Classroom Resource

Selective Breeding

Subject Area

English Language Arts
Science

Grade(s)

7

Overview

The teacher will present an informational text from the website, ReadWorks. Students will interact with this non-fiction text by annotating the text digitally. The students will answer the questions associated with the article as an assessment. This learning activity will help explain the impact of selective breeding on the appearance of desired traits in organisms. 

English Language Arts (2021) Grade(s): 7

ELA21.7.1

Evaluate the contributions of informational text elements, including categories, point of view, purpose, and figurative, connotative, and technical word meanings, to develop central and supporting ideas.

Unpacked Content

UP:ELA21.7.1

Vocabulary

  • Informational text elements
  • Categories
  • Point of view
  • Purpose
  • Figurative word meaning
  • Connotative word meaning
  • Technical word meaning
  • Central ideas
  • Supporting ideas

Knowledge

Students know:
  • Informational text elements develop central and supporting ideas.
  • Categories, point of view, purpose, figurative, connotative, and technical word meanings are types of informational text elements that develop central and supporting ideas.

Skills

Students are able to:
  • Identify informational text elements, including categories, point of view, purpose, and figurative, connotative, and technical word meanings.
  • Evaluate the contribution of specific informational text elements to developing the central and supporting ideas in a text.

Understanding

Students understand that:
  • Authors choose to use particular informational text elements to support the development of the central and supporting ideas of a text.
Science (2015) Grade(s): 7

SC15.7.14

Gather and synthesize information regarding the impact of technologies (e.g., hand pollination, selective breeding, genetic engineering, genetic modification, gene therapy) on the inheritance and/or appearance of desired traits in organisms.

Unpacked Content

UP:SC15.7.14

Vocabulary

  • Technology (e.g., hand pollination, selective breeding, genetic engineering, genetic modification, gene therapy)
  • Inheritance
  • Traits
  • Synthesize
  • Bias
  • Credibility
  • Accuracy
  • Probability

Knowledge

Students know:
  • Through technologies, humans have the capacity to influence certain characteristics of organisms.
  • One can choose desired parental traits determined by genes, which are then passed to offspring.

Skills

Students are able to:
  • Gather information about multiple technologies that have changed the way humans influence the inheritance and/or appearance of desired traits in organisms.
  • Use multiple appropriate and reliable sources of information for investigating each technology.
  • Assess the credibility, accuracy, and possible bias of each publication and method used in the information they gather.
  • Use their knowledge of artificial selection and additional sources to describe how the information they gather is or is not supported by evidence.
  • Synthesize the information from multiple sources to provide examples of how technologies have changed the ways that humans are able to influence the inheritance of desired traits in organisms.
  • Use the information to identify and describe how a better understanding of cause-and-effect relationships in how traits occur in organisms has led to advances in technology that provide a higher probability of being able to influence the inheritance of desired traits in organisms.

Understanding

Students understand that:
  • Cause-and-effect relationships in how traits occur in organisms has led to advances in technology that provide a higher probability of being able to influence the inheritance of desired traits in organisms.

Scientific and Engineering Practices

Obtaining, Evaluating, and Communicating Information

Crosscutting Concepts

Cause and Effect
Link to Resource
https://www.readworks.org/article/Selective-Breeding/4e44af99-307b-4673-9703-11…

CR Resource Type

Learning Activity

Resource Provider

Other

Resource Provider other

ReadWorks.org
Accessibility

Accessibility

Audio resources: includes a transcript or subtitles
License

License Type

CUSTOM

Custom License Type (URL)

https://about.readworks.org/terms-of-use.html

Comments or Notes

ReadWorks is a website that provides K-12 teachers with free literacy resources (About ReadWorks). ReadWorks has literary and informational texts on a variety of subjects and reading skills. You may narrow your search using grade level or Lexile level, making this website a wonderful tool for differentiation. Students will complete their work digitally, and you will provide their score and feedback digitally. This makes it easy to go paperless for this activity.

Prior to implementing this activity, you will need to sign up for an Educator Account on ReadWorks. After setting up an account, create a class from the Class Admin tab, this will provide you with a Class Code to give to students. Next, use the Find Content tab to search for the informational article that will be used during this activity, "Selective Breeding." After navigating to the article, click on the blue Assign button to assign it to your class.

Each student will need access to a digital device, such as a tablet or laptop. The first time students enter the website they will need to enter the Class Code that is listed on your Class Admin page. Alternatively, you can print the article and corresponding questions for students, if digital devices are not available. 

Approved Date

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