Fall 2024: Teaching Teams is back!
Thank you for your patience as we worked to make Teaching Teams better than ever. All teams are now available for events and classroom visits!
What is Teaching Teams?
Since 1993, the Teaching Teams program has promoted science literacy and stimulated scientific interest among K-12 students in the Greater St. Louis area. Students are introduced to various scientific topics through hands-on demonstrations and lessons brought directly into your classroom or community event.
Each Teaching Team has developed interactive modules that challenge students to pose their own questions and to find answers through investigation and inquiry. Teams of Washington University scientists present the curricula in small groups, fostering an atmosphere where everyone feels comfortable asking questions.
Teaching Teams services are completely free of charge; we provide all materials and volunteers. Modules are designed to meet Missouri Science Learning Standards to help educators integrate YSP into their classrooms. Each year, Teaching Teams reaches hundreds of students in the St. Louis Public Schools and other local districts.
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Request A Field Trip
Teaching Teams is entirely run by volunteers.
Please allow up to two weeks for a reply.
Request A Teaching Team Event
Teaching Teams offers free interactive science demonstrations brought directly into your K-12 classroom or community event. We provide all materials and scientists at no cost to you. Browse our available Teaching Teams modules below and complete one of these forms.
Request a field trip (coming soon)
Most modules take 15-20 minutes and can be adjusted for different age groups or time limits. Modules can be mixed & matched to accommodate any class/event size. If you are unsure or undecided, we are happy to discuss and suggest the perfect demo(s) for your group!
YSP is entirely run by volunteers, so we may not be able to process your request immediately. Please allow up to two weeks for a reply.
Available Teaching Team Demonstrations
Anatomy & Physiology
The Anatomy & Physiology Teaching Team utilizes real organs from human cadavers to demonstrate the importance of normally-functioning anatomy. We also use clinical examples to describe normal functions as well as dysfunctions of different organ systems that lead to common diseases. Anatomy is the study of the macroscopic organs and tissues of the body in order to understand their functions. Physiology is more focused on the finer details of how these organs are able to function using microscopic and biochemical details. This knowledge is critical for anyone who wishes to study people and non-human animals in terms of health, sociology, ecology, anthropology, evolution, behavioral psychology, and many other fields.
The heart is the organ responsible for circulating blood throughout the body and ensures all tissues receive adequate nutrients to sustain their normal function. In this lab, we show and demonstrate how a normally-functioning heart works in the body in terms of the large, anatomic structures as well as the physiology of the electrical phenomena that makes this function possible: the action potential. The students will be shown an electrocardiogram (ECG) to correlate how this information is achieved in a clinical setting. We also demonstrate cardiac auscultation including interpretation of heart sounds and how they correlate to pathology. Students will have the opportunity to use stethoscopes during this demo. Finally, we demonstrate the gross anatomical changes which can take place in various pathological conditions such as hypertension and myocardial infarction.
The lungs are essential for the efficient gas exchange between the body and the environment which results in the absorption of oxygen and excretion of carbon dioxide from the blood. In this demonstration, we follow the blood as it circulates from one chamber of the heart, to the lung, and back into a separate chamber of the heart. This concept is usually best conveyed after or concurrently with the heart demonstration. We discuss the gross and microscopic structures of the lung which allow oxygen exchange. We then move on to describe lung auscultation along with radiology to correlate clinical findings with disease processes. The students will have the opportunity to use stethoscopes and look at x-ray and CT images of the lung. Finally, we discuss the pathologic changes which take place in the lung tissue during various disease processes such as emphysema and pneumonia.
Lung Function and Physics of Breathing
The gastrointestinal (GI) tract runs from the mouth to the anus and includes several organs thatfacilitate the digestion and absorption of nutrients into the blood. For this lab, we track the system from the mouth, where food digestion begins, to the very last stage where wastes are excreted from the body. We utilize real specimens to describe the major physiological functions of each organ along the GI tract and the specific anatomical features which allow them to perform their tasks. Our specimens include the esophagus, stomach, small intestine, large intestine, liver and gallbladder, and pancreas. We also describe several common clinical scenarios relevant to the GI system such as peptic ulcers and pancreatic cancer.
Find Out if You’re a Supertaster
Chemistry
The Chemistry Teaching Team engages students in fun experiences that illustrate chemical concepts and how they contribute to aspects of everyday life. Our lessons include chemistry topics that students would be expected to cover in a two-semester introductory high school chemistry course. Each module is designed to fill one class period with hands-on demonstrations and correspond to a unit in the St. Louis Public Schools’ curriculum. One biochemistry module (Enzyme Catalysis) is designed for use in a biology class. Through our lessons, we hope to present chemistry and related areas of science as viable career options.
