These are the same protocols that ship with our kits — free to read, yours to keep, and mapped one-to-one to the biotech skill tree. Read before you buy, and follow along at the bench.
Each protocol maps to a node in the interactive biotech skill tree. Open the full skill tree ↗
Work with living cells and stay contamination-free.
1 Sterile techniqueBeginner · 20 min read → 2 Pour & streak agar platesBeginner · 30 min →Move DNA into cells and make them do new things.
1 Bacterial transformationBeginner · 25 min read →Edit genomes and read your results like a pro.
1 CRISPR a bacterial geneIntermediate · 30 min read →A plain-language crash course. What a gene actually is, how cells read DNA, and what CRISPR does — no jargon, no prerequisites. The best 15 minutes before your first experiment.
The realistic starter list: what you truly need on day one, what can wait, and how to work safely on a kitchen table. Built around the skill tree so you never over-buy.
No lab of your own? Use the biotech skill tree's directory to locate a community biolab near you — real equipment, real mentors, and a bench you can book.
Budget your bench before you buy. The interactive calculator estimates what a beginner-to-advanced setup costs across the whole skill tree.
Discounted multi-student bundles, printable lab sheets, and lesson plans mapped to NGSS standards for grades 9 through university. Every protocol here is free to reproduce for teaching.
Stuck on a step? Cloudy plate? Colonies that won't grow? Thousands of curious builders share results and troubleshoot together. Bring your questions — and your wins.
Pick the kit that teaches your next skill, or start with our beginner Starter Bundle.
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