In this lesson, students are introduced to the process of genetic research. The lesson begins with a Think-Pair-Share activity designed to introduce students to the types of research questions people in different career fields might answer using bioinformatics tools. After a short background explanation provided by the teacher about how genetic research is done, students make their own hypotheses and predictions about the relatedness of canine species, and align paper DNA sequences to evaluate their hypotheses. The lesson concludes with a group activity introducing students to pairwise comparisons of DNA sequences, which will be explored more fully in later lessons. In Lesson One, students learn how DNA sequencing core lab managers might use bioinformatics tools in their career.
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