Dr. Shinya Yamanaka - Nobel Prize for iPS Cell research
Part 1 - Foundation SkillItalic text
In groups, please fill in the blanks. Use the words listed in the table below
Stem cells are types of ______ that we can find in fertilized eggs. They have the __________ to become any of the ______ _______ _________ in the human body. They can be used to ________ patients who have damaged or _____________ body parts. However, this causes a lot of ___________ because it leads to the death of living ______________.
A new alternative is to use ______ ______. These are ______ _______ taken from ____ _____________ __________. Four types of __________, called ______________ ______________, are _______ to the cells. This causes them to return to an _________ __________, a state similar to ________ _________. iPS cells are considered a better __________________ to stem cells because it is not necessary to ________ living embryos** in order to create them.
Word List
- Kill
- Treat
- Debate
- Added
- Misshapen
- A person’s face
- Initial State
- 200 cell types
- Genes
- **Embryos
- Yamanaka Factors
- Stem Cells
- Skin Cells
- Cells
- iPS Cells
- Ability
- Alternative
Definitions
- *Stem Cells – Cells that can become any type of cell 幹細胞
- **Embryo – A fertilized egg 受精卵 －＞ 胎児
Part 2 - Building Communication
With your partner, answer the following questions verbally
_______________1_____________________
1 What are stem cells?
2 Where do they come from?
3 What can they be used for?
4 Why is using them controversial?
___________________2 _______________
5 What is an alternative to stem cells?
6 What are iPS cells ?
7 Who engineered them?
8 How are they created?
9 Why are they considered a better alternative to stem cells?
About this activity
- Notes for the teacher and ALT
Goals of Lesson 7 (according to the textbook)
Students will be able to
- Understand iPS cells and how Dr. Yamanaka Made them
- Talk about why Dr. Yamanaka decided to make iPS cells and how he succeeded in making them
- Discuss human cloning
- Write about Japanese scientists or inventors who are famous around the world
About Part 1
This activity is based on paragraphs 1-5 of Lesson 7, 'iPS Cells' in the Element 2 textbook. The simple fill-in-the-blanks exercise can be done alone at home or in groups of four during class. It is designed to force students to think carefully about the meaning of the key words introduced in the passage, as well as how those words are used in a sentence. This exercise can be used in place of retelling activities, or just before them as a means of preparation. It is the first of 4 sets of activities which I have designed to build students' comprehension and communicative ability from the ground up, so as to achieve the goals that are stated on the title page of the chapter. Students will need some guidance to do this activity the first 2 or 3 times. Please walk around the class, discuss the meaning of various words with them in English. Help them understand certain grammatical patterns and sentence structures using similar examples.
Points to be careful about
- xxxxxx is/are types of yyyyyyy e.g Poodles are types of dogs, Black tea (Koocha) is a type of tea (cha), Udon noodles are a type of noodles, etc
- xxxxxxx is/are a better alternative to yyyy because <reason> e.g Electronic dictionaries are a better alternative to paper dictionaries because they are lighter and easier to carry, coca cola zero is a better alternative to coca cola because it has less sugar, etc
Answer key
Stem cells are types of _cells_ that we can find in fertilized eggs. They have the _ability_ to become any of the _200_ _cell_ _types_ in the human body. They can be used to _treat_ patients who have damaged or _misshapen_ body parts. However, this causes a lot of _debate_ because it leads to the death of living _embryos_.
A new alternative is to use _iPS_ _cells_. These are _Skin_ _cells_ taken from _a_ _person's_ _face_. Four types of _genes_, called _Yamanaka_ _Factors_, are _added_ to the cells. This causes them to return to an __Initial__ _State__, a state similar to __Stem_ _cells_. iPS cells are considered a better _Alternative_ to stem cells because it is not necessary to _Kill__ living embryos** in order to create them.
About Part 2
This exercise is designed to draw on the understanding gained from exercise one. It is an assisted retelling which is designed to help students to give and overall verbal explanation of the main points of the passage up to paragraph 5. By answering these questions in small bits, students can understand the 'who what when where why and how' behind talking about academic/ historical topics in English and learn how to answer them. If the questions are removed, and the answers remain, students can see that they have done a retelling by breaking down the key questions into smaller parts. This is designed to build students' confidence towards executing their own retellings with confidence.
Answers
1 What are stem cells?
A: Stem cells are cells which have the ability to become any type of cell.
2 Where do they come from?
A: They come from embryos - fertilized eggs.
3 What can they be used for?
A: They can be used for the treatment of patients who have damaged or misshapen limbs.
4 Why is using them controversial?
A: Using stem cells is controversial because it leads to the death of living embryos.
_________________________________________new paragraph ____________________________
5 What is the new alternative to stem cells?
A: The new alternative is iPS Cells.
6 What are iPS cells ?
A: iPS cells are cells which were taken from skin cells, and returned to their initial state
7 Who engineered them?
A: They were engineered by Dr. Yamanaka Shinya of Kyoto University
8 How are they created?
A: They are created by adding four genes, called 'Yamanaka factors', to skin cells.
9 Why are they considered a better alternative to stem cells?
A: They are considered a better alternative to stem cells because it is not necessary to kill living embryos in order to create them
If students combine their answers, they can create a retelling paragraph for both written and verbal communication. It is important for students to understand that ideas must be grouped together and organized. The beginning of a new idea, or sentence of a paragraph starts with the answer to a 'what' question.
'Idea 1
Who is he/ What is it? What did he or she do?/ What does it do? What is it used for? When did he or she do it?/when is it used? Where did/does he or she do it?/ Where is it found/ Where is it used Why did he or she do it? Why is it used? How did he or she do it?/ How is it used?
end of idea 1
The remaining goals of this chapter can be sufficiently achieved using the exercises on page 112 part B
The above material is intended as a support material for helping students to better understand the text and build confidence towards retelling and discussion in cases where the modus operandi of the classroom is to have students read and regurgitate (A situation which often leads to students who cannot use the language functionally outside of answering direct written questions about the passage with written copy-paste answers taken word-for-word from the textbook)
Good Luck!
Prepared by Christenne Lyons
November 12th 2019