KUTZTOWN UNIVERSITY

ELEMENTARY EDUCATION DEPARTMENT

Teacher Candidate:

Abby Olsen

Cooperating Teacher:
Group Size:

24

Date: 4/6/16
Coop. Initials

Allotted Time: 45 minutes

Subject or Topic: Dominant & Recessive Traits

Grade Level: 4th

Section:

12pm

STANDARD:
3.1.4.B5. PATTERNS Identify observable patterns in the physical characteristics of
plants or groups of animals.
3.1.4.B6. Science as Inquiry Use data/evidence to construct explanations and
understand that scientists develop explanations based on their evidence and compare
them with their current scientific knowledge.
S4.B.2.2.1 Identify physical characteristics (e.g., height, hair color, eye color, attached
earlobes, ability to roll tongue) that appear in both parents and could be passed on to
offspring.
I. Performance Objectives (Learning Outcomes):
A. Students will explore how dominant and recessive traits are expressed by
observing the physical characteristics of themselves and classmates.
II. Instructional Materials
A. Vocabulary Worksheet 1 per student
B. Vocabulary PowerPoint
C. Variables Within Traits document as a guide for students
D. Inventory Of Traits Chart 1 per student
E. Class Data for Observable Traits chart
1

F. Dominant and Recessive Genes Exit Ticket 1 per student

G. Dominant and Recessive Traits Chart
H. Predicting Traits 1 per student
III. Subject Matter/Content (prerequisite skills, key vocabulary, big idea, outline of
additional content)
A. Prerequisite skills
1. General knowledge of some common physical characteristics.
2. This lesson will follow the lesson on Inherited and Learned
Traits.
3. Knows how to create a bar graph
B. Key Vocabulary
1. Traits: distinguishing characteristics or qualities that are part of
an organisms physical appearance
2. Genes: instructions for our body that determine the traits you
will display.
3. Dominant gene: a gene that can hide the effect of a recessive
gene.
4. Recessive gene: a gene whose expression can be hidden.
C. Big Idea: All organisms grow and reproduce. Their dominant and recessive
genes pass along traits to future generations.
D. Content: Students will learn that every trait has different ways in which it can
be displayed. They will observe and record which form they have of six
different traits.
IV. Implementation
A. Introduction

1. Choose a child to play the game Rock, Paper, Scissors with

you, in front of the class.
2. As you and the student play Rock, Paper, Scissors, ask the
class some of the following questions to illicit who wins and
loses in the game.
i. What is the point of the game?
ii. What determines when the game ends?
iii. How does someone win? Give me an example.
3. Now, describe the game Rock, Paper, Scissors using the words
dominant and recessive.
4. Explain that rock dominates scissors, scissors dominant paper,
and paper dominates rock.
B. Development
1. Give each student a handout of the vocabulary worksheet.
(Attached)
2. Divide the class into four equal groups and assign one of the
four vocabulary words to each group.
3. Have each group designate one group member as the
speaker. Explain that the job of the speaker will be to teach
the rest of the class about their groups vocabulary word.
4. Instruct the groups to use their textbooks as a guide to fill out
the entire section (definition, draw a picture, and give an
example) for their word on the vocabulary sheet.
5. Allow them 5-7 minutes to complete.
6. Once the groups have finished, have the speaker from the
group who had the word trait, come up and explain the
definition they found, draw their picture on the board, and give
an example of the word.
7. Tell the rest of the class to write notes, to fill-in the other three
vocabulary words.

8. Next, follow the procedures taken in steps #6 for the word

genes, then dominant genes, and finally recessive genes.
9. Now, tell the students that youre going to share what you
came up with for each word.
10. Instruct the class to follow along, even though they already
have their vocabulary worksheets filled out because they may
want to add something.
11. Show and discuss the vocabulary PowerPoint. (Attached)
12. Allow time for any questions or clarifications before moving
on to the inquiry.
13. Tell the class they will now participate in an experiment using
the vocabulary words just learned, dominant genes and
recessive genes.
14. Begin the inquiry by asking the students to name and describe
some of the traits we learned in yesterdays lesson.
15. Put the Variables Within Traits document on the overhead
for the students to reference while collecting data. (Attached)
16. Explain to the class that each trait has two different forms.
17. One form is dominant and one form is recessive.
18. Be sure that everyone understands what each form of the traits
looks like before they begin taking inventory.
19. Hand out the Inventory Of Traits Chart to each student.
(Attached)
20. Have them write their name on the top, so they dont get it
confused with their partners.
21. Remind the class to circle which form they have on their paper.
22. Pair the students up to observe and determine which form they
have of each of the six traits.
23. Place the Class Data for Observable Traits chart up in the
classroom. (Be sure students will be able to reach it, as they
will be writing their results on it) (Attached)

24. As students finish answering the 2 questions that follow the

chart on their paper, allow them to come up to the chart to
record their data by placing a tally mark in the correct form
column for each trait.
25. Once every student has recorded their data on the class chart,
count the number of checkmarks in form A for each of the six
traits. Then, do the same for form B traits.
26. Calculate the frequency of each form of the trait for your class.
Use the formula: (# of students with form of trait / total number
of students in the class) x 100. Briefly explain to the class what
you are doing.
27. Hand out copies of the Dominant and Recessive Genes Exit
Ticket to every student. (Attached)
28. Instruct the students to follow the class data to complete their
graph. Give the class about 5 minutes to complete the graph on
their exit slip.
29. Collect their exit slips.
30. Reveal which form is dominant and which is recessive by
showing the Dominant and Recessive Forms chart.
(Attached)
C. Closure
1. Show the class two pictures, one of a male and one of a female.
(Attached)
2. Hand out the Offspring worksheet to each student.
(Attached)
3. Ask the students to draw a picture of what they think the
offspring would look like based on the dominant and recessive
genes shown in the pictures.
4. Briefly explain tomorrows lesson on how we can predict what
the offspring of two parents will look like.

