EI Schools Programme at Fascination of Plants Day

In Norwich, over 400 school children from years 5 to 11 attended a Fascination of Plants Day hosted by the John Innes Centre. At the EI booth, students experienced hands-on activities from algae, 3D plant cells to DNA origami to engage them with the Institute’s plant science research in genomics and bioinformatics.

In a phylogenetic activity, the pupils were challenged to place a group of various plants in the order in which they evolved using the ‘EI Evolution Tree’; from the oldest species to the evolutionary newcomer. The school children were then given the genetic sequences of these plants to refine their answers in their event work books.