Subject Area
Language Arts

Activity Overview
As a way to review the terms introduced in the genetic engineering unit, students will create their own crossword puzzles. These can then be given to other students to complete when reviewing the vocabulary.

Activity Outline

• Review the Genetic Engineering glossary (found at www.iptv.org/exploremore/ge/)
  
• Complete simple crossword puzzles
  
• Discuss the elements of good crossword puzzles
  
• Students create Genetic Engineering crossword puzzles using as many of the terms as you as choose.
  
• Trade puzzles and complete

Assessment Options
Assess appropriate creation of crossword puzzles.
Assess completion of another's puzzle.

Standards
Writing
Standard 1: Uses the general skills and strategies of the writing process

1. Prewriting: Uses a variety of prewriting strategies (e.g., makes outlines, uses published pieces as writing models, constructs critical standards, brainstorms, builds background knowledge)
2. Drafting and Revising: Uses a variety of strategies to draft and revise written work (e.g., analyzes and clarifies meaning, makes structural and syntactical changes, uses an organizational scheme, uses sensory words and figurative language, rethinks and rewrites for different audiences and purposes, check for a consistent point of view and for transitions between paragraphs, uses direct feedback to revise compositions)
3. Editing and Publishing: Uses a variety of strategies to edit and publish written work (e.g., eliminates slang; edits for grammar, punctuation, capitalization, and spelling at a developmentally appropriate level; proofreads using reference materials, word processor, and other resources; edits for clarity, word choice, and language usage; uses a word processor or other technology to publish written work)
4. Evaluates own and others' writing (e.g., applies criteria generated by self and others, uses self-assessment to set and achieve goals as a writer, participates in peer response groups)
5. Uses content, style, and structure (e.g., formal or informal language, genre, organization) appropriate for specific audiences (e.g., public, private) and purposes (e.g., to entertain, to influence, to inform)

Reading
Standard 5: Uses the general skills and strategies of the reading process

1. Establishes and adjusts purposes for reading (e.g., to understand, interpret, enjoy, solve problems, predict outcomes, answer a specific question, form an opinion, skim for facts; to discover models for own writing)
2. Uses word origins and derivations to understand word meaning (e.g.,
   Latin and Greek roots, meanings of foreign words frequently used in the
   English language, historical influences on English word meanings)
3. Uses a variety of strategies to extend reading vocabulary (e.g., uses analogies, idioms, similes, metaphors to infer the meaning of literal and figurative phrases; uses definition, restatement, example, comparison and contrast to verify word meanings; identifies shades of meaning; knows denotative and connotative meanings; knows vocabulary related to different content areas and current events; uses rhyming dictionaries, classification books, etymological dictionaries)
4. Uses specific strategies to clear up confusing parts of a text (e.g.,
   pauses, rereads the text, consults another source, represents abstract information as mental pictures, draws upon background knowledge, asks for help)

Standard 7: Uses reading skills and strategies to understand and interpret a variety of informational texts

1. Uses reading skills and strategies to understand a variety of informational texts (e.g., textbooks; biographical sketches; letters; diaries; directions; procedures; magazines; essays; primary source historical documents; editorials; news stories; periodicals; bus routes; catalogs; technical directions; consumer, workplace, and public documents)
2. Uses new information to adjust and extend personal knowledge base
3. Understands techniques used to convey viewpoint (e.g., word choice, language structure, context)