Hello! I’m Alexis (she/her) and I had the pleasure of being this January’s Oberlin intern for Ms Levine’s class. Throughout my time here, I worked closely with Ms Levine and her teaching partner in crime: Ms Hoofnagle, as well as Eckstein’s multitalented librarian Ms Sterling to develop a project that incorporated both science and art. The concept of the project: learn about the connection between gene inheritance and traits by making dragons.
The first part of this project tasked students to use the known genotypes (the combination of gene versions) of two parent dragons to determine the genotype that their own dragon had. In order to simulate the randomness of gene inheritance, students flipped a coin to determine whether they got the dominant gene version or the recessive gene version form each of their parents. Next, students used the genotype of their dragon to determine its physical traits (for example, whether it had a green or grey body, or whether it had a horn or no horn). In order to do this, the students needed to use their understanding of the effect of dominant and recessive gene versions (if their dragon had at least one dominant version, it would have the dominant trait). Students then had the optional challenge of repeating the process by mating their dragon with another student’s to produce an offspring.
Then it came time for the students to use their determined traits to actually create their dragons. In order to introduce this part of the project: Ms Levine and Ms Hoofnagle came up with the idea for me to use my theater experience to make the lesson more memorable. Adorned in a long dress, leather arm wraps, and a cloak, I addressed the class as the Head Dragon Trainer from the faraway Kingdom of Oberlinia, who had come to instruct the students on how to make their dragons. They had four options of increasing difficulties for their final product: a 3D colored dragon from a premade template, a freehand illustration, a moveable cardboard puppet or a stuffed animal. During this lesson, Ms Levine and Ms Hoofnagle mentioned that while this project integrated science and art, it was fundamentally a science project meaning students would be graded on their understanding of the concepts rather than on the artistic quality of their work. As a result, students were encouraged to take risks when choosing which option they would use to make their dragon.
Having chosen what dragon they would make, the Dragon Trainers in Training were ready to get to work the following week. I spent my time helping students who were working on cardboard and stuffed animal dragons in the maker’s space in the library, with the support of Ms Sterling and several extremely helpful adult volunteers. After making their dragon, students also had to complete a “breeder’s statement” which included listing the materials they used in their product and a description of how their dragon inherited a certain trait. We finished the project with a gallery walk (or as Ms Levine called in: A Mendelian Menagerie) in which the students displayed their work and got to see each other’s final dragons. During the walk, the students had to complete a worksheet to reinforce their understanding of the genetic concepts and to reflect on the process of the project. I dressed up yet again as the Head Dragon Trainer and walked around leaving Official Dragon Trainer certificates (generously created by by friend) with personalized comments on the dragons. I was glad to see that many students added creative flair to their dragons to make them even more unique.
This project combined science and art to give students a memorable experience that reenforced what they were learning in class. Ideally, it strengthened the students’ knowledge of how organisms inherit one gene version from each parent and how that determines an organism’s physical characteristics, beyond just learning about it in the classroom. As a bio major (with a bonus love for fantasy roll playing games) I really enjoyed the process of managing this project, helping students create their dragons and seeing everyone’s final products. Attached to this post is a quick video showing highlights of the process, so you can get a sense of the dedication it took for these young trainers to create dragons.
Full STEEAM Ahead 