 builds on K-5 experiences and progresses to include investigations that
use multiple variables and provide evidence to support explanations or solutions.
● Conduct an investigation to produce data to serve as the basis for evidence that meet the goals of an
investigation.
DCI:
● LS1.A: Structure and Function
● Within cells, special structures are responsible for particular functions, and the cell membrane forms the
boundary that controls what enters and leaves the cell.
CC Literacy Standard:
● WHST.6-8.7: Conduct short research projects to answer a question (including a self-generated question),
drawing on several sources and generating additional related, focused questions that allow for multiple avenues
of exploration. (MS-LS1-1)
SL.8.5: Integrate multimedia and visual displays into presentations to clarify information, strengthen claims and
evidence, and add interest. (MS-LS1-2)
Learning Target(s)/Objective(s):
Upon writing this lesson, I had many practices in mind to help guide me. I knew I
wanted to allow it to heavily focus on student-led inquiry (a concept we heavily
reviewed in our methods block class, EDUC341.) It is important because while
organelles are very complex and something students are most likely learning for the
first time (as it is first taught in middle school), I still wanted to keep the demand high
and allow simply for student reading, collaborating, and even presenting of their ideas
(and them to defend their arguments). The teachers are never lecturing or anything -
they are the sources of facilitation and more inquiry.
In terms of instruction, this is very relevant to students' personal life and community. I
am instructing it in the sense of group work, which is very community based. In
addition, the way the lesson is set up is that the students create a dating profile for
each organelle as a quick ‘run down’ for a quick way to get to know an organelle. This
is very similar to their personal lives as many of these teenagers may have a
phone/other forms of communication or social media in which they often create a ‘bio’
about themselves where people can read about them before following them, etc. This
allows them to know just how to efficiently describe the ‘highlights’ about themselves
or others. They either personally participate or at least know of someone who has
forms of social media or a dating profile or have seen one on tv. Because we are in a
very social society that is especially growing online (especially in terms of getting to
know one another) during these COVID times, it is very probable students know the
way in which to do this. For this, it will not only be relatable/fairly simply for students to
create a profile which highlights each organelle, but it is also very funny to them and a
way to have a creative outlet while maintaining scientific accuracy when learning
about cell organelles.
According to Khan Academy, two common misconceptions when learning about cell
organelles is that all “cells contain genetic information” (in the nucleus) and that the
“cell wall and the cell membrane are the same thing” (found in both plant and animal
cells) (Khan Academy, 2020). During the lessons, I plan on addressing this heavily by
placing strong emphasis as well go over each after they have worked on each dating
profile with their group. On the slide itself, it also specifies important things/guiding
bullets that will help guide their thinking (such as which types of cells they were found
in, a ‘nickname’ based on their understanding of that organelle, etc.) The
misconceptions about genetic information can be addressed as it is mentioned in the
reading for the nucleus yet the mitochondria are also shown in this powerpoint as the
‘powerhouse’ and I can have a discussion point to share that there is actually DNA
can also be seen there.
Activities/Tasks:
Introduction/Launch/Activating Strategies
Excellent!! That last slide on the powerpoint reminded us that the structures within cells perform
different functions (especially seen in the plant and animal reading you did in your breakout rooms and
the video you all watched). Those structures are called cell organelles - and like we have said they are
important because we need them to help us complete functions which allow us to survive and thrive! So
let's hear another student unmute and share their thoughts about why we may need different
organelles? Which was the first cool down question. [student share]
Exactly! We have jobs to do which a plant may not have, or vice versa! Which leads us to the second
question - what job may a plant have that we do not, which could explain why we may not have the
same cell organelles that the plant has to complete this function? [student share out]
Amazing! Yes, that’s it! Plants need to perform other functions that we don’t have to perform - such as
photosynthesis! As you read yesterday, a special cell organelle called the chloroplasts specifically
helps/allows the plant cell to photosynthesize, so it can get the food and nutrients it needs to survive!
We too, as being made up of animal cells, need to gain the nutrients we need to survive however we do
this through eating food, which is different from photosynthesis, thus we need an organelle that is
different from the organelle which will help perform photosynthesis. So with that being said, what do we
use? What are some major functions our body as an organism needs to perform, and what cell
organelles do we have to help us do this? Take a minute and think about that as I pull up our
powerpoint for today!
[Any student can raise their blue hand and share their thoughts of any important functions we may
need; they may say breathing, breaking down food, gaining energy, etc.]
