Programming & Booking
In-lab activities are available for Grade 5-12 classes with a capacity limit of 30 students, from partner school divisions. We also offer online interactive sessions through Zoom, Teams, or Meet for students Grade 5-12 to bring our lessons to your classroom! The timing of programming can be flexible to fit your class schedule.
Vaccination is NOT mandatory for visits to the Youth BIOlab at this time.
Each school division partners with the BIOlab for a set number of dates. We offer each division specific dates to balance access to the lab and minimize the volume of back-and-forth emails. You can view our divisional availability calendars here, and complete a booking form using the link below. Typically, AM sessions are 9:30-11:45 and PM sessions are 12:15-2:30, but we can be flexible with timing, and offer full-day sessions depending on programming and where you’re coming from.
The Youth BIOlab reserves limited spaces for independent schools and others outside the divisional system, please contact Steve Jones at sjones@sbrc.ca for more information.
We hope you find a program that fits the interests of your classroom, representative examples of curriculum connections and typical BIOlab programming are below. We are always interested in developing new approaches and student experiences with teachers, so please get in touch!
Programming Options
In-lab Activities
These activities include an intro to basic medical science and the work of the Albrechtsen Research Centre and a hands-on lab activity in the Youth BIOlab. (Typically 2-2.5 hours in length.)
Click on the program title below to download a pdf of the full program description
Grade 5 Looking inside the Body: Skeleton model, cells & microscopes, pig lung dissection
Grade 6 Diversity of Living Things: Investigate the microorganisms that surround us with bacterial agar plate swabbing. Observe some tiny living things on a microscope.
Grade 7 Particle Theory: Use separation techniques to isolate DNA from bacteria.
Grade 7 Interactions Within Ecosystems: Investigate microorganisms and how they spread disease with a contact tracing game and bacterial plate swabbing
Grade 8 Cells and Systems: Cells and tissues in research, working with live cells activity
Grade 8 Cells and Systems: Cells and tissues in heart disease research, pig heart dissection
Grade 8 Optics: Using microscopes in research, diabetes and eye dissection
Grade 9 Reproduction: Mitosis and live cell culture techniques, live-cell activity
Grade 11 Biology: Heart disease, pig heart dissection and using live cells in research
Grade 11 Biology: Aortic valve isolation from pig heart and stem cell tissue regeneration
Grade 11 Biology: Alzheimer’s and sheep brain dissection with hippocampus isolation
Grade 11 Biology: Explore immune function and antibody-antigen interactions with an enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) for mock patient testing.
Grade 12 Biology: DNA isolation from bacteria, restriction enzyme digest and gel electrophoresis
Grade 12 Biology: COVID-19 PCR testing and gel electrophoresis
Online Activities
These occur using Microsoft Teams, Google Meet or Zoom. Typically 90mins.
Grade 5 Maintaining a Healthy Body: View live cells, pig heart and lung dissection
Grade 6 Diversity of Living Things OR Grade 7 Ecosystems: Learn about microbes in our environment and how they can affect our health
Grade 8 Cells and Systems: Cells and tissues in heart disease research, heart dissection
Grade 8 Optics: Diabetes and eye dissection
Grade 9 Reproduction: Mitosis and live cell culture techniques
Grade 11 Biology: Heart disease, heart dissection and using live cells in research
Grade 11 Biology: Aortic valve isolation and stem cell tissue regeneration
Grade 11 Biology: Alzheimer’s and brain dissection with hippocampus isolation
It’s All About Me (LRSD)
There are also many opportunities for schools in the Louis Riel School Division as part of our ongoing It’s All About Me partnership. Click below for more details.
