Year 5 pupils have had an exciting science based visit to Hermitage Academy this week. After getting their steps up, with a walk up to the school, they experienced an animal heart being dissected, extraction of DNA from a banana and explosive reactions of alkaline metals.
As part of our science curriculum, we look at the circulatory system, of which the heart is the pump – ensuring blood is carried around the body. Looking inside the disected heart gave the pupils an idea of the four chambers that are pumping blood around the system.
DNA is like a recipe book or instruction manual for making you, you! It’s a long, twisty molecule that carries all the information your body needs to grow, look the way you do, and stay healthy. Every cell in your body has DNA inside it, and it tells the cell what to do. Just like a recipe tells you how to make a cake, DNA tells your cells how to make you. And just like every cake has different ingredients, everyone’s DNA is a little bit different, which is why we all look and act a bit differently from each other. We share about 60% of DNA material with bananas – so when the pupils saw banana DNA being extracted it was 60% of what we would see in humans!
Most metals, such as iron, react either slowly or not at all with water. However, alkali metals such as lithium and sodium will react violently when exposed to water. The pupils saw this happening .. to squeals of excitement.
Definitely science in action.