Concentration, serial dilution, standard curves, antigen–antibody binding, direct vs. indirect ELISA.
What to do if absent- CER:
- Claim, Evidence, Reasoning — make a claim, back it with evidence, explain your reasoning.
- SOP:
- Standard Operating Procedure — the exact steps to follow (especially in a lab).
- Tracker:
- Your PLTW progress log where you record completed evidence.
- myPLTW:
- The PLTW course site where you do the online activities — you open it through Schoology.
Week overview - Getting ready to test: serial dilutions and the ELISA setup
Build a serial dilution table and explain how antigen-antibody binding lets an ELISA report concentration through color.
- 1Read the pre-lab and write down the starting concentration and the dilution factor you will use.
- 2Fill in a serial dilution table, calculating each step from the one before it.
- 3Label your tubes or wells clearly so each dilution is easy to find later.
- 4Sketch a direct ELISA and an indirect ELISA, labeling antigen, antibody, and substrate.
- 5Predict where a standard curve would show high versus low absorbance and mark it on a graph.
- 6Check your dilution math with a partner before you set anything up.
- • You will be able to build and label a correct serial dilution series.
- • You will be able to diagram antigen-antibody binding in an ELISA.
- • You will be able to explain how a standard curve links absorbance to concentration.
Daily lessons this week
Open any day for its full lesson, the work due that day, and guided notes.
Written CER on test-allocation rule: claim, evidence, reasoning, and rebuttal addressing the strongest opposing framework.
Four-step 1:10 serial dilution plan with concentration calculated at each step, plus a one-sentence prediction of signal change.
Standard curve (graph with labeled axes and best-fit line) plus written procedure for Thursday's model ELISA and labeled well layout.
Model ELISA data table: well ID, observed color, and assigned concentration from standard curve; positive result identified and explained.
Standard curve graph, model ELISA data table (colors and concentrations), short interpretation of positive results, and one error sentence.
Quick intro to the week
- Hook: a pregnancy test, an HIV screen, and a COVID test all share one trick you will set up today.
- Today's goal: prepare clean serial dilutions and map out how an ELISA turns binding into a readable signal.
- Tie-in to Monday's debate on testing access: accurate dilutions are part of why a test can be trusted.
- Reminder: your dilution table and pre-lab questions are graded in the PLTW course shell.
Your PLTW coursework this week
Do this: Advance the PLTW Unit 1 diagnostic-testing benchmark in the online course shell with your dilution and ELISA pre-lab.
- • Antibodies bind specific antigens, which is the basis of an ELISA.
- • A standard curve relates measured absorbance to a known concentration.
- • Calculate a serial dilution series from a starting concentration.
- • Distinguish a direct ELISA from an indirect ELISA.
📋 PLTW tracker evidence due this week: completed serial dilution table and ELISA pre-lab diagram with labeled binding.
All PLTW activities are completed inside the PLTW course environment — this page only gives direction.
This week's PLTW tracker
Your week at a glance. Check off each deliverable as you finish it, then submit so Mr. Mendoza can see how the class is pacing.
Use the code Mr. Mendoza gave you, not your name. Saved on this device.
| Day | Date | Focus | Key deliverable |
|---|---|---|---|
| Monday | Fri, Sep 11 | Bioethics debate: who gets the test | Written CER on test-allocation rule: claim, evidence, reasoning, and rebuttal addressing the strongest opposing framework. |
| Tuesday | Mon, Sep 14 | Concentration and serial dilution | Four-step 1:10 serial dilution plan with concentration calculated at each step, plus a one-sentence prediction of signal change. |
| Wednesday | Tue, Sep 15 | Standard curve and lab prep | Standard curve (graph with labeled axes and best-fit line) plus written procedure for Thursday's model ELISA and labeled well layout. |
| Thursday | Wed, Sep 16 | Antigen-antibody and ELISA model | Model ELISA data table: well ID, observed color, and assigned concentration from standard curve; positive result identified and explained. |
| Friday | Thu, Sep 17 | Dilution and ELISA model submission | Standard curve graph, model ELISA data table (colors and concentrations), short interpretation of positive results, and one error sentence. |
- M: bioethics debate
- T: serial dilution practice
- W: standard curve
- Th: ELISA model
- F: pre-lab quiz
Due by week's end: ELISA pre-lab quiz and dilution table.
Lab day — what to bring & watch
This explainer accompanies the PLTW lab protocol — watch it before lab.
What to do when absent
Most days, this class is your PLTW coursework — and PLTW is online and individual. So being out usually just means doing exactly what we did in class, from home.
Open Schoology (CMSD) and keep goingHow to get there: open the CMSD website, click Clever, sign in with your Microsoft (district) account, then open Schoology from Clever.
You can't do those from home — do this instead: HHMI Immunology Virtual Lab notes.
Class still runs. A substitute will post today's plan — complete the online activity above; it's built to be self-guided. Need the concept taught without a teacher? Use this authoritative explainer:
HHMI BioInteractiveVocabulary
Virtual resources
Teacher-posted resources
Classroom documents for this lesson. Ones marked “Open the file” open right here; the rest are posted in Schoology. Use the label on each card to choose the right move.
Use this if you were absent, got stuck, or need another pass before you submit the lesson artifact.
Placement rationale
Matched ELISA model, dilution, standard curve by path:Medical-Interventions/Unit-1_How-to-Fight-Infection/1.1_The-Mystery-Infection; keywords:elisa, serial dilution, dilution. Score 154. Visibility: student-schoology (student-facing resource; link through Schoology rather than local path).
Open this when the class reaches this activity and use it to complete the required lesson artifact.
Placement rationale
Matched ELISA model, dilution, standard curve by path:Medical-Interventions/Unit-1_How-to-Fight-Infection/1.1_The-Mystery-Infection; keywords:elisa, serial dilution. Score 146. Visibility: student-schoology (student-facing resource; link through Schoology rather than local path).
Use this if you were absent, got stuck, or need another pass before you submit the lesson artifact.
Placement rationale
Matched ELISA model, dilution, standard curve by path:Medical-Interventions/Unit-1_How-to-Fight-Infection/1.1_The-Mystery-Infection; keywords:serial dilution, dilution. Score 142. Visibility: student-schoology (student-facing resource; link through Schoology rather than local path).
How to get there: open the CMSD website, click Clever, sign in with your Microsoft (district) account, then open Schoology from Clever.
Standards this week
WebXam practice
Drop your Week 4 here. Use a clear file name (your initials + project). Routine work still goes to Schoology (via the CMSD portal).
Upload a project