StC Students Take a Hands-On Approach to Studying DNA
Seventh graders use models and work in teams to study microscopic topics.
What does one do when studying something too small to see? Build a model. This morning, seventh grade boys built physical representations of the amino acid sequences that make up a protein.
The project is team-based, so students worked together in small groups. Middle School Science Department Chair and Teacher Mary Anderson believes students benefit from the lesson’s physical, hands-on approach. “We can’t see DNA, so being able to create a DNA molecule, a messenger RNA molecule, and then moving all the pieces around helps to pull it all together and put a picture in their brains.“