The following experiments demonstrate the nature of enzymes and their respective substrates, with an emphasis on biochemistry. The hands-on Enzyme Catalysis I demo uses toothpicks and the participants’ hands to show temperature effects on enzyme-substrate interactions. Enzyme Catalysis II uses pineapple and jello to demonstrate the properties of digestive enzymes. Each demo should take ~30 minutes.
Polymers are large cross-linked molecules made up of repeating structural units. They exist artificially as plastics and naturally as DNA, RNA, and proteins. This activity has the participants act as molecules to demonstrate the effects of temperature and cross-linking. It also uses sodium silicate and ethanol to create a gooey polymer ball (~30 minutes).
Redox-oxidation reactions are any chemical reactions that occur when the oxidation state of atoms change. Oxidation is the loss of electrons and reduction is the gain of electrons. One example of a reduction reaction is the tarnishing of silver. This experiment uses hard boiled eggs to tarnish silver and baking soda to reverse the process.
Atoms are made of protons, neutrons, and electrons. The electrons orbit the atom in spaces called orbitals. Additional electrons move in orbitals with increasing average distance from the atom’s nucleus. These demonstrations explore the effects of the increased average distance. The Rubber Chicken demonstration shows that an electron jumping from one orbital to another undergoes a specific change in energy. This energy is released as light and turns a Bunsen burner flame different colors. The Periodicity demonstration shows that electrons in higher orbitals are held more loosely and can therefore be removed from the atom more readily. The result of this phenomenon is that calcium metal reacts much more quickly with water than magnesium.
Density is defined as the amount of mass contained in an object per unit volume. The density demonstration contains two experiments that demonstrate how differences in density cause objects to float. The first experiment uses carbon dioxide to cause raisins to float and sink like submarines. Normal raisins collect and hold more carbon dioxide bubbles and therefore float more frequently than chocolate covered raisins because they become less dense. The second experiment uses solutions of glycerol mixed with water to create a liquid rainbow. Glycerol is more dense than water; therefore, mixing different amounts of glycerol and water creates solutions with different densities. When food coloring is added, and the solutions are stacked in order of density, the students will have created a liquid rainbow.
Ecology & Evolution
The Ecology & Evolution Teaching Team introduces students to the central principles and theories of evolution and ecology through hands-on activities and hypothesis-driven approaches. Our demonstrations are designed to cover Missouri Science Standards and engage students in new and familiar concepts through activities and discussion that give them lasting impressions of the natural environment in Missouri and the world. Each module fills a single class period, and many can be adjusted for different age groups from elementary to upper level high schools.
The main concepts of this module are to describe the difference between mutualism, parasitism, and competition; to explain why no two species can occupy the same niche in a community; and to predict what could happen if an invasive species is introduced into an ecosystem. Students will be introduced to basic vocabulary about ecological relationships (symbiosis, mutualism, competition, parasitism, commensalism, generalists, and specialists). Then students will be split up into groups of three to do an activity that simulates these different relationships. Each student will represent a different species competing for limited food. Between rounds, students will count how much food they collected and answer questions about the various ecological interactions. After the game, students will work individuals to analyze two graphs and a cartoon.
Students will learn about the Law of Superposition and create their own stratigraphic columns using sand, salt, soil, and gummy bears. They will use what they learn from this activity to interpret fossil evidence from the horse and its ancestors. There are 2 different worksheets for different level students.
The theory of Island Biogeography examines the factors that affect species richness, or species numbers, in isolated communities. This module covers the main principles of island biogeography, which tie into important themes in ecology, evolution, and conservation. In this module, the students actively engage with an exercise of island colonization, where the students themselves represent different species colonizing islands made by circular ropes. These concepts are used to explain numbers of species on any isolated habitat surrounded by unlike habitat, such as mountaintops surrounded by lowlands, ponds surrounded by terrestrial communities, or fragmented forest surrounded by farmland. At the end of the module, we tie these covered concepts into broader environmental issues, such as species diversity in a fragmented landscape and how to conserve species across a network of protected reserves.