Those are great ideas! And today, we are going to investigate just that; we are going to use our
textbook reading about each cell organelle, but we are going to have some fun with it! Each cell
organelle has a huge role they play within the cell to help a function occur for us. They have a special
place where they are located and oftentimes, they may be known for what they do - they are almost like
people! So, what we are going to do to really help us dive into what each cell organelle does and help
us see their importance - we are going to treat them like our new friends! We are going to open up the
powerpoint in today’s folder entitled “Cell Organelles Dating Profile” and read the textbook reading
about each cell organelle, then go into our zoom breakout rooms and create a broken down “about me
page” or “Dating Profile” if you will, about that organelle with our groups. Haha I see lots of you over
zooming laughing right now but I’m serious - want to know why? Because an ‘about me page’ or a
‘dating profile’, why do people make them? For people to get to know them in a quick way, right? That
is exactly what we are aiming for here! So, we essentially want to include the “main highlights” about
the cell organelle at hand so when looking at it someone can quickly know the main things about that
cell organelle! Here we have listed it’s name, a “nickname” you may want to create for it that relates to
what it does, it’s “hometown” (or where it can be seen in the cell), if it is a plant person, animal person,
or both (which will let us know if that organelle is strictly in plant cells, animal cells, or both) and finally a
fun fact about that organelle! This could be something else you learned from the textbook reading that
relates to the organelle but isn’t included in the other categories!
This is going to be so much fun boys and girls because the process of collaboratively working together
(remember our norms and expectations with zoom participation in breakout rooms with a leader letting
Mrs. Blohm and I know how you are doing) and discussing what you read personally helps you become
engaged in the conversation/discussion and already gives you a ‘leg-up’ when studying these
organelles later. This is because this could be the very first time you are learning about these
organelles - and that is okay! Not only that - it is exciting! But it can also be tricky as many of their
names either sound similar or are fairly long, and since there are many cell organelles that each have
so many important jobs, it can be hard to remember them after only learning about them/hearing about
them once. BUT, by training your brain to ‘come up with the highlights or most important things (their
job in the cell, where they are, etc.) it can be easier to remember! And not just to remember in the
sense of this is something to memorize - no! I mean remember in the sense to help you recognize and
connect that organelle’s functions to other functions produced by the other cell organelles! How do they
connect? Would it matter if this cell organelle wasn’t there? Uh- yes! Especially the nucleus, for
example, which we will get into. It is the control center of the cell. Without that organelle, the other cell
organelles wouldn’t know what to do or what to produce! It is so so important!
So, without further adieu, let’s get into it! So, I actually want to model how the first one should be done
because like I said-even though this is a really funny lesson since we are making dating profiles for the
cell organelles, we need to be serious! We need the profiles to be as accurate as they can be to help
the cell organelles mingle (of course) but also by transferring the most important elements of the cell
organelle to the dating profile with your group, then the better you are preparing yourself to understand
their purpose and the easier it can be for you to study from it later!
So, the one I am going to model for you right now is the Cell Wall! I am actually going to pretend like I
am in a breakout room right now! And can someone please raise their blue hand to volunteer to read
for me? [student raises blue hand and reads textbook reading of cell wall]
Nice! So, everyone, what do you think about this? (notice I’m pretending I’m in a group breakout room
so look at how I’m actively engaging in conversation and discussing the reading - I am involved- this is
what Mrs. Blohm and I want to see!) Can someone raise their blue hand and help discuss with me
some major things from the reading? [call on volunteers and model discussion about important aspects
of the reading; this especially emphasizes the modeling of structure and function and points out
connections with the picture on the slide, especially comparing the plant to animal cells and where that
organelle is located in each]. - The pictures are there for you all!! To help make sense of where and
what the organelles appear to look like and what they are doing. Also, something important to note in
class is to think about when we looked at those cells under the microscope last class! We saw the dot
in the middle (which we will discuss is the nucleus) but not really the other cell organelles, right? Well
the reason for that is because they are so small! So, I just wanted to address that even under a
magnified microscope seeing these cell organelles can be difficult which is why I have placed
drawings/pictures/models on the cell to give us a zoomed in view!
