Lesson 47 of 84 · Cells
Simulation⭐ 30 XP🌿 Wild JungleMutations and Variation (Part 3)
Mutations and Variation (Part 3).
🎯 Your mission
Play with the model. Break it. Understand it.
⚡ The twist
What the body does in one minute is wilder than any cartoon.
Mind = Blown
🦠 You have more bacterial cells in your body than human cells.
Make a hypothesis first
Guess: how does the body solve this problem?
What You'll Learn
Genetic variation within a population is essential for evolution. Variation comes from mutations, sexual reproduction, and gene flow between populations.
Key Words
- trait
- dominant
- recessive
Steps
Review the background information on Cells before starting.
Prepare a wet-mount slide of an onion skin and observe it under a microscope (or magnifying glass). Draw and label the cell wall, cell membrane, and nucleus.
Watch carefully for any changes and note the time.
Create a data table to organize your measurements.
Check Your Understanding
Question 1
1 of 3What does DNA stand for?
Where you see this in real life
Your own body is doing this thousands of times every second.
Stretch Challenge
Try this in real life this week.
Find one thing about your body that's different from a friend's. Wonder why.
For the dinner table
“Tell me something you noticed about your own body today.”
Next Smart Experiment
We'll pick an experiment that matches exactly how you're thinking right now.
Share this experiment
Send it to a parent who's looking for a 10-minute kitchen science win.
Checkout complete lesson on Cells for 6th Grade
Get the full Cells track as a printable PDF — all lessons, worksheets, and answer keys.