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Post by bugsmom on Nov 5, 2008 19:02:15 GMT -5
I'm teaching Josh a short unit on DNA this week and I found the coolest DNA model you can do at home. I know this may seem kinda or "young" but it really hit home with him in learning all the "peices" inside DNA. It's really simple and fun to do, so I thought I'd share it with others that my be covering this subject. DNA Stand Model You'll need... Colored miniture marshmellows Twizzlers Toothpicks Put the four different colored marshmellows in groups. Lable each color with a name of a base. (Ex: adenine, thymine, guanine, and cytosine). Match up the correct bases that go with each other...(Ex: adenine only goes with thymine...guanine only matches with cytosine) Put the marshmellows that match together on each end of the toothpick. Make about 8 toothpicks with marshmellows. Once your tookpicks (bases) are put togther, line them up and push them into the twizzlers, (they represent the sugars and phospates). Once the DNA is put together, twist, and waa laa...you have a DNA strand! The best part is that when your done, you can eat it!    |
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Post by jj on Nov 5, 2008 21:22:58 GMT -5
Bugs, I think that is awesome. I love that! I'm so glad you posted that last picture cause my brain wasn't able to visualize it.
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Post by bugsmom on Nov 5, 2008 22:23:47 GMT -5
Bugs, I think that is awesome. I love that! I'm so glad you posted that last picture cause my brain wasn't able to visualize it. It's so funny you said that because we were having such a hard time getting a picture of this. Every angle we took the picture didn't look right. Josh was cracking me up cuz he was either twisting it too much or not enough. We were rolling on the kitchen floor over it.  |
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Post by trid on Nov 5, 2008 23:24:05 GMT -5
 It is so good to know that I am not the only one who laughs my way through a school day! The photos could also be counted as art class, or gym if you were rolling around on the ground! That is physical education *education being physical as well as movement! I think the physical act of building models like that for science is a great idea. It makes it easier to connect what you know already with what you are trying to learn. Relating one solidly known concept to what you need to learn. When he is off in college, he might not remember what he had for lunch, but he will remember that green marshmallows go with red ones, and that mom gave him the green eyes and dad gave him the red hair, and that is how the DNA is passed from each parent to the offspring!
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Post by misty on Nov 5, 2008 23:40:59 GMT -5
What a great project, Bugsmom! It sounds like you are having as much fun teaching as Josh is learning!
Shannon & I watched the election coverage last night & I counted that as Social studies! I had to explain the electoral votes & how the president has to get a law passed, not just say it & it be so..LOL. We had fun fighting too because we were for opposite candidates.
Digging Misty's grave was gym class on Tuesday. Shannon's arms are sore today so I'd say she got quite the workout. I think for her own feelings, it was good for her to take part in the burial.
anyway, we can all get creative with schooling....that's the nice thing about not having them in the traditional classroom.
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Post by jj on Nov 6, 2008 4:01:17 GMT -5
I was sitting here thinking what kid is coming over soon that I can do that with. And of course we'd eat them afterward. LOL
I definately am passing that along to some of my family members that homeschool. I totally love things that are visual for kids. Those pictures turned out great Bugs.
I just had to add....it just warms my heart that you are having so much fun with Josh. Makin' me smile.
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Post by charliegirl on Nov 6, 2008 20:06:26 GMT -5
What a cool idea! I might try it just for fun and then I can eat the project and not have it sitting around in my way forever after.  |
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Post by mary2 on Nov 6, 2008 21:11:56 GMT -5
That looks so neat and creative!! I know there will come a day when my son is assigned a DNA model; now, I could find the mini marshmellows, but forget about the twizzlers in my country... Anyways, I am hoping to get at least a tiny bit of your creativity.
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Post by jj on Nov 6, 2008 23:37:26 GMT -5
That looks so neat and creative!! I know there will come a day when my son is assigned a DNA model; now, I could find the mini marshmellows, but forget about the twizzlers in my country... Anyways, I am hoping to get at least a tiny bit of your creativity. Maybe you could make some long skinny french bread twisted to replace the twizzlers. Now it wouldn't go good with marshmellows but neither do twizzlers exactly. LOL |
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Post by charliegirl on Nov 7, 2008 0:03:57 GMT -5
That looks so neat and creative!! I know there will come a day when my son is assigned a DNA model; now, I could find the mini marshmellows, but forget about the twizzlers in my country... Anyways, I am hoping to get at least a tiny bit of your creativity. I will send you a package of twizzlers when that day comes, Mary. |
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I was about to conquer the world but then I got distracted by something shiny.
