Re: Elementary school science day/DIYoutreach (educational outreach for DIYbiologists)

[Julie Norville]

Hi everyone,
I am working to create a DIYoutreach section (educational service activities for DIYbiologists) on openwetware, so that your protocols for outreach can be used by people who wish to teach students science around the world.
Please keep these ideas in mind, so that they can be posted on a DIYoutreach section of openwetware in the future (or feel free to send them to me with the title DIYoutreach so that I can begin posting them and crediting them to you.)
You can also forward ideas for projects or actual events (that you are planning or notes from the experience after the fact) you are leading to the DIYoutreach google group (which I am hoping to launch in Mid-March and also use as a record of the DIYbio community's Outreach efforts.)  Also if you are having an event with elementary, middle, or high school students, please send me a brief description of your event.  I would like to write an article about these events in the future.
Link to DIYoutreach googlegroup:
http://groups.google.com/group/DIYoutreach?lnk=
Early DIYoutreach site (ideally we can create a whole dedicated section of openwetware for DIYbiologists and DIYoutreach and we will try to set it up so that DIYbiologists can get special accounts on openwetware soon)
http://www.openwetware.org/wiki/DIYoutreach
Best,
Julie Norville
Synthbio grad Student at MIT

On Fri, Feb 13, 2009 at 1:32 PM, Jeswin John <phill...@gmail.com> wrote:

Sorry, for got to post link:

http://kvhs.nbed.nb.ca/gallant/biology/pigment_lab.html

On Fri, Feb 13, 2009 at 10:13 AM, Jeswin John <phill...@gmail.com> wrote:

Here is a simple protocol. Basically, grind up leaves in alcohol to get pigments then dot them on chromatography paper( maybe you can use coffee filter?) a couple times anc you get dark stains. Place in acetone vertically and let the acetone move up the paper, thus pulling the color with it. It will form bands I think and then you can analyze them. Different chloroplast pigments have different colors. Helps kids learn about the light absorbing nature of leaves.

On Thu, Feb 12, 2009 at 7:13 PM, sgt york <jv...@yahoo.com> wrote:

Well do tell...is it extracting chlorophyll?

On Feb 12, 4:11 pm, Jeswin John <phillyj...@gmail.com> wrote:
> I thought about telling you to try chloroplast chromatography. The chemicals
> are only acetone and ethanol, dangerous for little kids but not with adult
> supervision. I did this in bio 101 a few years back. Pretty interesting
>
>
>

