Fun At-Home Science Activities – DNA Experiment for Kids | Biology for Kids

Written by Victoria, Summer Science Ambassador 

Engaging in science activities at home during the summer is a fantastic way for students to continue learning while having fun. Summer activities that focus on science help maintain and even enhance academic skills, preventing the summer slide. This week’s experiment, centered on biology and DNA, offers a hands-on approach to understanding complex concepts in an enjoyable manner. By building DNA structures using candy, students can grasp the basics of genetics and molecular biology in a memorable way. Encourage your child to participate in these enriching science activities to foster a love for learning and discovery.

At-Home Science Experiments – Let’s Learn About DNA

This week’s experiment is based on biology, more specifically DNA.

DNA is the information inside a cell that is unique to every person, animal and other living things. DNA is made up of 4 different nucleotides (noo klee uh tidez): adenine (a duh neen), thymine (thai meen), guanine (gwaa neen) and cytosine (sai tuh seen). These nucleotides form bonds together creating DNA. Depending on how the 4 different nucleotides are paired and arranged within a strand of DNA the cell that the DNA is part of changes.

Let’s Learn the Vocabulary

Nucleotides – Nucleotides are the building blocks of DNA. They are what cause variations in appearance and other aspects of living things. There are four nucleotides: adenine, thymine, guanine and cytosine.

DNA – DNA is the information within a cell that gives it unique traits.

The Experiment

Experiment: This weeks experiment is building DNA out of candy like gummies and licorice.

Purpose: The purpose of this experiment is to show the structure of DNA and how it works.

Materials:

For this experiment you will need:

• Licorice
• Gummies (At least 4 different colours)
• Toothpicks

All of these ingredients can be found at your local grocery or dollar store.

Instructions

Step 1: First, sort your gummies into 4 different piles by colour. Each colour will represent a different nucleotide.

Step 2: Group the gummies into pairs. For example,  purple with yellow and green with red (see image below)

Step 3: Put each pair of gummies on a toothpick. (see image below)

Step 4: Put one end of each toothpick into a piece of licorice (see image)

Step 5: Do the same for the other side of each toothpick so it looks somewhat like a train track (see image below)

Congratulations! You completed your candy model of DNA!

Try doing this again with different combinations of candy. Each variation in the DNA can cause the cell that it’s a part of to change, so changing the pattern of candy is like changing DNA!

I hope you enjoyed this week’s at-home science activity. Check out our Youtube video and watch our summer science ambassador complete this activity!