Okay, back to the Cell Wall! I want to WORK TOGETHER with my group mates to complete this -
again, we will be popping into rooms and seeing who is and who isn’t! So, if I was in a group and want
to think of a nickname for the cell wall… mmm What about “Mr. you can’t pass me?” This I think would
make sense because the cell wall makes sure nothing can come into a plant cell - it monitors that. So,
“Mr. You can’t pass me” makes sense, see? I wouldn’t just want to say “purple man” or any nickname -
it has to make sense!! This nickname my group has chosen makes sense because that is an important
function the Cell Wall holds in the plant cell. This cell's hometown is the outermost layer and surrounds
all the organelles in a plant cell, it is ONLY a plant person - because ONLY plant cells have a Cell Wall.
For fun, the Cell Wall protects it’s lovely organelles from invaders! (Since it is the wall in plant cells!) So
again, my group and I collaborated for these things to make sense and be scientifically accurate of the
Cell Wall! Under fun fact, my group and I could have written anything else that was introduced to us in
the reading but was not already mentioned in the dating profile, and so we mentioned that the cell wall
is NON-living and that it is made of cellulose! This is important because cellulose actually makes the
cell wall very strong - which can help us understand how it can block invaders from coming in, even
invaders who try to wiggle their way in! So, see how we did that? We read together, collaborated, made
sense of the information, and accurately represented it in a quick ‘about me’ dating profile we can look
back to and study on! Really being engaged now will help you later make connections to the other
organelles and their purpose as well! And you’ll see what I mean by that!
Okay so thank you everyone for being so attentive and even participating with me right now to demo
how you all should be working within your groups - I appreciate it very much! So, how are we going to
do this?? I am going to put you in breakout rooms and let you know who the leader in each group is (as
always). When in your group you are going to work on the next slide with the next cell organelle: the
cell membrane! Work together, get creative and have fun! Call Mrs. Blohm or I into your breakout room
if you need help, have a question, or concern! After completing the cell membrane dating profile (we
will give you 10 minutes to so), we will bring you back and go over it together and see what some of
you said, so make them creative and make them accurate! Remember the point of this is to make it
scientifically accurate to help you understand the organelles structure and function so don’t stray away
from that!! No one wants to meet a cell membrane that actually acts like a nucleus, right! Be accurate in
your descriptions!
[10 minutes later]
[students share their dating profiles and answers, build off of what they say]
[Send them back to do the next organelle, the nucleus for 10 minutes]
[Bring them back, go over it, send them to do the last organelle of the day: the cytoplasm]
[10 minutes later, go over and build off of what students said]
Important things to look out for in students’ profiles: that they are remaining scientifically accurate and
pulling information from the literacy reading (for their textbook)
DAY 3 [ASYNCHRONOUS]
*Students are not allowed to be given more than 30 minutes of work for this day so we will be giving
them the work of continuing 3 of the next dating profiles for the next three organelles (Mitochondria,
ER, and Ribosomes). They will be given a notification in schoology and need to submit it back to us to
grade. They were instructed what to do at the end of the last in person class (since it is the same
directions they were following for the last class that met on zoom). The only difference is that they will
not be working in groups, it will be individual. Upon their next in class meeting they will do the final 4
Organelle dating profiles (Golgi bodies, Chloroplasts, Vacuoles and Lysosomes) and be shown a fun
rap song about the structure and function of the various cell organelles as well as get some practice
and assessment through an interactive Kahoot game! The rap song and interactive Kahoot game will
be a closure which will take place after the asynchronous class and finish up the cell organelle
introduction.
Amazing job everyone!! I am so proud of all the scientific dating profiles we have created for the cell
organelles and how creative you all were while staying true to the purpose each organelle served for
the cell itself whether it be seen in plant cells, animal cells, or both! Next class, we will actually be
asynchronous due to the teachers coming into school to prepare their classrooms for our hybrid model
in order to get in ‘tip-top’ shape for all you lovely students we need you to do the work on your own. Of
course, if you have any confusion or questions feel free to email either Mrs. Blohm or myself and we
will be more than happy to help! So for next class, you can (on your own time-again, we will NOT be
meeting on zoom) open your copy of this google slides and complete the next three dating profiles!!
As we were doing it in class, each profile took 10 minutes. So, having you all do the next three profiles
should take no more than 30 minutes! That is less than half of our class time - so I know you all can do
it! After you finish, you need to submit it eack to us on Schoology for a grade. Great job today and good
luck next class! After that class we will be halfway in person where we will finish these profiles as well
as listening to a really cool rap song about the cell organelles and playing a Kahoot to test our
knowledge of the organelles - so get excited for that and keep reviewing your notes, as always! It has
been a crazy start to the school year with COVID but I am so excited for you to continue learning about
the cell organelles and their purposes! Excited to see you all in hybrid format soon (:
For anyone who finishes the profiles early: I want you to think about any connections between the cell
organelles we have discussed already and why they are so important!
