Many new terms and concepts are introduced in the genetics activity that may be unfamiliar to students. We use simple mouse puppets to facilitate an understanding of how genes are transmitted from parent to offspring in a simulated genetics experiment. The gene combinations (genotypes), eye colors (phenotypes), and chromosomes of these puppets are attached by "velcro" and can be interchanged, making it easy to illustrate the transfer of genes (via gametes) from parents to offspring. Our simulated genetic cross uses eye color in mice, with black eyes being dominant over red eyes. The directions below provide for the construction of enough puppets to demonstrate two generations of a simulated single-gene cross for eye color in mice (parental: BB x bb = all Bb; 1st generation cross: Bb x Bb = 1Bb:2Bb:1bb, with 4 offspring in each generation). However, other genotypes and genetic crosses can also be illustrated using these same components.
