How do we teach understandings deeper than “mitochondria are the powerhouse of the cell?”

When I plan a unit, I want to set up as many potential “on-ramps” to the big understanding as possible. One of the best ways to do this is to make sure I’ve explored all of the concepts inside of the concepts in a content standard. Concepts inside of concepts? Let’s pull a standard from the NGSS to see what I mean by that:

“MS-LS1-2. Develop and use a model to describe the function of a cell as a whole and ways the parts of cells contribute to the function.”

If making a cell “city,” or a candy cell, or a cookie cell jumped into your mind, hang on a second. Let’s do a little more thinking before we commit to an activity.

There are several major concepts to explore in that standard, including:
- developing a model
- the function(s) of a cell
- ways parts contribute to a whole

At first glance, these concepts seem pretty self-explanatory. But each of us is using unique neural networks built from our specific experiences with these concepts. If we don’t examine these concepts more closely, then our lesson designs will end up most accessible to the students whose schemas are most similar to our own. Remember, our goal is to set up as many on-ramps to the big understanding as possible.

Let’s dig into the concept of “ways parts contribute to a whole.” At first, I think about components just doing what they are supposed to. But then I reflect on teams, and how rigid vs adaptable teams fare in a dynamic environment. Also how in successful teams, team members tend to have a level of autonomy that allows them to adapt to changes, but also a sense of shared purpose. If I pull this concept into a different context, I think about redundancy in engineering—parts that back up other parts if they fail. Now I'm back to teams and how good teammates have each other's backs. Inside of “ways parts contribute to a whole” are the concepts of teamwork, family, autonomy, purpose, and probably even more.

With that little bit of extra thinking, I can activate a more robust understanding of the standard in my own mind and identify additional “on-ramps” to the big understanding. There will be students who respond well to the classic cell model, and now I also have learning experience ideas around how you show up for the people you care about in a team or family. This will enable students to leverage their own experiences with the concept of “ways parts contribute to a whole,” pushing us beyond rote memorization to an integrated understanding of systems thinking. Which I would argue is much more aligned with the real-world applications of cellular biology, such as, oh I don’t know, treating genetic mitochondrial disorders…