Seventh grade students at Franklin Middle School recently participated in a 2-day lab discovering DNA. During day one, students worked in groups to make a DNA extraction liquid out of household products. The extraction liquid was then used to extract DNA from strawberries.
Why strawberries you might ask? Strawberries have 8 sets of DNA as opposed to most organisms which have only one. Because of this, the DNA from strawberries is a lot easier to observe.
Although the kids really enjoyed day one, day two was enjoyed at least equally if not more. For day two, students constructed their own segment of a DNA double helix model using Twizzlers and gummy bears. The different colors of gummy bears represented different bases, with which students had to demonstrate their knowledge of proper pairing. The reward, once correctly constructed, was then enjoyed by most...sorry, not everyone likes Twizzlers and gummy bears.
