Join us for Hands-on Workshops at NSTA Philly!

Are you heading to NSTA Philly this March? Get ready to roll up your sleeves and dive into the exciting world of biotechnology! We’re hosting hands-on workshops designed to bring cutting-edge lab techniques into your classroom. From CRISPR gene editing to forensic DNA analysis, these interactive sessions will give you the skills and confidence to engage your students in real-world science.

To help you choose, we’ve written longer blog posts about each workshop as a preview. We’ve even pulled together a list of the best places to eat and things to do in Philly, both near the convention center and throughout the city.

1. Forensic Escape Room: Design Your Own Biotech Adventure: Explore the world of forensic science with these fun and exciting escape room activities! Try forensic blood detection and agarose gel electrophoresis experiments, decipher clues, and solve puzzles. Learn to design your own escape room to have students unravel the evidence and free the innocent.
2. Lion Family Reunion: Conservation Biology Genetics: Wildlife conservators often return captive-bred animals to their native habitats to rewild the area. In this interactive workshop, we’ll explore the use of RFLP analysis and phylogenetics in conservation biology to analyze the DNA samples of two lions. Can we return them to their ancestral home?
3. Code Breakers: Using CRISPR for Sickle Cell Gene Editing: Explore CRISPR-Cas gene editing in our hands-on electrophoresis workshop! The Nobel-winning biotechnology breakthrough is making dramatic changes to human health TODAY. Dive into CRISPR biology with quick experiments modeling cures for genetic diseases like Sickle Cell Anemia and Cystic Fibrosis.
4. Put the M into STEM: Quantitative Techniques for Biotechnology: You’ve planned the experiment and collected data, now let’s discuss the best way to analyze it. In this workshop, we’ll use PCR, ELISA, and AI to bring quantitative data analysis and statistics to the lab. Mastery of these skills is crucial to prepare students for careers in biotechnology and STEM.

5. The DNA Detective: Reuniting Families with DNA Fingerprinting and Electrophoresis: Use forensic genealogy to identify two boys separated from their parents and reunite the family. In this hands-on electrophoresis experiment, students will analyze dye samples that represent mitochondrial and chromosomal DNA. Through data analysis, students explore inheritance and DNA polymorphisms.
6. Color Your Classroom: Engaging Students with Bacteria and Bio-Art: Transforming bacteria with vibrant colored proteins is an unforgettable way to teach the central dogma of molecular biology. Take it further by creating bio-art with your students! In this workshop, we’ll share transformation tips, explore microbial creativity, and even award our favorite designs!
7. Trailblazers: Investigating chemotaxis with  C. elegans: Unlock biology’s mysteries with model organisms! Learn to culture and study C. elegans in your classroom laboratory. Explore chemotaxis with a simple locomotion assay. Integrate STEM concepts, data collection, and statistics for an enriching learning experience. Meets standards for AP Bio Lab 11.

You can get a sneak peak of all the workshop guides here: https://online.flippingbook.com/view/1020628963/

Whether you’re new to biotech or looking to refine your lab skills, our workshops will provide practical, classroom-ready activities that make complex concepts accessible and fun. Don’t miss this opportunity to explore the future of biotech education—see you in Philly!