Safety & tips

A few things we've learned about running these with grades 3‐6, plus the safety points worth checking before you go.

Facilitation tips

• Keep groups small (2‐4) so every kid has a job and materials within reach.
• Lead with the doing, then explain. Let them build or guess first; give the “why” in the debrief while it's fresh.
• Use the kids' own examples from the intro as call-backs throughout the visit.
• Match depth to grade: the same activity can stop at “genes are recipes” for grade 3 or reach codons and proteins for grade 6.
• Prep a little more material than you think you need, and pre-cut or pre-portion anything fiddly to protect class time.

Safety checklist

• Rubbing alcohol (isopropanol): flammable and not for tasting. Keep it away from heat, pre-measure it, and station an adult at the alcohol during the DNA extraction.
• Scissors: use child-safe scissors and supervise the cutting steps.
• Food allergies: the candy DNA model and strawberry extraction involve food. Check allergies ahead of time, never have students eat lab materials, and use the bead version of the helix when needed.
• “Polluted” water: it's only soil, coloring, and debris, but tell students explicitly never to taste any water, and have them wash hands afterward.
• General: confirm the school's own policies on food, materials, and photography before the visit.