Mississippi Science HAP.8.4
The Standard
- HAP.8
- Students will investigate the structures and functions of the male and female reproductive system, including the cause and effect of diseases and disorders.
Construct explanations detailing the role of hormones in the regulation of sperm and egg development. Analyze the role of negative feedback in regulation of the female menstrual cycle and pregnancy.
2026 Mississippi College- and Career-Readiness Standards for Science · Male and Female Reproductive Systems
Teacher's field guide
What This Standard Means
What Students Need to Do
- Students trace how FSH and LH help testes make sperm and ovaries mature eggs. They explain how hormones limit further FSH and LH release, and how hCG keeps progesterone high in early pregnancy.
What Mastery Looks Like
- A student can show how FSH supports sperm production and follicle growth, while LH triggers testosterone release and ovulation. They can explain why falling progesterone leads to a period, but sustained progesterone during pregnancy keeps FSH low.
Common Misconceptions
- Students may think FSH makes sperm or eggs directly, rather than acting on cells in the testes or ovaries. They may assume progesterone stays high before a period. Some call the LH surge negative feedback, though it is positive feedback.
How to Assess It
- Exit ticket: Draw one hormone pathway for sperm production and one for egg development, using FSH and LH. Then explain why falling progesterone starts a period, while hCG helps prevent one during early pregnancy.
Lesson moves
Ways to Teach It
Give pairs hormone cards and yarn to connect the brain, pituitary, testes, and ovaries; have them mark negative feedback links.
Ask students to write: Why does a period start when progesterone falls but stop during pregnancy? Use hCG in your answer.
Play a card sort: teams place FSH, LH, estrogen, progesterone, testosterone, and hCG on blank sperm and egg pathway diagrams.
Show a pregnancy test package; ask why detecting hCG suggests the uterine lining is being maintained rather than shed.
Keep exploring
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- HAP.7.1
Obtain, evaluate, and communicate information to illustrate that the endocrine glands secrete hormones that help the body maintain homeostasis through feedback ...
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