Four Cranbrook Elementary students counting zebrafish embryos
From left to right: Two students netting fish; one student looking through a microscope at zebrafish embryos; two students counting zebrafish embryos
Four 4th graders making observations of zebrafish adults
From left to right: Student sharing their zebrafish story; zebrafish story written by a 4th grader; student looking through a microscope at zebrafish embryos
Thank you note from Barrington Elementary students
BioEYES is an international K-12 science education program which provides classroom-based learning opportunities through the use of live zebrafish. The program is designed to foster enthusiasm for science by giving students opportunities to explore science through watching life develop firsthand. The program also empowers K-12 teachers by providing opportunities for professional development and a co-teaching experience with trained science consultants. In 2019, Ohio State University was established as a BioEYES partner site. In 2022, Ohio State BioEYES was awarded a Battelle Engineering, Technology and Human Affairs (BETHA) grant to expand into new Columbus area schools and to develop a service learning course, MolGen 4581S, enabling OSU undergraduates to engage in this outreach, which was offered for the first time in Autumn 2023. The program was featured by the College of Arts and Sciences Office of Engagement in 2024 in a video linked here. Read more about the BETHA grant here, and consider supporting the BioEYES program here. Click here and here to see real-time movies of zebrafish embryos and larvae captured during a classroom visit.
In partnership with the Department of Molecular Genetics and Project BioEYES, Professor Sharon Amacher and her collaborators have brought the joy of scientific discovery to over 700 4th and 5th graders in 5 local elementary schools since Fall 2019. To learn more about the program, check out the BioEYES website, or read the news coverage of the program pilot at Barrington Elementary School below.