Just how old is the Earth? Students learn to think in terms of evolutionary time scales by retracing key events in the history of our planet along the Rope of Life. A rope with lines on it marking millions of years is laid out around the room, and students place note cards along the rope to guess when they think particular events occurred, such as the appearance of land plants, and the appearance of mammals. Then students will be given a new set of cards with the actual dates of the events, and will place them in the correct order. As a group, we will discuss with the students which events they had originally guessed correctly and what they were surprised about.
Embracing experiential learning, we tour the Missouri Botanical Climatron, the dome-shaped building housing nearly 3,000 exotic plant species. This is a unique opportunity to explore a tropical ecosystem within our very own St. Louis. Students attend each of four “learning stations” strategically placed around the Climatron. These include: (1) Evolution of Plants, (2) Adaptations, (3) Leaves and Flowers, and (4) Growth and Forms. Multiple instructors allow small groups of students to explore topics hands-on. Rather than lecturing, we use the life forms around us to cover topics such as the transition from ancient to modern plants, plant classification, how plants use resourses and the wide variety of familiar edibles. We also cover pollination, reproduction, and the basics of photosynthesis and cellular respiration. We recommend spending a three-hour period at Missouri Botanical Garden in order for us to best accommodate your students. We also strongly recommend planning this trip on a Wednesday or Saturday morning, since Garden admission is free those days. We suggest a 9-12 visit on either Wednesday or Saturday; packed or purchased lunches can be eaten after in Sassafras Cafe.
Genetics & Genomics
The Genetics & Genomics Teaching Team explores the concepts of DNA structure and gene inheritance. Our team focuses on understanding the genetic code and how it can be translated into the proteins that power all life on Earth. We also help students to learn the basics of Mendelian inheritance and how genes are passed on from parents to offspring. Our lessons also connect students to the field of Genomics, including how DNA is sequenced and how scientists use this information to improve human and environmental health.
In this activity, students will perform a simple experiment using household materials to extract the DNA from a strawberry. Teaching Team volunteers will lead a discussion about the structure and function of DNA and the four nucleotide base pairs that make up the genetic code in all organisms on Earth. At the end of the experiment, students will be able to see with their naked eye a big, gooey, glob of strawberry DNA!
Recommended Grade Levels: Elementary, Middle, High School
This activity explores the basic concepts of Mendelian genetic inheritance, including how genes are passed on from parents to offspring and how those genes encode for specific traits. PTC (phenyltiourea) is a unique chemical that can only be tasted if the person has a specific version (allele) of a taste gene. Students can lay the PTC paper on their tongue and determine if they are a taster or a non-taster, depending on which allele they have! We also review other common Mendelian traits, such as lobed versus attached earlobes, the presence or absence of a widow’s peak, the ability to roll your tongue, and more. By the end of the lesson, students will understand Mendelian inheritance and be able to define the words “gene”, “trait”, “phenotype”, and “genotype”.
Recommended Grade Levels: Middle, High School
Super Tasters: Mendelian Genetics Manual (Teacher & Student Versions)
This activity demonstrates how an organism’s physical characteristics (phenotype) can be connected to their DNA genetic sequence (genotype). Students will study a set of gourds with varying traits, such as color and texture. They will compare the genotypes of the gourds to determine which phenotypes are affected. In the end, students will be given the genotype for a mystery gourd, predict its phenotypes, and pick it out from a set of possible mystery gourds.
Recommended Grade Levels: Middle, High School
Gourdomics: Genotypes To Phenotypes Manual (Teacher & Student Versions)
Neuroscience
The Neuroscience Teaching Team demonstrates how the brain and central nervous system works. Students can see and touch a real preserved human brain while learning what the different regions of the brain do. Our activities allow students to experience how our brains sense where our bodies are in space (proprioception), adapt to changes in visual input, and feel how sensitive our sense of touch is over our bodies. They can also learn how neurons function using an electrical model and how neurons send/receive signals across synapses to other cells.
This module covers the basics of brain anatomy in mammals. Students will learn about the different regions of the brain and what they do. They will also understand the relationship between overall body size and brain size by comparing mouse, rat, sheep, and human brain sizes. If possible, students will be shown and can actually touch a real brain and/or spinal cord from human cadavers!
Recommended Grade Levels: Elementary, Middle, High School
Please note: Young children (2nd grade and below) will not be able to touch the brains (only look), due to their extremely delicate nature.
Anatomy of the Human Brain Manual (Teacher Version & Handout)
This module demonstrates how the brain can adapt to changes in visual input. Students will complete three separate activities while wearing prism goggles, which bend light and usually help to correct double vision. They will learn how their vision affects their hand-eye coordination, which brain region is responsible for interpreting visual signals, and how our brains can change to accommodate different signals.
