Summary

In this lesson, students will learn about diagnostic test strips by reading an article and engaging in related activities. The activities help promote literacy in the science classroom. Parts of this lesson could be used as plans for a substitute teacher.

Grade Level

High School

NGSS Alignment

This lesson will help prepare your students to meet the performance expectations in the following standards:

• HS-PS2-6: Communicate scientific and technical information about why the molecular-level structure is important in the functioning of designed materials.
• HS-ETS1-2: Design a solution to a complex real-world problem by breaking it down into small, more manageable problems that can be solved through engineering.
• Scientific and Engineering Practices:
  • Asking Questions and Defining Problems
  • Analyzing and Interpreting Data
  • Constructing Explanations and Designing Solutions
  • Engaging in Argument from Evidence

Objectives

By the end of this lesson, students should be able to:

• Provide an overview of the progression of the development of diagnostic test strips.
• Interpret a result from a diagnostic test strip.
• Explain how Benedict’s reagent works in identifying reducing sugars.
• Understand the difference between type 1 and type 2 diabetes.
• Explain the role of insulin in glucose uptake by cells.
• Understand the meaning of a double enzymatic reaction.

Chemistry Topics

This lesson supports students’ understanding of:

• Chemical Reactions
• Redox Reactions
• Indicators of a Chemical Change
• Reaction Mechanisms
• Enzymes
• Organic Chemistry
• Molecular Structure
• Functional Groups

Time

Teacher Preparation: 10 minutes to make copies of activities/reading
Lesson: Approximate times for students to complete each activity in the lesson:

• Anticipation Guide: 10 minutes
• Reading: 20 minutes
• History Exercise: 30 minutes
• Investigating the Reactions: 40 minutes
• Interpreting Diagnostic Test Strips: 30 minutes
• Understanding Diabetes: 35 minutes
• Video: The First Insulin Injection for Diabetes: 15 - 20 minutes

Materials

• Internet access
• Reading document and desired handouts to accompany the reading

Safety

• No specific safety precautions need to be observed for this activity.

Teacher Notes

Background:

• This lesson plan was developed in collaboration with the American Chemical Society’s National Historic Chemical Landmarks Program. Under this program, ACS grants Landmark status to seminal achievements in the history of the chemical sciences and provides a record of their contributions to chemistry and society in the United States.

Lesson Overview:

The lesson includes the multiple components, as outlined individually below. The Reading is essential for all of the activities. Teachers can choose to do one or all of the included activities. Student handouts and corresponding answer keys are provided for each item described below:

• Activity: Anticipation Guide
  • Students identify whether they agree or disagree with the ten statements. After they complete the reading, they can adjust their answers and rephrase “disagree” statements, so they read true.
• Reading: Development of Diagnostic Test Strips
• Activity: History Exercise
  • Students will complete a chart related to the development of various advancements of diagnostic test strips in history and plot the information on a timeline.
  • Students will apply what they have learned from this exercise and the reading to the patent process.
• Activity: Investigating the Reactions
  • Students will work through a guided inquiry activity, examining models of Benedict’s Reagent and Clinistix, to learn about the chemistry involved in both of these diagnostic methods.
• Activity: Interpreting Diagnostic Test Strips
  • Students will access a digital archive of various diagnostic tests and will interpret test results using the color scale provided.
• Activity: Understanding Diabetes
  • Students will examine two infographics to obtain information on diabetes (what happens on the cellular level and how the types of diabetes differ from each other). They will then answer questions about an article on the history of the disease.
• Activity: Video: The First Insulin Injection for Diabetes
  • Students will watch a short (~9 minute) video about the development of the first insulin injection, created by Origins OSU, and answer questions. Students will then compare the relevance of what they learned from the reading to the material in the video.
• Related classroom resources from ACS and the AACT library:
  • National Historic Chemical Landmark: Al and Helen Free and the Development of Diagnostic Test Strips
  • ChemMatters Article: Peering through Urine
  • ChemMatters Article: Diabetes: Tiny Particles to the Rescue
• Additional background information:
  • Benedict’s Qualitative Solution
    • A Flinn CHEMFAX simple lab for testing for reducing sugars using Benedict’s solution.
  • Oxidation of Aldehydes from Chemistry Libre Texts
    • Content covers the oxidation of aldehydes in both acid and basic solutions.
  • Definitions of Oxidation and Reduction from Chemistry Libre Texts
    • This covers definitions of oxidation and reduction in terms of hydrogen movement.
  • Oxidation and Reduction - 4 Views from Chemistry Libre Texts
    • Describes four methods of redox reactions.
  • Aldehydes and Ketones Video
    • Provides good background for the oxidation of aldehydes (also covers reduction). The video includes practice questions at the end.
  • Oxidation of Aldehydes using Tollen’s Reagent Video from Khan Academy
    • Covers a similar reagent to Benedicts. This video includes assigning oxidation numbers to ‘see’ that the reaction is indeed a redox reaction.
  • Peroxidase - Coupled Glucose Method from the National Library of Medicine
    • Provides background information on the double enzymatic reaction used in the guided inquiry activity, Investigating the Reactions, as part of this lesson.