SEARCH Visits DNA Learning Center
It was well worth the trip for more than 40 fifth grade Huntington School District SEARCH program students who traveled across town to the DNA Learning Center in Cold Spring Harbor for a set of full-day hands-on labs related to their 16-week genetics and biology unit.
Maryann Daly, SEARCH chairperson-teacher has been bringing fifth and sixth graders to the DNA Learning Center for more than 25 years. The facility is an operating unit of the world-renowned Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory. It is billed as "the world's first science center devoted entirely to genetics education."
Since an exhibit at the lab was still not ready for public viewing, instructors informed the Huntington students upon arrival that they would be treated to an additional lab that involved creating lactose free milk.
SEARCH students created the lactase enzyme and calcium chloride, which formed into small beads. After scooping up the beads into a large syringe, they poured milk through it, pushing the liquid out and into a cup. In order to test if their experiment was a success, the young scientists placed a glucose indicator into the liquid. "If the colors changed on the strip, then they would be successful in creating lactose free milk," Mrs. Daly said.
Another lab involved understanding the makeup of the double helix and its nucleotides and the sides of the ladder. "Cytosine always joined with guanine and adenine always joined with thymine," Mrs. Daly said. "Students created their very own model of DNA, which they eagerly took home."
Huntington School District students are often fascinated during a visit to the DNA Learning Center. "Several years ago, while our children were attending these labs at the center, Dr. James Watson (the molecular biologist and geneticist who co-discovered the structure of DNA along with Francis Crick) was there as well to deliver a speech to a select group of scientists," recalled Mrs. Daly. "He was even kind enough to say hello to our young children, a special treat they will long remember. They understood why this man and people like him are much more than just celebrities. These are the people who have changed the way mankind battles diseases."
Following lunch during their recent visit and an informative video about the fascinating work of geneticists, including an interview with Dr. Watson, the Huntington SEARCH students participated in a final lab. There they learned how to extract DNA from a harmless e-coli sample. The youngsters found it "cool" to twirl the DNA strands around a dropper after it was separated from the sample using ethanol and a liquid detergent. "It was amazing to see that we could actually touch the DNA and see it with our very own eyes," said one of the students.
"The instructors were impressed with the knowledge these young students had about genetics," Mrs. Daly said. "The children were equally fascinated and interested in being a part of these labs involving real world science. I think we have some future scientists in this group of children. Their interest level was high and their enthusiasm to learn more about this science was refreshing."
The weekly SEARCH (Scholastic Enrichment and Resource for the Children in Huntington) pull-out program involves the top ten percent of students in both the fifth and sixth grades in the district. Students qualify for participation as a result of their respective percentile rank on state assessments and the OLSAT.