Taryn Van Hemert

  What did you learn this week?    This week we learned about evolution and natural selection and how species can change over time due to genetic variation, adaptation, competition, chance events, or other environmental factors.   Are you able to relate what you learned to what you already knew?           I am able to relate what we learned to what I already know because I already had some background knowledge on what natural selection is. We went more into depth about natural selection and learned some more of the causes of it and what it can look like. We also got put into groups and had to pick an animal/species and show how they have changed over time.  How can you apply what you've learned to your teaching in the future?      Something that we did in class was create our own stories with our groups. We got to pick an animal, my group picked penguins. Then, we had to do some research to find out some facts ab...

What did you learn this week?      This week we talked and learned about natural selection and the different traits of predators and how different traits can work better for different predators and how those dominant traits are passed down. Natural selection in my own words would be survival of the fittest and seeing what species survive and what traits get passed down when faced with hard times like natural disasters, invasive species, etc.  Are you able to relate what you learned to what you already knew?           I am able to relate what we learned to what I already know because I already had some background knowledge on what natural selection is. We went more into depth about natural selection and learned some more of the causes of it and what it can look like. We also went around and everyone got to share what they think natural selection is in their own words so it was interesting to hear what everyone had learned about natural se...

  What did you learn this week? This week we learned about DNA mutations and how they can affect DNA strands. We learned that there are three types of mutations which are: 1.  Insertion 2. Deletion  3. Substitution/replacement  We learned that some mutations can be good, bad, or neutral. Majority of mutations are neutral.  We also were able to check on our fast plants for the last time. Our fast plants have definitely started to die, they do not stand up straight on their own anymore. One thing that is new about our fast plants, is that we can see the seeds now, so that is exciting! See updated image of our fast plant below.  How can you apply what you’ve learned to your future teaching?  In class, we learned about DNA mutations and how they can affect your genotype and your phenotype. We did an activity that was very fun and interesting and is something that I would apply to my future classroom. This is especially a fun activity for our students who l...

  What did you learn this week?     This week we learned about genetics. Some things we learned and reviewed were: - DNA is the blueprint for all living things. - There are 20 amino acids and they are the building blocks of life and they make up proteins.  - RNA is single stranded and DNA is double stranded.  - DNA is located in the nucleus, Proteins are in the cytoplasm, RNA is located in both the nucleus and cytoplasm because it moves back and forth.  We also checked on our fast plants which are growing so chaotically it almost stresses me out. I am thinking they have grown as tall as they will because none of them are really standing up straight anymore and look as if they are dying. Below is an updated picture of the fast plants.  Are you able to relate what you learned to what you already knew?      I am able to relate what I learned to what I already knew because I knew about DNA and RNA already, but had forgotten a lot of informat...