Overview

To help more people understand Levan and engage with our project, we've conducted various types of educational activities. We visited a communit y  to conduct education lecture for children, held a health and wellness seminar for the elderly in nursing homes, and established multiple social media accounts where we share the latest research updates and relevant educational content. Our efforts have gained recognition and approval from both online and offline communities.

Offline education activities

Community Lecture

Introduction

Understanding the importance of Levan is crucial for individuals because it provides a framework for living a balanced and harmonious life. Under this theme, our team conducted an offline education activity. The goal of our offline education at the Tianlin Community  focuses on the importance of Levan. We provide d  our audience with comprehensive knowledge and awareness about Levan and its significance in the aspects of food production and its benefits for human individuals.

Education plan

Our plan is to do some popularization courses for children around 7-12 years old and their elders (mostly 60-70 years old) in the community.. This is a community project dedicated to promoting a healthy lifestyle and spreading the knowledge of levulose.

Considering the audiences’ age, our plan is to present the complex knowledge with simple PowerPoint presentations  and videos, and to design interesting games for younger children to deepen the impression of children and their elders on levulose.

Our educational program covers a variety of aspects, including but not limited to the help of Levan in a healthy diet, the introduction of the sources of Levan and its efficacy, Levan in disease prevention, etc.

We have structured the pro ject  as follows:

(1) Healthy Eating Education - Through fun games and interactive activities, children are taught the importance and basic principles of healthy eating, and how the addition of levulose can make diets healthier.

(2) Source and Effects of levulose - Through fun quizzes and videos, children and parents are taught about levulose in a fun way.

(3) Prevention and Treatment of Diseases by L-glucan - Through questions and games, children and parents can participate together to enhance the educational effect.

(4)  Prize Quiz and Summarization - Through the prize quiz, children and parents will be aroused to have a deeper interest, and a summary will be made after the quiz so that the audience will have a deeper impression and feeling.

Activity process

We  start ed  off with a brief activity that define d  Levan, engaging people and introducing them to the idea of Levan, this could   take the form of  a quick icebreaker exercise or discussion centered on  Levan's fundamental ideas.

Then we move d  on to the presentation in which the facilitator thoroughly explain ed  the meaning of Levan, its tenets, and how it can have a good influence on people's lives. To enhance the learning experience, m ore Levan-related games were  played. For instance, the drawing and guessing game. For example, one such game involves drawing and guessing. In this game, a team of kids includes one guesser while the rest draw. They were  tasked with illustrating specific vocabulary related to Levan for the guesser to identify. These interactive activities not only ma de  learning enjoyable but also serve d  as tangible examples.

As we near the conclusion of the activity , we summarize d  the main ideas presented in the presentation. We reemphasize d  the significance of Levan and how it might affect one's relationships, work-life balance, environmental awareness, and personal  well-being. In the end , participants were encouraged to share  their thoughts, reflections, and any queries they may have.

Figure 1 a-d : Offline education in Tianlin community .

Feedback

All children were actively involved in class activities and received positive feedback. It was clear that they enjoyed the time and liked the games we organized, which promoted their understanding of Levan. In addition, parents showed great interest in our topic and discussed it with us after the educational program.

L andsea  Ivy Nursing Home

I n order to impact more elderly , w e conducted a health lecture at Landsea Ivy Nursing Home with the theme: "The Dissemination and Application of Prebiotics for Healthy Aging." During the lecture, we covered several essential topics to provide the elderly residents with valuable insights into maintaining a healthy lifestyle.

First and foremost, we introduced the concept of prebiotics, with a particular focus on Levan. We explained what prebiotics are and how they can benefit one's health, emphasizing their role in promoting digestive wellness and overall well-being.

In addition to discussing prebiotics, we delved into essential health knowledge that seniors should be aware of in their daily lives. This included guidance on maintaining a balanced and nutritious diet, emphasizing the importance of proper dietary choices. We also highlighted the significance of staying physically active through moderate exercise and the benefits of quality sleep, underlining the importance of good sleep hygiene. To further support their well-being, we provided recommendations for making healthy food choices, ensuring they have access to nutritious options.

Our goal was to empower the elderly residents with the knowledge   to lead healthier lives, not only through prebiotic consumption but also by adopting essential health practices that contribute to their overall well-being.

All of these elderly individuals responded positively to our sharing. They mentioned that the knowledge we provided was incredibly useful to them. They now understand what Levan is and have gained a better understanding of some health tips and tricks.

