Mississippi Science GEN.3.2
The Standard
- GEN.3
- Students will investigate biotechnology applications and bioengineering practices.
Experimentally demonstrate genetic transformation, protein purification, and/or gel electrophoresis.
2026 Mississippi College- and Career-Readiness Standards for Science · Biotechnological Applications
Teacher's field guide
What This Standard Means
What Students Need to Do
- Students run a lab that changes bacteria with a plasmid, separates a protein from a mixture, or sorts DNA fragments on a gel. They record results and explain what those results show.
What Mastery Looks Like
- Students follow the steps for their chosen method and use a comparison sample to check their results. On a DNA gel, they use a size ladder to estimate fragment lengths and explain why smaller fragments traveled farther.
Common Misconceptions
- Students may think larger DNA fragments travel farther through a gel. They may treat any band as proof that bacteria took up a plasmid, or mistake protein purification for making a new protein.
How to Assess It
- Exit ticket: Show a gel with a 200 bp marker near the bottom, an 800 bp marker near the top, and one sample band near each marker. Ask, 'Which sample has shorter DNA fragments, and how can you tell?'
Lesson moves
Ways to Teach It
Load prepared DNA samples and a size ladder into a pre-stained agarose gel, then run it and sketch the bands under blue light.
Show two gel images and ask, 'Which sample matches the reference DNA, and which bands support your choice?'
Hand out gel cards with band patterns and ladder sizes; have pairs match unknown samples to labeled controls.
Use a mock food recall report and gel images to identify which batch matches a flagged sample, then discuss what remains unproven.
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Printable GEN.3.2 Worksheet
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Related Standards
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Enrichment: Use an engineering design process to refine the methodology to optimize the DNA-extraction process for various cell types. *
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