CASSOPOLIS — The Michigan State University Extension is asking Cass County residents to put on their lab coats and join them to study the life using the scientific method for an upcoming program.

MSU Extension will be hosting a program titled “Let’s Get Egg-cited About Embryology” starting next month. Any youth ages 9-19 will be welcome to join the free, five-week program designed to allow them to create an experiment, collect data and report their findings with their very own scientific poster, said organizers.

The program will show youth the embryonic development of the chicken, the hatching process and the importance of each development phase with a time commitment of 1.5 hours a week. 

“The opportunity to follow this life cycle in such detail is one that most people never experience, and it’s being offered right here,” said Hailey Harman, Cass County 4-H program coordinator.

The main goal of the hands-on program will be to allow youth to formulate questions regarding the process, investigate scientifically the facts that will be uncovered and communicate the findings through creating an end-result poster, organizers said. Students will learn what embryology is and see some chicks actually hatch. Youth will also have the ability to enter their completed poster as a project in the 2019 Cass County Fair.

No experience is necessary. Classes will be hosted in the MSU Extension Conference Room, 120 North Broadway, Cassopolis. Registration is required to make sure enough supplies are on hand for all participants.  The class will be limited to the first 20 youth that register, though there will be a waiting list for interested youth. For more information and registration visit: events.anr.msu.edu/CCEmbryology19 or email Hailey Harman at harmanha@msu.edu.