Click the following link for a DNA Structure and Replication Student Learning Guide (coming soon)

Links to tutorials

1. DNA: An Overview (Tutorial)

2. DNA Structure (Tutorial)

3. DNA Replication (Tutorial)

NGSS Performance Expectations and Disciplinary Core Ideas

  • HS-LS1-1.
    • Construct an explanation based on evidence for how the structure of DNA determines the structure of proteins which carry out the essential functions of life through systems of specialized cells.
  • LSA1.A: Structure and Function.
    • All cells contain genetic information in the form of DNA molecules. Genes are regions in the DNA that contain the instructions that code for the formation of proteins, which carry out most of the work of cells. (HS-LS1-1) (Note: This Disciplinary Core Idea is also addressed by HS-LS3-1.)
  • LS3.A: Inheritance of Traits
    • Each chromosome consists of a single very long DNA molecule, and each gene on the chromosome is a particular segment of that DNA. The instructions for forming species’ characteristics are carried in DNA. All cells in an organism have the same genetic content, but the genes used (expressed) by the cell may be regulated in different ways. Not all DNA codes for a protein; some segments of DNA are involved in regulatory or structural functions, and some have no as-yet known function. (HS-LS3-1)