 

Figure  2 a-d : We visited Landsea Ivy Nursing Home to carry out volunteer practice activities

 

Online education activities

The advantages of team online activities include unlimited time and space, convenient participants, low cost, etc. Online activities can not only meet various social, cultural, educational, and entertainment needs, but also promote economic development and digital transformation. Therefore, F-Levan team uses online activities such as RED (Little Red Book) , WeChat Official Account , and Bilibili to promote publicity. We have updated the latest developments of our team and provided educational content related to the project on these platforms. In total, we received nearly 400 views and likes, indicating that our work has gained recognition within the online community.

 

 

 

Figure 3: Our WeChat Official Account

 

Figure 4: Our channel on RED  (Little Red Book)

 

Figure 5: Our channel on Bilibili

Education Tools

Roll up banner

Our team designed a rolling banner, including presenting a comprehensive overview of our team, our ambitious goals, innovative experimental methods, and the fascinating benefits of levan, which aims to attract more people to pay attention to our project and our team, and give s  children a simple understanding of the topic.

 

Figure  6 Design drawing and finished product of the rolling banner

(Please click here for the banner attachment)

Encourage gifts - stickers

In our Education project, we had the pleasure of working with young children as our primary audience. To keep them engaged and enthusiastic, our team designed an adorable collection of stickers as rewards for active class participa nts . The children were absolutely delighted to collect these unique stickers, and their eagerness and excitement played a vital role in the smooth progress of our Education project. Thanks to these charming incentives, the children actively participated in the classroom, making the learning experience enjoyable and interactive for all.

 

Figure 7: The stickers

Jigsaw Puzzle

To spark interest and engagement in our classroom, our team came up with a fun activity by printing two puzzle sets featuring our team's logo. The children were encouraged to complete the puzzles, and the group that finished first received a small reward. The kids were highly motivated and eager to participate, making the activity a great success. Their enthusiasm and active involvement added a wonderful dynamic to our classroom, fostering a positive and enjoyable learning environment for everyone.

 

Figure 8: The jigsaw

Pictionary Game

To create a relaxed and lively atmosphere in our classroom and keep everyone engaged and entertained, our team devised an exciting game for the kids called “Pictionary ". This game not only provided a fun break for the children during the class but also fostered a collaborative and joyful learning experience for everyone involved.

l  Equipment needed: blank papers and markers

l  Rules of the game: We choose a specific word or phrase as the target, and one child takes on the role of the final guesser, while the rest of the kids become the painters. The blank paper circulate s  among the children, with each one having a 10-second drawing time before passing it on. The next child could choose to start afresh or build upon the previous drawing. After all the participants finish their drawings, the paper will be  handed to the guesser, who ha s  three chances to guess the content correctly.

l  Attention⚠:
1. All the words revolved around topics discussed in the class, making it both educational and entertaining ;  2. Each child had the option to select a team member from our group to assist with their drawing or guessing

 

Education slides

Our team has created two education slides for different target audience. For the young children aged 7-12 year old, we designed several interactive activities into our slides, as we understand that kids prefer education through entertainment. We mainly educate the kids about what is levan and how it works as part of the sythetic biology, as well as its effect.

 

 

 

Figure 9 a&b :  Edu slides for kids

(Please click here for the attachment)

 

For elderly people, our education slides is to illustrate the pros and cons about sugar, prebiotic, levan and health. Since the healthy issue is very popular and important among the elderly group, we add some tips and knowledge about how to keep healthy. Furthermore, we have designed blessing card for the elderly, wish all elderly good health!

 

 

Figure 10 a&b :  Edu slides for kids

(Please click here for the attachment)

 

 

Figure 11 :  Blessing card

 

 

Conclusion

Our team went into nursing homes to popularize the knowledge of  prebiotics, Levan, and healthy living with the elderly residents. We have seen their smiles on their faces, their curiosity and concern for new things, and their expectation and support for sustainable development.
In addition, we also set our eyes on the children in the community and opened a lively and interesting Levan class ,  using games, interactions, and experiments. The children's curiosity about Levan and science was stimulated. We hope these small seeds will take root and foster passion for science and a thirst for knowledge in the next generation.

Lastly , we created some social media accounts to share our project and disseminate some scientific knowledge, which have garnered many supports.

With our team's expertise and various educational outreach activities , we aim to satisfy people's needs, enhance their lives, and inspire participation in synthetic biology innovation for a brighter future.