> On Thu, Feb 12, 2009 at 3:15 PM, sgt york <jv...@yahoo.com> wrote:
>
> > Thanks...I hadn't thought of the yeast one. I like that idea. I've
> > shown my kids the DNA extraction trick, they think it's pretty neat,
> > but they didn't fully understand it. The biggest problem with it is
> > that I think most of the kids won't really have a grasp of what DNA
> > is. Doesn't mean I can't teach them, though!
>
> > Maybe have some blueprints....hmmm....I might be able to come up with
> > something there, like a secret code (according to my daughter, secret
> > codes are *totally* in right now). Brainstorming here...Just came up
> > with this as I was typing.
>
> > 1) A sheet of paper with a DNA sequence on it. AGGCTTAAGGCCCAATTT
> > 2) A set of blocks with complimentary "codons" on one side, and a
> > letter on the other.
> > 3) A list of rules "A pairs to T, G pairs to C, read from left to
> > right.
> > 4) Line up the "decoder" blocks with the sequence, and you get a
> > secret message.
>
> > Does that make sense at all?
>
> > Then extract DNA..."this is the secret code of life." Might be
> > cool.....I'll try it out on my kids first. See if they get it.
>
> > Any thoughts? Modifications? I think it would be better if instead of
> > a secret message, the work actually built something, more like real
> > translation. Maybe different shaped blocks that you put in order?
> > Science night isn't until March, so I have time to prepare stuff.
>
> > So far, I've got (1) Extract DNA from strawberries (2) swab, heat fix
> > & stain buccal cells to look at them under a microscope (3) Cultured
> > yeast at different temps (4) Make pH strips from cabbage, test
> > different household stuff for pH, maybe do a little titration  (5)
> > Chromotography with coffee filters & food coloring
>
> > That's a lot, but some will probably get nuked by the science teacher.
> > I may combine the yeast & pH strips; get some yeast fermenting and
> > show them the pH drop. However, that may get nuked as well....I guess
> > I'd technically be teaching 3rd graders how to make alcohol. Probably
> > not a good idea....
>
> > Thanks!
>
> > On Feb 11, 4:34 pm, mostromundo <mzuor...@gmail.com> wrote:
> > > I taught a simple lab showing the effect of temperature on yeast
> > > metabolism using some pretty cheap supplies, it's just a bioreactor (a
> > > plastic bottle in this case) full of grape juice (or whatever) and
> > > fermenting yeast, with a stopper in the top with a tube inserted
> > > through it that lets the carbon dioxide generated move out of the
> > > reactor and into a little beaker of water where you can see it
> > > escaping as bubbles. The warmer the temperature, the faster the yeast
> > > metabolize the sugar and the more CO2 is generated. It takes a little
> > > tweaking to get it to work right, but you could have a couple of
> > > different reactors going at different temperatures and have the kids
> > > figure out that the warmer ones were going faster, or something like
> > > that. Let me know if you want to know more and I can send you the
> > > procedure I wrote for the class.
>
> > > On Feb 11, 12:20 pm, sgt york <jv...@yahoo.com> wrote:
>
> > > > I just got an e-mail from my daughter's science teacher announcing a
> > > > planning session for science day coming up in March. The first
> > > > planning session is next week, and I'd like to go in with some ideas.
>
> > > > This is for kids age 5-12, and needs to be fairly quick; 5-10 minutes
> > > > is ideal. I'd like it to be interactive and unusual. I've got a few
> > > > ideas, but more ideas can't hurt, biology is usually underrepresented
> > > > in favor of physics, chemistry, and engineering (don't get me
> > > > started), and I'd like to change that this year.
>
> --

> *-----------------------------------------------------------*
> Join the Revolution
>
> http://diybio.org/http://homebrewbioscience.blogspot.com/
> *------------------------------------------------------------*

*-----------------------------------------------------------*
Join the Revolution

http://diybio.org/
http://homebrewbioscience.blogspot.com/
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--

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http://homebrewbioscience.blogspot.com/
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[Tyler DeWitt]

so when we met last week, i told you that i was bad with names--i just
facebooked "julie norville" when i saw this post and then realized who
you were.

i may have told you that i used to teach high school and middle
school; a protocol site like this would be so welcomed by teachers who
long to share molecular biology with their students but don't have
enough money for the expensive kits, and have no idea where to start
in designing their own protocols.

let me know if/how i could help.

On Feb 13, 3:24 pm, Julie Norville <julie.e.norvi...@gmail.com> wrote:
> Hi everyone,
> I am working to create a DIYoutreach section (educational service activities
> for DIYbiologists) on openwetware, so that your protocols for outreach can
> be used by people who wish to teach students science around the world.
> Please keep these ideas in mind, so that they can be posted on a DIYoutreach
> section of openwetware in the future (or feel free to send them to me with
> the title DIYoutreach so that I can begin posting them and crediting them to
> you.)
> You can also forward ideas for projects or actual events (that you are
> planning or notes from the experience after the fact) you are leading to the
> DIYoutreach google group (which I am hoping to launch in Mid-March and also
> use as a record of the DIYbio community's Outreach efforts.)  Also if you
> are having an event with elementary, middle, or high school students, please
> send me a brief description of your event.  I would like to write an article
> about these events in the future.
> Link to DIYoutreach googlegroup:http://groups.google.com/group/DIYoutreach?lnk=
> Early DIYoutreach site (ideally we can create a whole dedicated section of
> openwetware for DIYbiologists and DIYoutreach and we will try to set it up

> so that DIYbiologists can get special accounts on openwetware soon)http://www.openwetware.org/wiki/DIYoutreach

> Best,
> Julie Norville
> Synthbio grad Student at MIT
>

> On Fri, Feb 13, 2009 at 1:32 PM, Jeswin John <phillyj...@gmail.com> wrote:
>
> > Sorry, for got to post link:
> >http://kvhs.nbed.nb.ca/gallant/biology/pigment_lab.html