Students will learn about Genetics while reading the biography of Mendel's life but also learn botanical and genetic terminology using flashcards. We not only cover the history but the science that is advancing daily. 

The class will involve reading the book that they can purchase or check out from the library. There will be vocabulary words that they will need to look up and define in their worksheets. They will learn simple pedigrees and punnett square problems, too. I also will link various Youtube videos to help enhance their understanding.

I prefer a hands-on approach where students may need to use color pencils, scissors, and glue sticks to learn various concepts. 

I will respond to student questions via email or through video.
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Week 1  Mendel's childhood
Students will obtain the text and read his life as a child. This book does not have page numbers so I will describe the picture page where you will stop reading.
Students will be presented with a Gregor Mendel coloring sheet sketch of the man. Students will complete comprehension worksheets to reinforce what they are learning from the story. 
Students will be assigned to view specific videos on Mendel's life to reinforce what they are reading about his life. 
They will learn to differentiate Nature and Nurture in the game Mendel's Park. https://www.amnh.org/explore/ology/genetics/a-nature-and-nurture-walk-in-mendel-park
Students will play the "Ask me." game where each student is to come up with three questions to ask their peers what they know about Mendel's childhood. Each student will peer access each other. 
Asynchronous interaction is necessary to complete this game through the classroom portal. 

Week 2 Life of a Friar
Students will learn the life of a friar in medieval times. They will learn his reason for becoming a monk in his time. They will learn why he loved tending to the garden and making accurate records by using a pedigree chart. Students will learn why record-keeping is so important.  Students will play "What's your family like?" For example, "I have a dad with blue eyes and a mom with brown eyes, who has parents with blue eyes only?” This will get them thinking of their families' genetics. I will direct them to learn how to do a simple pedigree chart through a YouTube video.

Week 3 Life of a Botanist
After reading more of the story students will play the High Five game. They will each come up with five questions after reading the story and let their peers answer their five questions. They can give a letter to a keyword to hint at what the answer may be. Asynchronous interaction is necessary to complete the activity through the classroom portal. 

They will learn the parts of a plant; specifically the flower through cutout and coloring activity sheets. Then students will learn through YouTube videos how to do a simple Punnett square just like Mendel did with his peas.
One fun activity is Ping-Pong Punnett squares. Each student will be assigned specific genetic traits and figure the results using Punnett squares. They can challenge their classmates by composing a Punnett square of their own for their classmates to solve thru the classroom. 

Week 4 Mendel's Laws
Students will fill out and color Mendel's laws and view various YouTube videos that will simplify this for kids.
Students will interact with their peers to get to know what their family member traits are. For example, a discussion may begin with, "How many members of your family can roll their tongue?" How many members of your family have a widow's peak"  Are there tall people in your family? As they ask each other questions, they will then fill in their family genetic charts and submit them to me upon completion. Asynchronous interaction is necessary to complete the chart through the classroom portal. 
The final assessment is through a paragraph of what they found to be most interesting about Genetics and why is it important to learn. They will be provided special stationery that they can print and submit to the classroom for their peers to review. https://www.amnh.org/explore/ology/genetics/make-your-own-genetics-stationery2