We live in a time of changes which are affecting the very core of family life. One grand scale project which exemplifies these changes is the Human Genome Project; a world-wide multi-million dollar undertaking that is attempting to analyze the human genetic heritage in its ultimate molecular detail. The project, which began five and a half years ago, has outstripped many expectations by uncovering the code of human existence.
Leaders of the project have known from the beginning that unlocking the code of human genetics could be harmful as well as useful. While many of us are insured for health coverage in health plans that are part of a benefits package connected with our employment, and may never know the mystical code that defines our existence, our children risk living in a world whose insurance companies and prospective employers will accept or reject them based on something that was inherited by chance.
This world of genetic research and application that 21st century adults will encounter needs to be opened up to them now as children, so that it will be less of an unknown in adulthood. While it is not possible to expect young children to completely understand the science of human genetics, or to grasp the large-scale repercussions of the human genome project, it is helpful; even important, that children begin to learn the key terminology and acquire a basic understanding that our physical characteristics and overall health are the result of a biology that is predetermined by our parentage. In addition to this “genetic pool” that creates our physiology, we are who we are as a result of a whole host of other factors which are shaped by our environment and individual life experiences. By learning some basic concepts in the area of genetics and doing a series of experiments, or explorations that illustrate these concepts, young children will begin to make comparisons about themselves and others which will be real and meaningful.
This unit is intended for a third grade group of children but can be adapted up or down to fit the needs of a wider population.
Who am I and Why?
should take about three to four weeks to complete. The lessons on simple genetics are taught concurrently with lessons on character development for the purpose of defining the physical, unchangeable self and then seeing the self as a vital, worthy, important being. These lessons on character development will also serve to help children nurture and practice the “moldable self,” that part which can be guided and controlled. For social development activities to be meaningful they need to be infused into the everyday mechanism of the classroom. When character building lessons are taught in isolation from the rest of the curriculum, their meaning becomes lost, because there is no framework for application of the ideas taught. Character building and personality awareness activities that are an integrated piece of the total daily curriculum have a much better chance of being remembered and applied, because they have been practiced and modeled in a context that reinforces both curriculum areas.
There are two reasons for teaching a unit in genetics with social development. First, children today, especially in urban settings, are exposed to many forces which foster poor self-control, negative self-concept, and disregard for others. These forces, or factors, include weak home lives, the influence of television, or the influences of other, older peers who are setting poor role-model examples. Secondly, children in this age group are at a pivotol developmental point. At this juncture they are building a foundation for social behavior which will be very difficult to change later on in their development.
As the children become more proficient in understanding the concepts that involve genetics, they will begin to look around them and make reasonable assumptions about themselves and their peers. But more importantly, these children will have learning opportunities to identify characteristics about each other that cannot be assumed, such as personal likes and dislikes.
Finally, to engage the children, make the experiences more meaningful, and to provide a springboard for discussion, a selection of juvenile literature will be used to spark interest, generate ideas, and illustrate concepts.
What is genetics?
The main objectives for the following activities are:
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-Every living thing around us is made up of cells, which are very small and can only be seen through a microscope.
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-Within cells are units called genes, and these genes determine the physical characteristics of all living things.
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-Characteristics, or traits, of living things are passed on from parents to offspring according to the laws of genetics.
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-Each trait has its own genes.
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-All living things resemble their parents, but each individual has certain characteristics.
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-Heredity is the passing on of traits from an organism to its offspring.
KEY VOCABULARY: gene, genetics, trait, cell, heredity, characteristics
