Reinforce Protein Synthesis with this Fun Game

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Sometimes when I teach  DNA, RNA, and protein synthesis, I feel like the only person in the room that "get's it" is me!    Many of my standard Biology I kids struggle with these concepts.  The whole idea of transcription and translation just leaves them looking like a deer in the headlights!  So I use this little activity to help get the point across.  It is called:

Determining the Traits of a Mystery Organism Through Protein Synthesis

After teaching the basics of protein synthesis, have your students work through this.  Given the DNA sequence of 6 genes, the student will determine the mRNA sequence, followed by the tRNA sequence.  Students will then de-code the codons to see what amino acids are needed to build a particular protein.  I have found that my students understand the concept of protein synthesis much better after doing this activity.  And best of all, they get to color their mystery organism at the end.  It never ceases to amaze me how much high school students still love to color!  This activity is appropriate for grades 7 through 10.

The printable lesson is perfect for traditional classroom settings, and the paperless, digital Google Apps version is perfect for distance learning and 1:1 classrooms.