Recommended Grade Levels: Middle, High School
This module introduces students to the sixth sense, proprioception, and how it helps us interact with our environment. Proprioception (or kinesthesia) is the body’s ability to sense movement, action, and location. Without it, we would not be able to move without consciously thinking about it! Students will use muscle “stimulators” to artificially stimulate their muscle spindles and tendons and learn how the brain processes their signals.
Recommended Grade Levels: Middle, High School
This module focuses on the main cell that makes up our nervous systems: neurons! Students will perform two group activities to learn how neurons send and receive electrical signals to process information from the environment and communicate it with other cells.
Recommended Grade Levels: Middle, High School
Electrical Model of Neurons Manual (Teacher Version & Handout)
This module introduces students to the somatosensory system, or the sense of touch, and how it helps us perceive our environment. Our sense of touch is responsible for knowing what is happening to the surface of our body when we are not directly looking at it. Without it, we would not know what our body was touching at all times! Students will use calipers to test which body areas are the most sensitive to touch and learn how the brain processes these signals to create a “map” (the sensory homunculus).
Recommended Grade Levels: Middle, High School
Tactile Sensation Manual (Teacher Version & Student Worksheet)
This module explores how neurons communicate with each other through synapatic activity. Students will play a game with ping pong balls to understand the relationship between neurotransmitters (signaling molecules) and available receptors in the brain. They will learn how synaptic activity can be altered through substance use and abuse and in neurological diseases such as Parkinson’s, epilepsy, and schizophrenia.
Recommended Grade Levels: Middle, High School
Physics
The Physics Teaching Team aims to illustrate the role that physics plays in our daily life. We hope to show students that they can use physics to understand the world around them. In particular, we tailor our demonstrations and activities toward their areas of interest (music, sports, etc.) in order to show them the ubiquity of physical laws. We believe that by showing how physics is important for activities students enjoy that we can inspire them to look more favorably at physics and science in general.
Much of the phenomena we observe in nature are waves, such as the electromagnetic waves of light, pressure waves of sound, etc. In each case, waves can be characterized according to the media through which they propagate. For sound, the vibration of molecules carries waves through various media. In this demo, students learn how wave frequency affects the pitch of a sound. Tuning bottles of water, they will play different notes to discover the physics behind why instruments can make different sounds, as well as learn about different properties of waves.
Electricity plays such an important role in modern life. From large household appliances to the small gadgets we use so frequently, electricity is a universal tool we use throughout every day. Most people imagine electrical currents and circuits with batteries and wires when they think of electricity. However, all of these examples seem to suggest that electricity is something that is dynamic and always flowing. But, in fact, electricity is present even when things are at a stand-still. Static electricity is the interaction between charged particles that make up materials. Just like gravity is mediated by the gravitational force between two objects with mass, electricity is mediated by the electrical force between two charged objects. Using a variety of materials in this activity, students will observe static electricity in action and learn the differences between the gravitational and electrical forces. By charging objects with either like charge or opposite charge, they will discover that the electrical force can be both attractive and repulsive, which allows for the currents and circuits so important for everyday life.
Students explore the concept of light and reflection using an object they see everyday: a mirror. Here, students will learn what is happening when light interacts with a mirror and how this concept makes mirrors a valuable tool for optical devices as well as everyday life.
When light hits an object’s surface, part of the light is absorbed by the atoms that make up the object and part of it is scattered back out. The objects we are able to see are visible to us because of the partially scattered light eventually reaching our eyes. Light can also be transmitted, reflected and refracted. In this demo, students will learn about the scattering and reflection of light by using a classic optical instrument: a kaleidoscope. The beautiful repeating patterns that kaleidoscopes create are due to the multiple reflections of different colors of light scattered from objects. Students will see these principles in action by building their own kaleidoscope using simple, household items.
Magnets are used in many everyday objects, such as TV’s, videotapes, and speakers. Not only that, we are also living on one giant magnet – the Earth. All magnets produce magnetic fields, and magnetic field lines are a way to visualize these magnetic fields. This demo will use this phenomenon to demonstrate basic concepts of magnetism.
Frequently Asked Questions
Coming soon!
Any questions? Contact us!
We are happy to answer any questions or suggest appropriate demos for your event. YSP is entirely run by volunteers, so please allow at least two weeks for a reply.
Email the YSP Teaching Teams Directors at ysp.teachingteams@wustl.edu