Jaime L. Zung  Rye High School  Parsons Street  Rye, New York 10580  zungj@ryehs1.lhric.org	Cynthia Osborne  William Howard Taft High School  Bronx, New York

    Learning biology can at times be like learning a new language.   There are so many new terms and definitions that students often become overwhelmed.   A "place mat" can be a fun way of learning and categorizing these new terms and can be made either by the teacher or as a student project.
    Place mats can be found in diners throughout the country containing advertisements for local businesses in the area.   An embryology place mat is a series of "advertisements" for various embryological terms.   The students are entertained while they learn and can test themselves as well.
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The students will be able to:

• Determine the important ideas, concepts, and definitions relating to a list of embryological terms
• Match embryological terms with their definitions
• Match definitions with their embryological terms
• Create short quizzes using these embryological terms

• Biology students
• Grades 9 - 12

Notes to the Teacher: to top

• The place mats may be prepared by the teacher or given as an assignment for the students to complete.
• The time required varies depending on how creative one wants to be.
• A class period may be devoted to the construction of a place mat or the students may be given direction as to how to prepare one.
• A place mat may be given to the students as an example and they can then be asked to create one on a different topic.

    No special materials or equipment are needed other than a good biology text book, rulers, paper, and creativity.   If available, a computer can be used in the preparation of the place mat.
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    The students should be given a list of the new terms for the lesson.

    In this particular lesson, the terms will be :
        MITOSIS, MEIOSIS, CLEAVAGE, BLASTULA, GASTRULA, ECTODERM,
        ENDODERM, MESODERM, EXTERNAL DEVELOPMENT,
        INTERNAL DEVELOPMENT, FERTILIZATION, and ZYGOTE.
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INTRODUCTION

    You have been hired as an advertising executive to create a place mat for the town of EMBRYOLOGY.   The place mat will be used in the local diner and will have advertisements for some of the local businesses and events.

PURPOSE

    Your job is to list all the important definitions and/or terms and ideas related to each "business" or "event" and then to create a catchy advertisement to be used on the place mat.

MATERIALS

    Your biology text book and list of "businesses" and "events" provided by your teacher.

PROCEDURE

• Create two columns on a sheet of paper.  (See Table 1.)
• In the left-hand column, write the first "business" or "event" .
• Below it, write its definition and important terms and ideas related to it.
• In the right-hand column, create a catchy advertisement incorporating the information from the left-hand column.
• Continue like this through the list of "businesses" and "events".
• Assemble the adds into the place mat according to the format below (Figure 1):

• You can create a quiz that can be put into the place mat in the position shown.

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    Create place mats on other topics.
    Create bumper stickers with themes on this topic.
    Create book marks with themes on this topic.
    Create posters with embryological themes.
 

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    Special thanks to Dr. Donald Cronkite, Academic Advisor of the WWLPT 1997 BIOLOGY PROGRAM, for the place mat idea.
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