Got Lactose? Investigating How Enzymes Function (view)

Units included with this Open Author resource:

Unit 1 - What are Enzymes?
Learning goals:
Introduce students to the basics of enzyme function
Keywords:
Activation Energy, Blood Glucose, Body Systems, Denature, Digestion, Enzymes, Lactase Persistence, Lactose Intolerance, Public Health, Substrates, substrates, activation energy, denature, enzymes, lactose intolerance, lactase persistence, blood glucose, public health, body systems, digestion
Alignment:
NGSS.HS.LS1.1
Unit 2 - Lactose Intolerance Fact or Fiction
Learning goals:
assess students prior knowledge of lactose intolerance/lactase persistence
Keywords:
Activation Energy, Blood Glucose, Body Systems, Denature, Digestion, Enzymes, Lactase Persistence, Lactose Intolerance, Public Health, Substrates
Alignment:
NGSS.HS.LS1.2, NGSS.HS.LS4.4
Unit 3 - Making of the Fittest: Got Lactase? The co-evolution of genes and culture
Learning goals:
Students should understand the evolutionary history of lactase persistence, Students should be able to analyze and interpret a blood glucose data set
Keywords:
substrates, activation energy, denature, enzymes, lactose intolerance, lactase persistence, blood glucose, public health, body systems, digestion
Alignment:
NGSS.HS.LS4.2
Unit 4 - Case Study and Experiment: Can over-the-counter lactase tablets help Sam?
Learning goals:
Students will make a claim about the ability of lactase pills to digest lactose, Students will conduct an experiment on lactose digestion, Students will reason a connection between their initial claim and their data
Keywords:
substrates, activation energy, denature, enzymes, lactose intolerance, lactase persistence, blood glucose, public health, body systems, digestion
Alignment:
NGSS.HS.LS2.6, NGSS.HS.LS1.3
Unit 5 - Take Your Knowledge Public
Learning goals:
Students will communicate findings with a public audience, Students will use the 4C's to create a summative assessment
Keywords:
substrates, activation energy, denature, enzymes, lactose intolerance, lactase persistence, blood glucose, public health, body systems, digestion
Alignment:
NGSS.HS.LS4.1

Summary

After studying the basics of enzyme function, students will be exposed to the history and evolution of lactose intolerance/lactase persistence. Both whole group and individual activities will ask students to interact with the concept. They will conduct a lab to understand the role of enzymes in lactose digestion and communicate their knowledge by creating a public health poster.