D. Accommodations/Differentiation
1. Accommodation:
a. For children with ADD/ADHD, give them a completed
vocabulary worksheet, after the vocabulary activity is
completed. This will allow them to be able to get
additional information they may have missed when the
teacher was going over it.
2. Differentiation:
a. Children who prefer to work alone may do so during
the vocabulary activity and the inquiry.
b. Instead of using the Exit Ticket, the entire class could
create a bar graph together. Then, when making an
inference as to which trait is dominant, the teacher
could gather feedback from students using thumbs
up/thumbs down.
E. Assessment/Evaluation Plan
1. Formative
a. Students will be evaluated by the accuracy and
completion of their Exit Ticket.
2. Summative
a. There is no Summative for this lesson.
V. Reflective Response
A. Report of Student Performance in Terms of Stated Objectives (Reflection on
student performance written after lesson is taught, includes remediation for
students who fail to meet acceptable level of achievement)
Remediation Plan

B. Personal Reflection (Questions written before lesson is taught. Reflective

answers to question recorded after lesson is taught)
1. Were the students able to use what they learned in the Traits
lesson to help them complete the inquiry?
2. Were the students able to determine which form of each trait
they and their partner had independently or did I have to help
them determine the form?
3. Do I need to demonstrate or show further examples of two
forms of each trait?
4. How could this lesson be improved?
VI. Resources (in APA format)
A. Observing Human Traits
Lab http://www2.mbusd.org/staff/pware/labs/HumanTraits.pdf

Vocabulary
Dominant & Recessive
Lesson

Traits
Distinguishing characteristics or qualities that are part of an
organisms physical appearance

Genes
Instructions for our body that determine the traits you will
display
They determine what your body looks like, what eye or hair
color you have, and more.
Genes stay together in pairs, but each gene in a pair might
be different that its partner. They will be either dominant or
recessive.

Dominant Gene
A gene that can hide the effect of a recessive gene
If there are one or two dominant genes in a gene pair, the
gene pair will be dominant.

Recessive Gene
A gene whose expression can be hidden
If there are two recessive genes in a gene pair, the gene
pair will be recessive.

Word: _D_o_m
__in_a_n_t__g_e_n_e__________________________

Word: _R
__e_c_e_ss_i_v_e_g_e_n_e__________________________

Definition:

Definition:

Example:

Picture:

Gene

Example:

Picture:

Traits

Word: _______________________________________

Word: _______________________________________

Definition:

Definition:

Picture:

Example:

ashleigh-educationjourney.com

Picture:

Example:

Your name:

Date:

Dominant & Recessive Lesson

Inventory of Traits Chart

Circle which form you have for each trait.

TRAIT

FORM 1

FORM 2

A. Earlobes

Free

Attached

B. Dimples

Absent

Present

C. Hairline

Widows peak

Straight

D. Tongue Rolling

Rolling

Non-rolling

E. Thumb

Straight thumb

Hitchhikers thumb

F. Chin

Cleft

No cleft

1. Do you think any of your classmates will have the same form of all 6 traits
as you? Why or why not?

2. Make a prediction about how many of your classmates will have the same
form of all traits as you?

Class Data for Observable Traits

TRAIT

A. Earlobes

B. Dimples

C. Hairline

D. Tongue Rolling

E. Thumb

F. Chin

# of students with
Form 1

FREQUENCY of
students with
Form 1

# of students with
Form 2

FREQUENCY of
students with
Form 2

Dominant & Recessive Forms

TRAIT

DOMINANT

RECESSIVE

A. Earlobes

Free

Attached

B. Dimples

Absent

Present

C. Hairline

Widows peak

Straight

D. Tongue Rolling

Rolling

Non-rolling

E. Thumb

Straight thumb

Hitchhikers thumb

F. Chin

Cleft

No cleft

Exit Slip
1. Based on the class data, complete the bar graph on the following page. Be sure to
add the numbers to represent the frequencies along the y-axis.

2. Based on the data above, make an inference as to which form of each trait is
dominant. Circle the dominant form for each trait.
TRAIT

FORM 1

FORM 2

A. Earlobes

Free

Attached

B. Dimples

Absent

Present

C. Hairline

Widows peak

Straight

D. Tongue Rolling Rolling

Non-rolling

E. Thumb

Straight thumb

Hitchhikers thumb

F. Chin

Cleft

No cleft

Variables Within Traits

EARLOBES

TONGUE ROLLING

Rolling

DIMPLES

Non-Rolling

CHIN

Cleft Chin

No Cleft Chin

THUMB

HAIRLINE

Widows Peak

Straight Hair Line

Predicting Traits

Based on the dominant and recessive genes of these two people, what
do you think their children will look like?

Draw two pictures of what you think the baby of the parents above will
look like. Label the traits you think each baby will have.