In the first protein-folding activity, your students will use the Amino Acid Starter Kit© to construct a generic 15-amino acid protein, as they explore the chemical interactions that drive each protein to fold into its specific 3-D shape (primary and tertiary structure). In the second activity, students will learn about the secondary structure of proteins – which consists of alpha helices and/or beta sheets – by folding a mini toober model of the first of 3 zinc fingers of the Zif268 protein. The third activity will introduce students to protein enzymes as they model an active site – the region where chemical reaction takes place. Finally, numerous variations on the initial mini toober-folding exercise will help you demonstrate reversible denaturation, reverse engineering, and the effects of mutation.