At some point in their education, science becomes a daunting subject for many schoolchildren. Either the textbook is too difficult, or a teacher's own lack of enthusiasm infects the class. Maybe basic concepts are glossed over, or ignored entirely, because time is so short. The reasons are legion why some elementary and secondary students lose that sense of wonder that the sciences play to best. University of Idaho faculty, staff, and students sometimes play novel roles in helping students hold onto, or rekindle, that joy of discovery. Here are just a few examples.

The sixth graders in Molly Pannkuk's class at Moscow's Lena Whitmore Elementary School were excited.

Polite and disciplined, they nonetheless bounced about their classroom with the enthusiasm borne of pure anticipation.

Field trip? Not exactly. Party? Definitely not.

What these two dozen sixth graders were fired up about is science.

They were the recipients of a visit by the UI Microbiology Club. Actually, it was the club's second visit.

The first time UI club members visited the classroom, they brought agar plates so the youngsters could gather bits of gunk from assorted and sundry places and smear them on the growth media.

One inventive junior scientist decided belly button lint was an ideal candidate. Another chose the water fountain drain. Others chose the bottoms of their shoes. The points of interest for these young science sleuths went on and on.

When club members returned a few days later to show the sixth graders what they'd grown, the assortment was diverse.

"There was a lot of stuff that grew very well," said club co-president Buck Samuel as he passed out the plates.

"See these open spots on this plate," he said to several students. "These are called placques. They're caused by viruses that killed the bacteria."

The UI club members set up three stations focusing on viruses, fungi, and bacteria to help the Lena Whitmore pupils understand more about the world of microbiology. The posters and props helped get the kids excited about science. They also planted seeds of understanding that may grow into a deeper interest. "It's a way to refine the love of science," Samuel said.

"The kids are really excited about science," Pannkuk said, adding that "for a sixth grader to be excited about something that can be viewed as difficult is really saying something."

In sixth grade, there's no division between boys and girls in their enthusiasm for the subject, either. The challenge for teachers is to draw on and expand that interest. "It's very important that you don't expect the least," she added.

Fun demonstrations and laboratory visits such as this one can help excite students' imaginations and provide them with the building blocks of understanding for their studies of science, said John Davis, a UI education professor. "Experiential learning can be a powerful tool to engage students in science," he added. It is important, too, that those providing the experiences have a strong fundamental understanding of the science involved so they do not pass along misconceptions as well.

When a class of Moscow High sophomores visited a UI College of Agriculture laboratory to learn about DNA techniques, scientific aide Jenny Hansen introduced them to a battery of sophisticated equipment and methods.

Hansen's job at the UI revolves around extracting DNA, the stuff from which genes are made. Her work supports research by wheat breeder Bob Zemetra and plant pathologist Phil Berger to develop wheats with genetic resistance to two damaging viruses, barley yellow dwarf and wheat streak mosaic.

For the students of Moscow High science teacher Lee Anne Eareckson, the process of DNA separation was as fascinating as whatever the final result might be. Using a pestle, they ground flash-frozen wheat leaves in a mortar doused with liquid nitrogen. They swirled the paste with chloroform and detergent to extract the DNA, then used alcohol to precipitate out the complex molecule that forms the basis of life.

What they ended up with was a slimy glob of clearish goo that looked, in the words of one student, a lot like phlegm. "Oh sick," replied the lab partner. Eareckson, who has cooperated with Hansen on the lab exercise for six years, was unfazed by these initial reactions. "It usually seems to come together in the next few days as we read and talk about DNA," she said.

Hansen demonstrated how DNA extraction fits in with the broader picture of genetic analysis, using gel electrophoresis to separate out individual genetic markers from the wheat DNA. The gel produced a visual record of the plant's DNA that researchers Zemetra and Berger can use in their search for viral resistance.

Hansen also described using a gene gun to blast tiny, gene-coated particles of gold into tiny wheat embryos in hope of altering their DNA. She talked about the uses of PCR, polymerase chain reaction, to multiply specific genes.

Part of the message she strives to get across is that work with DNA is exacting and well planned. "I think they understand that there is a reason for what we're doing, and that people aren't just trying things willy-nilly."

Hansen enjoys working with high school students partly because it allows her to experience young minds' joy at discovering something new. "It's one of the things I would have loved to have seen when I was that age," she said. "Plus, I just love doing the hands-on experience with these kids."

"There have been a lot of kids who have said they enjoyed it," she added. "Some have said, ÔI could understand it by seeing it.'"

The Idaho State 4-H Office has worked out a curriculum to nurture scientific literacy that is anything but high technology. 4-H specialist David Mitchell, who recently helped to develop national guidelines for putting science into 4-H programs, used materials as simple as film canisters and Alka-Seltzer tablets to interest Upward Bound high school students in the principles of jet propulsion.

"The kids generally seemed to like it. They're up and moving around and doing things. We wanted to show them science does not have to be dry; it can be fun," said Mitchell, who is now with Oregon State University.

The potential audience 4-H can reach as Idaho's biggest and most widely known youth development program is large, Mitchell said. In 1999, 38,500 Idaho youths participated in 4-H regular clubs, special interest clubs, and school-affiliated enrichment programs.

4-H science-oriented programs are relatively new. Still, roughly a third of school enrichment programs do include science and technology, computer technology, electronics, or plant and animal science.

"4-H is really trying to go beyond what schools do," said Mitchell. "It's real hands-on, experiential activity outside the classroom. The kids are not pressured into learning these things because they're going to get a grade. They're learning these things because they're having fun. And they're learning life skills like cooperating and communicating with others at the same time."

Education professor Davis agrees in the value of using science education to help equip students for their lives ahead. It is a bonus if the experiences they enjoy as students of science convince them to pursue scientific careers. "Do we want to make scientists of everybody? Absolutely not," Davis said. "But we want them to have a basic understanding of science so they are better citizens and consumers."