Planned Supports and Differentiation:
Product: Which options or types of assessments might you consider for various learners to
demonstrate their understanding of the objectives?
● The small group work provides opportunities for debate, challenging questions and
higher level thinking as they have to create ‘nicknames’ and make connections to the
content in a new way so they are challenging/stretching their brain a bit.
● The fast finisher has students reflecting upon the connections organelles have with
each other, which emphasizes the standard of subcomponents making up the system
as a whole and the ‘bigger picture’, opposed to just memorization or learning what
each organelle does - emphasizing why and how that matters in our ‘bigger picture’
functioning organelle to organelle, cell to cell, etc.
● Higher order thinking and challenging of students also occurs as they are working in
group the first day and then individually the second meeting (as that class needs to be
asynchronous).
● Assessments can be seen through the discussions had within groups, their overall
dating profile for each organelle, and their individual organelle dating profile when
working independently on day 2 of this lesson (as it is asynchronous).
JN (504) -
Breaks
Cool down area
Warning of a schedule change
Prompt “If you do …...then……
Can use fidgets
Seating by teacher
Helper
JN (504) -
-misses time due to diabetes
-needs to leave class with student
-bathroom pass
-Allow cell phone on table to monitor sugar levels
-Allows candy/food
-Parent communication + and -
BW (504) -
-Wears Headphones to cancel noise
-Needs Routines
-+ praise
-Leadership Roles
-Own space
-Breaks
-Pass to see counsellor
YO (504) -
-Seating
-Breaks/Check Ins
-Small group testing outside classroom
-Positive reinforcement
RS (504) -
-Seating near teacher
-Explain directions
-Agenda book Initial
-Extra time
-Small group/Graphic Organizer
JS (504) -
-Seating near teacher
-Copy of class notes
-Extra time/Check Ins
LS (504) -
-Seating
-Small Group
-Breaks
-Sit near a positive peer
-Repeat directions
Rushes in getting work done, have him review work and to “slow” down
SL (504) -
-Needs redirection/Check Ins
-Allow corrections
-Extra Time
-Chunk tests
-Seating
-Grid paper/Graphic Organizers
JB (504) -
-Breaks
-Guidance Pass
-Extra time for days on assignments ??
AD (504) -
-font size 14 plus
-select paper
-breaks after 30 minutes
-seating close to board
-chunk tests
-extra time
-test read orally or she can read outloud
Visually Impaired
RH (504) -
-pass to guidance
-validate feelings/encourage deep breathing
-seating
-breaks
-chunk assignments
Anxiety
DJ -
-seating
-communicate with parents + and -
-allow her to stand in class
-headphones/dividers on desk
-breaks
-needs praise
Concentration
JB -
Emotional Disability
- Emotional outbursts/inappropriate behaviors
- Reading Comprehension
- Written Expression
- Math
- Executive Functioning-Organization
- Small group instruction (all areas)
CC -
Other Health Impairment
- Math
- Reading Comprehension/ Decoding
- Written Expressions
- small group instruction (all areas)
- Small group testing (all areas)
JC -
Learning Disability
- difficulty with reading/decoding grade level text
- Written expression
- small group instruction to teach reading strategies (all areas where reading required)
- Grade-level text read aloud
- Directions and questions read aloud (for assignments and tests/quizzes)
DM-
Learning Disability
- Reading Comprehension
- Math-problem solving
- Written Expression
- Focus and Frustration Issues
- small group instruction (all areas)
MJ -
Learning Disability
- Reading comprehension
- Small group instruction (reading)
- texts read aloud upon request
JO -
Other Health Impaired
- Reading: comprehending issues
- Written Expression: assist with process of writing
- Coping Strategies: Counseling for anger/frustration issues needed
- Small group instruction for reteaching/reinforcement of new concepts (All Subject Areas)
CT -
Other Health Impaired (ADHD)
- Math: multi-step problems; adding/subtracting fractions
- Organization: Issues with concentration and task completion; Difficulties staying organizing
with what assignments to complete at what time
- Small group instruction with push-in (Math)
Resources/Materials
● Cell Organelles Dating Profile Google Slides
● Readings on cell Organelles from their Textbook (which have been pasted into
the slideshow so it is all in one place)
○ Citation: Buckley, D. (2011). Cell Organelles. In Interactive science (pp.
17-22). Boston, MA: Pearson.