Puzzles of Heredity: Educating Children in Genetic Literacy through Interactive Workshops.

Puzzles of Heredity is a project conducted since 2021 by the Centre for Genetic Education at the Faculty of Medicine in Rijeka and CroMSIC – Croatian Medical Students’ International Committee. The workshop is intended for children of preschool and early school age (grades 1–4), and the aims are to introduce children to the hierarchical structure of the human body, as well as the basic concepts of genetics and principles of inheritance, and raise awareness in children about the importance of respecting differences between humans and other living beings. The workshop is conducted by genetic educators from the Centre for Genetic Education, as well as specifically trained student genetic educators from CroMSIC. Genetic educators use different types of educational materials for the workshop, including a picture book and three didactic toys, which were designed by a preschool teacher, Montessori pedagogue.The Puzzles of Heredity workshop encourages the development of genetic literacy in children from an early age, enabling the acquisition of knowledge about basic genetic concepts, developing positive attitudes towards the appreciation of differences between living beings, as well as developing respect for life in general. Genetic diseases are not exclusively rare diseases and low levels of genetic literacy among healthcare professionals and the general population are the main cause of discrimination and mistreatment of people who are born “different”. Therefore, increasing genetic literacy in children is of the utmost importance because knowledge is the only way to release fear and development of negative attitudes. The aim of this lecture is to present the aims, concept, results and significance of conducting the Puzzles of Heredity workshop in children of preschool and early school age. In addition, the aim is to emphasize the important role medical educators and medical students have in the transfer of highly specific knowledge to the general public. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]