Download The balloons had all been inflated and taped to the walls

The balloons had all been inflated and taped to the walls. The birthday cake had been
baked, iced, and decorated with colorful little flowers made out of candy. All that was needed
now was the birthday boy, Ryan Baldwin. Ryan was turning twelve today. His parents had
planned a surprise party for him and in only a few minutes he would be walking into the house
after spending the day out with his friends. Everything was set to go. The party guests had all
found places to hide so that they could spring out at the right moment and greet Ryan with a huge
happy birthday cheer.
The front door opened and in strolled Ryan casually looking at his wristwatch. He hadn’t
suspected a thing. Stepping into the kitchen he turned on the lights signaling for the big surprise.
All at once the party guests jumped out and shouted. Ryan nearly fell on the floor he was so
shocked. It embarrassed him a little that so many people were paying attention to him but he
appreciated that they all came out to be with him on his birthday. His Aunt Ruth. His cousins
from New York. And all of his friends from school. Ryan was so pleased he didn’t know what to
say.
The lights went down low, the candles were lit, and everyone began to sing. When they
were finished Ryan took a moment to think of a wish and then he blew out the candles. “What
did you wish for?” everyone asked. “I wished to go to summer camp in July,” he replied.
Everyone nodded. It was a good wish. Ryan loved to go to summer camp and to be
outdoors. His whole family had always loved being out in nature and Ryan was no exception.
His father used to say it was in their genes.
Suddenly Ryan doubled over in pain. “Oh, my stomach is killing me,” he moaned. “Can
somebody get me a banana?”
“A banana?” they all said in unison.”
Ryan fell on the floor. Everyone gasped. And then, the most peculiar thing started to
happen. Ryan started to shrink a bit. Not so small that he vanished into his clothing or anything
but he definitely became smaller and smaller. Not only that but he began to get hairier and
hairier. And then slipping out of the back of his jeans came a long and prehensile tail. Aunt Ruth
screamed, “Help somebody! Ryan’s turning into a monkey!”
And she was right. Ryan had a rare recessive genetic disorder called Monkeymitosis. It
afflicts certain unfortunate individuals on their twelfth birthdays and literally turns them into
monkeys.
A few moments later the transformation was complete and Ryan had irrevocably become
a monkey. He swung from the rafters and shrieked wildly. In the commotion, someone
accidentally popped a balloon which startled Monkey Ryan. He ran screaming from the house
and before anyone could stop him he scurried up a tree and vanished into the forest.
“We’ve go to find him,” shouted one of Ryan’s friends from school.
“You’ll never catch him,” said Grandma with a sigh. “I lost a daughter and a son that
way. When they turned twelve the same thing happened. They grew the tail and everything. We
never did find them.”
Everyone stared at her in disbelief. Everyone except Ryan’s mother and father that is.
They weren’t surprised at all. In fact they had kind of been expecting Ryan’s transformation.
After all Ryan’s father had lost both a brother and sister just like Grandma had said. Ryan’s
mother had also lost a family member to Monkeymitosis. Her sister became a monkey just like
Ryan. It must have been in their genes.
“But if they all turn into monkeys before they are old enough to have children and pass
on their traits,” asked a clever friend of Ryan’s from school, “how is it possible that this rare
genetic disease shows up again and again in your families?”
“I don’t know but we’d better find out,” yelped Ryan’s little sister. “I’m turning twelve
next year!”
If people with Monkeymitosis disappear when they turn twelve (before they
are old enough to pass on their genes) how can this gene keep reappearing in a
family?
In your group try to solve this problem and answer the question using the story on
the back and all that you have learned about family trees and dominant/recessive genes
(i.e. Aa, Bb, cc, DD, etc.). Your group must complete the following:



A family tree for Ryan’s family including who has Monkeymitosis and
who might have passed it on to Ryan.
A short explanation for how Ryan had Monkeymitosis but his parents did
not
A Punnett Square showing the chances that Ryan’s little sister will turn
into a monkey on her twelfth birthday.
There are four jobs in the group. Discussion Leader who keeps the group talking about
how these genes were passed along. Recorder who writes down what the group has
decided. Illustrator who is responsible for creating the family tree, Punnett Square, and
any other illustrations your group feels are necessary. Reporter who will present the
group’s final product before the class.
The sheet of paper supplied should look something like this when you are finished:
Good Luck!