To help students learn about photosynthesis and review how light interacts with matter, students in AP Biology started a new lab involving plants, chemicals and new equipment.

“This experiment was a little challenging, but it really helped me understand photosynthesis on a different level,” junior Maya Doe said. “It also gave me deeper knowledge on how everything interacts, which will help me for the semester exam.”

Baking soda, a light source, hole punches, spinach leaves, liquid soap and a timer were used as materials for the experiment. During the lab, students analyzed how leaves react to light within a class period.

“This experiment was easier compared to our other experiments because a majority of it was just waiting for the results,” junior Isabella Saucedo said. “It actually did help me understand photosynthesis a little better and how different factors affect it.”

In the next part of the experiment, students created their own lab by using different controlled factors of baking soda, temperature, light and other materials. Students will be testing their experiments on Thursday to determine if it is successful or not.

“I hope this lab will help students understand the process of photosynthesis better and comprehend all of the details,” AP Biology teacher Mary Breslin said. “With the semester exam approaching, I am trying to prepare [the students] as much as I can.”

To conclude the lab and semester, each class period will create a graph that compares the data collected throughout the week.

“This experiment was different then all of are others so far because of how hands-on it was,” junior Emily Giblin said. “This is one of the reasons why I love this class so much, we get the freedom to control our own experiments and get a taste of being a true scientist.”