Life Stories: Tools for Knowledge Integration

Life is very complex. As our understanding of living matter continues to deepen, naturally biology teaching is becoming increasingly detail oriented. Not surprisingly, students frequently find themselves overwhelmed by the volume of details and accompanying vocabulary, often losing track of the big picture. The described exercise is designed to promote knowledge integration by asking students to assemble life stories of biological entities such as cells, organelles, or molecules, accounting for their birth, death, and life transformations. Initially, students brainstorm in small groups trying to answer concisely the HW3 question series ("How?" "When?" "Where?" "Who?") for each life stage of the entity under review. Class discussion follows, aiming to bridge gaps in knowledge and connectivity. After completion of the exercise, students walk away with a visual one-page study aid allowing for quick review of the big picture. Alternatively, the exercise can be executed as a writing-to-learn assignment, challenging students to write a short "personal narrative" type of story from the perspective of the biological entity under discussion.