Students classify fats and connect structure to function.
This digital lesson develops student understanding of lipid structure and function through guided visual analysis, targeted reading, and classification practice. Students construct their understanding by examining molecular features and connecting structure to biological role.
Students begin by analyzing visual models of lipids to identify:
fatty acids and glycerol as the main components
the characteristic overall shape of lipid molecules
They then read a short article comparing:
saturated fats
unsaturated fats
trans fats
and apply this information to explain how differences in bonding and structure affect lipid properties. Students also examine how hydrolysis and dehydration synthesis relate to lipid formation and breakdown.
In the final task, students classify a set of images and molecules by determining whether each represents:
a lipid
another type of organic molecule
or an inorganic substance
They also distinguish between saturated and unsaturated fats based on structural features.
This lesson is designed to support:
understanding of lipid composition
comparison of lipid types
connection between molecular structure and function
application of biochemical concepts to visual evidence
It functions well as:
a core lesson within a biomolecules unit
a reinforcement activity after direct instruction
or a structured digital alternative to traditional notes and worksheets
Grade & Course Recommendation:
Middle School:Grade 8 Advanced Life Science, overview of macromolecules.
High School:Grade 9–11 Biology or Physical Science, biochemical structures or cell membrane unit.
To preview this lesson, click here.
Cross-Curricular Connections:
Chemistry Integration: Structure–function relationship in fatty acids and phospholipids.
Health Science Integration: Dietary fats, cholesterol, and energy reserves.
ELA Integration: Written analysis of how lipid structure affects function.
HS-LS1-6: Construct and revise an explanation based on evidence for how carbon, hydrogen, and oxygen from sugar molecules may combine with other elements to form amino acids and other large carbon-based molecules.
Connection: Students examine how lipids are composed primarily of carbon and hydrogen and how dehydration synthesis bonds glycerol and fatty acids together.
HS-LS1-7: Use a model to illustrate that cellular respiration is a chemical process whereby the bonds of food molecules and oxygen are broken, and new compounds are formed that result in a net transfer of energy.
Connection: Students analyze how lipids function as long-term energy storage molecules in organisms.
Science & Engineering Practices:
Developing and using models
Constructing explanations
Analyzing and interpreting data
Crosscutting Concepts:
Structure and function
Systems and system models
Energy and matter
MS-LS1-7: Develop a model to describe how food is rearranged through chemical reactions forming new molecules that support growth and/or release energy.
Connection: Students can model lipid synthesis and hydrolysis as chemical transformations involving energy storage.
MS-PS1-2: Analyze and interpret data on the properties of substances before and after they interact to determine if a chemical reaction has occurred.
Connection: Dehydration synthesis and hydrolysis reactions provide a context for identifying chemical changes.
Grades 9–10 / 7–8:
CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RST.9-10.2 / RST.6-8.2: Determine central ideas of a scientific text and summarize complex concepts (e.g., lipid types and their properties).
CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RST.9-10.4 / RST.6-8.4: Determine the meaning of domain-specific words (e.g., saturated, unsaturated, hydrophobic).
CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RST.9-10.7 / RST.6-8.7: Integrate visual information with textual descriptions (diagramming lipid structures and classifying molecule types).
CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.WHST.9-10.2 / WHST.6-8.2: Write explanatory texts that describe molecular structure and biological function.
Students classify fats and connect structure to function.
This digital lesson develops student understanding of lipid structure and function through guided visual analysis, targeted reading, and classification practice. Students construct their understanding by examining molecular features and connecting structure to biological role.
Students begin by analyzing visual models of lipids to identify:
fatty acids and glycerol as the main components
the characteristic overall shape of lipid molecules
They then read a short article comparing:
saturated fats
unsaturated fats
trans fats
and apply this information to explain how differences in bonding and structure affect lipid properties. Students also examine how hydrolysis and dehydration synthesis relate to lipid formation and breakdown.
In the final task, students classify a set of images and molecules by determining whether each represents:
a lipid
another type of organic molecule
or an inorganic substance
They also distinguish between saturated and unsaturated fats based on structural features.
This lesson is designed to support:
understanding of lipid composition
comparison of lipid types
connection between molecular structure and function
application of biochemical concepts to visual evidence
It functions well as:
a core lesson within a biomolecules unit
a reinforcement activity after direct instruction
or a structured digital alternative to traditional notes and worksheets
Grade & Course Recommendation:
Middle School:Grade 8 Advanced Life Science, overview of macromolecules.
High School:Grade 9–11 Biology or Physical Science, biochemical structures or cell membrane unit.
To preview this lesson, click here.
Cross-Curricular Connections:
Chemistry Integration: Structure–function relationship in fatty acids and phospholipids.
Health Science Integration: Dietary fats, cholesterol, and energy reserves.
ELA Integration: Written analysis of how lipid structure affects function.
HS-LS1-6: Construct and revise an explanation based on evidence for how carbon, hydrogen, and oxygen from sugar molecules may combine with other elements to form amino acids and other large carbon-based molecules.
Connection: Students examine how lipids are composed primarily of carbon and hydrogen and how dehydration synthesis bonds glycerol and fatty acids together.
HS-LS1-7: Use a model to illustrate that cellular respiration is a chemical process whereby the bonds of food molecules and oxygen are broken, and new compounds are formed that result in a net transfer of energy.
Connection: Students analyze how lipids function as long-term energy storage molecules in organisms.
Science & Engineering Practices:
Developing and using models
Constructing explanations
Analyzing and interpreting data
Crosscutting Concepts:
Structure and function
Systems and system models
Energy and matter
MS-LS1-7: Develop a model to describe how food is rearranged through chemical reactions forming new molecules that support growth and/or release energy.
Connection: Students can model lipid synthesis and hydrolysis as chemical transformations involving energy storage.
MS-PS1-2: Analyze and interpret data on the properties of substances before and after they interact to determine if a chemical reaction has occurred.
Connection: Dehydration synthesis and hydrolysis reactions provide a context for identifying chemical changes.
Grades 9–10 / 7–8:
CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RST.9-10.2 / RST.6-8.2: Determine central ideas of a scientific text and summarize complex concepts (e.g., lipid types and their properties).
CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RST.9-10.4 / RST.6-8.4: Determine the meaning of domain-specific words (e.g., saturated, unsaturated, hydrophobic).
CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RST.9-10.7 / RST.6-8.7: Integrate visual information with textual descriptions (diagramming lipid structures and classifying molecule types).
CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.WHST.9-10.2 / WHST.6-8.2: Write explanatory texts that describe molecular structure and biological function.
