Cells – How do they carry out the activities of life?

This minds-on analysis and discussion activity begins with a video of an animal cell chasing and eating a bacterium. This introduces analyses of how different types of cells carry out the activities of life.

As part of these analyses, students learn about (1) the similarities and differences between eukaryotic and prokaryotic cells, (2) the functions of membrane-bound organelles in eukaryotic cells, (3) the relationship between structure and function for different types of animal cells, and (4) differences between plant and animal cells.

The Student Handout is available in the first two attached files and as a Google doc designed for use in distance learning and online instruction. (For additional instructions, see https://serendipstudio.org/exchange/bioactivities/Googledocs, especially item 7.) The Teacher Notes are available in the third and fourth attached files. The Teacher Notes provide instructional suggestions and background information and explain how this activity is aligned with the Next Generation Science Standards. I am grateful to David Upegui, Central Falls High School, for generously agreeing to share a PowerPoint presentation to accompany a previous version of this activity (https://docs.google.com/presentation/d/1z8WT4Zsyy5RJi-U9zlr9KZwjNCcwGm-dmxnENBOCpD0/copy).

Crawling Neutrophil Chasing a Bacterium

(This video is taken from a 16-mm movie made in the 1950s by the late David Rogers at Vanderbilt University.)