Name: Zach Joseph Section: 6
Student Exploration: Mouse Genetics (One Trait)
Directions: Follow the instructions to go through the simulation. Respond to the questions and
prompts in the orange boxes.
Vocabulary: allele, DNA, dominant allele, gene, genotype, heredity, heterozygous, homozygous, hybrid,
inheritance, phenotype, Punnett square, recessive allele, trait
Gizmo Warm-up
Heredity is the passage of genetic information from parents to offspring.
The rules of inheritance were discovered in the 19
th
century by Gregor
Mendel. With the Mouse Genetics (One Trait) Gizmo™, you will study how
one trait, or feature, is inherited.
1. Drag two black mice into the Parent 1 and Parent 2 boxes. Click Breed
to view the five offspring of these parents.
What color are the offspring? They’re grayish - black
The appearance of each mouse is also called its phenotype. In this lab, we will be investigating the fur
color trait, so the phenotype = fur color.
2. Click Clear and drag two white mice into the parent boxes. Click Breed several times. What is the
phenotype of the offspring now?
All the mice are white
3. Do you think mouse offspring will always look like their parents? Explain:
Yes because they both have the same color fur and size
Activity A:
Patterns of
inheritance
Get the Gizmo ready:
● Click Clear.
● Drag a black mouse and a white mouse into the
parent boxes, but don’t click Breed yet.
Question: What patterns are shown by offspring traits?
1. Predict : What fur color(s) do you think the offspring of a black mouse and a white mouse will have?
The offspring color of both the white mouse and back mouse
2. Observe : Click Breed several times. What do you see?
The mouses are still black
3. Observe : Drag two offspring into the Holding Cages. These mice are called hybrids because their parents
had different traits. Click Clear, and then breed the two hybrids.
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