Mississippi Science GEN.5.5
The Standard
- GEN.5
- Students will apply population genetic concepts to explain the variability of organisms within a population.
Enrichment: Analyze computer simulations of the effects of natural selection on allelic frequencies in a population.
2026 Mississippi College- and Career-Readiness Standards for Science · Population Genetics
Teacher's field guide
What This Standard Means
What Students Need to Do
- Students run a computer simulation and change which trait helps organisms survive. They track allele frequencies across generations and use the results to explain why a frequency rose or fell.
What Mastery Looks Like
- Students can compare starting and ending allele frequencies and link a repeated change to the survival setting. They can explain why separate runs may not produce identical results.
Common Misconceptions
- Students may think an organism changes its alleles because it needs to survive. They may assume a dominant allele always spreads, or treat a change in one run as proof of selection.
How to Assess It
- Exit ticket: Give students a graph from the simulation. Ask, "Which allele increased, by how much, and which survival setting helps explain the change?"
Lesson moves
Ways to Teach It
In PhET Natural Selection, add a brown-fur mutation and wolves, then record fur-color allele frequencies for five generations.
Ask students to compare two runs and write why the same survival setting might produce different allele frequencies.
Give pairs of starting and ending allele counts; students race to calculate each allele's frequency and identify which one increased.
Show a photo of pesticide-treated crops and ask students to connect insect survival rates to changes in resistance-allele frequency.
Free download
Printable GEN.5.5 Worksheet
A ready-to-print activity worksheet aligned to GEN.5.5, with an answer key for the teacher on its own page. No account needed.
PDF, US Letter, prints cleanly in black and white.
Download the worksheetKeep exploring
Related Standards
- BIO.4.4
Design models and/or use simulations to investigate the interaction between changing environments and genetic variation in natural selection leading to adaptati...
- BIO.4.7
Enrichment: Construct explanations for how various disease agents (bacteria, viruses, chemicals) can influence natural selection.
- GEN.5.6
Enrichment: Apply the concept of natural selection to analyze differences in human populations (e.g., skin color, lactose persistence, sickle cell anemia, and m...
- GEN.5.4
Apply the Hardy-Weinberg formula to analyze changes in allelic frequencies due to natural selection in a population. Relate these changes to the environmental f...
Turn this exact standard into a lesson
Grade, subject, topic, and the complete standard are prefilled. Create one free, no account needed.
Also for this standard:Make a WorksheetMake a QuizMake a Sub Lesson