 I'm Kate Monahan. I'm a teacher at the North Carolina School of Science and Math in Durham, North Carolina. NCSSM is a public charter school that accepts students throughout the entire state. In my class, I had students from the beach, students from the mountains, and students right here from Durham. The diversity in my classroom allows for discussion with many different viewpoints. The first part of the unit was all about curiosity. We dove into what oil spills were, the harmful effects of oil spills, and evaluated the current solutions to determine if there was a need for a better solution, perhaps a GMO. Through video clips and research, students sparked their curiosity about oil spills and how we cleaned them up. As a class, we determined that the current solutions, such as skimmers, were somewhat effective and economical, had detrimental effects on the environment and human health, because they are toxic to the environment and do not clean up all of the oil. This step allowed the students to think about solutions through different perspectives, such as economical and ecological, and also focused on different scales. Did these solutions just affect local oil spills, or could they be used more widespread? Once we determined we could use a GMO, I introduced my students to the strain of bacteria called alkenovorex borkumenus. From here we'll refer to that strain as AB. This strain of bacteria is found in marine environments and is known to degrade crude oil. The students were given time and class to research about AB and explore different genes that were important for it to function. Students were learning about wildlife and wild places and how the microbiome of environments plays an important role in the health of an ecosystem. At the end of class, we discussed if we could genetically modify the strain of bacteria to create a more versatile and resistant strain of AB that could have super oil degradation ability. The students researched genes that they wanted to insert into AB and using a provided vector designed PCR primers for cloning purposes to make a genetically modified strain of AB. The students were innovative with their gene choices and broadened the type of GMOs we could make. Students picked genes such as DNAK which would make AB more resistant to pressure to degrade oil deep within the ocean and NPC which would allow AB to withstand higher temperatures which is important for our ever warming oceans. Once students analyzed their gene, we designed PCR primers and ordered them from a local biotech company. Their own primers based on their own gene engaged the students, got the students curious, made them feel empowered that they could make a genetically modified organism that could be helpful for the world. Having the students work on their own gene allowed them to see what genetic engineering is all about and how we can use molecular genetics to solve real world problems. Once the PCR primers arrived, we jumped into lab. In the lab, students set up PCR reactions to amplify their gene of interest, the first step in the cloning process. Students mixed their own PCR primers along with DNTPs, TAC, Blumerase, and DNA from Alcinovorex borkiumenus to amplify their gene of interest. They then ran DNA gels in lab to see if their PCR worked. Students were motivated in lab and our first round of PCR yielded only one success. Instead of just moving on, we had a discussion of where the experiment could have gone wrong and students listed all the possible areas we could adjust for the next round of PCR. The ultimate failure of PCR introduced the skill of problem solving in real time. The students wanted to get their PCR to work and had to figure out where they could adjust to increase their success rate. After the second round of PCR, we increased our number of successes to six. While some students did not succeed, some students did and that is okay because failure is part of the learning process. At the end of this unit, students were asked to write a modified patent application. To help them with their patent writing, we had a scientist from a local university come and talk about the patent application and how they could assess their GMO for potential risks. This was very important because I wanted my students to become responsible innovators as part of this process. Just because we can make a GMO does not mean it is the best solution. And all GMOs have the potential to go wrong and what could they do to control for that? The students really appreciated the guest speaker and through their patents, I was able to see the predicted risks and how they would control for them. From this unit, my students have become responsible innovators and problem solvers. All of my students dealt with failure in this unit and collaborated with one another to figure out how to fix their problems. In the end, students were engaged scientists empowered to genetically engineer an organism to solve a problem in our environment. Oil spills.