CANAJOHARIE — If there’s a way to tie-in a hands-on activity in one of her lessons, Canajoharie Middle School Science Teacher Kathleen Bowerman will do it. So, during a recent unit on cells, she created a few hands-on activities including a trip to the Arkell Museum for a Minds-On “DNA workshop.”

To start the unit, Bowerman charged her students with building a cell with its 12 components (organelles) out of household items. She then asked them to write a “tour of the cell” story which they could read in front of the class.

“They were very creative when they built the cell,” she said.

“The kids seem to love hands-on activities. I think they learn better because a lot of the kids learn by doing, and some other kids learn better by writing.”

For her advanced class, the students made DNA models and also learned about chromosomes. And at the DNA workshop at Arkell, the students experimented with gel electrophoresis, a technique used to separate molecules.

“The kids learned how DNA fingerprints are made; they extracted DNA from a banana,” Bowerman said.

To review for the test on the unit, the students also made organelle games and played them.

“I think they really liked everything we did, because they did really well on the test,” Bowerman added.