Bubbles and gummy bears aren’t just for fun.

They’re being used for learning in one science class. 

Students in biology are further developing their understanding by using labs as visual and hands-on learning using gummy bears and bubbles.

 “So, we started a unit on cell transport to observe how things can move in and out of cells and why it’s important to maintain good transportation levels,” biology teacher Farhana Razzaque said. “So we started off looking at the cell membrane and the structure. We did a bubble lab, and the bubble lab actually shows how the cell membrane is structured, its fluidity, how flexible it is, and some of the ways that things can enter and exit the cell. After that, we’re looking at how water travels in and out of cells by looking at the gummy bear lab. Um, we soaked some gummy bears in tap water, salt water, and we observed the differences and how water concentration affects a cell.” 

The lab emphasized visual learning about cell membrane and cell organelles and how they function. 

“Well, I’d say the bubble lab was a pretty successful lab that we were able to do to help us understand better visually the concepts that we’re learning about cell membranes and membrane-bound organelles, transport proteins, all of that,” freshman Luiz Felipe Westover said. “The bubble lab pretty clearly visualizes it by allowing us to use our hands and get kind of messy and really activate our tactile senses to connect the idea to our hands.”