November 2013 - three classes: 'I'm a scientist'

'I'm a scientist'

I start another bout of evening classes for parents and children this coming Monday. As always, I'm looking forward to working with those young minds, full of curiosity about the world around them

21 parents and their kids (grand total about 60, I think) are coming to have some fun interacting with science challenges.

I'll keep you posted as to how it goes!!

Oh, if anyone would like the handbook (I'm a scientist booklet) I've written to go with the classes, just let me know and I'll put one in the post.

So, Class One.

Monday, November 11th.........Mid afternoon, I packed the back of my car with oodles of resources (junk stuff, like newspaper, used typing paper, recycled paper clips) for this first workshop, and then spent over an hour setting up the room at the nearby Fire Department/HOA HQ. Paul Kennedy, a friend and the sharpest guy on the block, and Laurie Rondou, the super teacher second grade from Mountain View, came and helped me set up the tables and chairs. It's a small room, and I wasn't too sure how the seating would work out. So, I crossed my fingers and squeezed my wishing rock, hoping for the best.

Setting up my workshop

Lots of tables crammed into a small space.....

On each table, we put out copies of the booklet, I'm a scientist, and the separate sheets with all
of the evening's activities

and I displayed examples of my tins and towers and balancing figures and.............

Some of my bits and bobs that I put on the big table at the end of the room.

And in came the 53 young and parent scientists!

I spent a few minutes showing them my wishing rock and described how and when I became a scientist..........then I set them their first challenge: draw a Picassoesque image of each young scientist, the, when the laughter ceased, make a newspaper bridge that links two tables. The bridge has to be strong enough to hold a brick!!

And we started....................with  Laurie and Paul at hand, the room soon buzzed with excited young scientists....

Then, make a tower......that holds an orange!

Maggie didn't take long!

Once the bridges and towers were in place, the next challenge was to make a variety of paper figures that could balance on the towers...........

Elias did a great job! What a young scientist!

Brodie took a break to nibble at the goldfish.......and shared some with me!

And the senior scientists admired the inventiveness and ingenuity of their young scientists......

The session went really well. Near the end, I gave every young scientist a cottonwood twig to break.....and they all found a beautiful star. Then I handed out a scavenger hunt sheet.............something that would encourage the young scientists to search the 'wild' areas around their homes.

CLASS TWO - investigating FLIGHT

Again, up at the workroom really early, setting up for the flight activities.

First, though, I gathered the children around me and we shared our collections.........and then I showed them how to make a pocket museum.

I showed them what I had found the day before the class.......an arrow head and an owl pellet!

Then I showed them how to find meteor dust............

and went into the making and flying of different paper shapes

even standing on a chair, holding up my arms, and releasing the flying objects......

The young scientists soon got to work!

First, though, they had chance to search for meteorite crystals, digging in sand from the nearby creek, using a magnet to attract anything that was magnetic

and there were plenty of magnetic crystals..........GREAT!

papercopters

and we finished with launching our air propelled rockets.......

whose flew the furthest?

Thanksgiving activity - find and clean the wishbone, the link between modern and ancient birds.

Add caption

Oh, tip for the day: use your egg boxes as display boxes for your rocks and fossils.....



Class Three

Again, set up very early for the evening ahead.................

Making flip flops, marble runs and a variety of dragsters

First, flip flops, and then straight into the marble runs.....

The class went well........and ended with the presentation of certificates to all the young scientists!
PHEW!!


So, when and where do I do the next lot of classes? Think I'll concentrate on Chemistry next time..........

Hey, that was fun...exhausting, but fun!

Thank you, Young Scientists.
You were ALL great!