FREEPORT — For 12-year-old Ryann Moore, trading time inside
an air-conditioned classroom in exchange for a hands-on science experience
inside a humid trailer was just the break she needed.
As she boarded the trailer, turned traveling classroom on wheels, words such
as “cool” and “wow” dominated the sixth-grader’s vocabulary. The
Lanier Middle School student simply couldn’t contain her excitement as she
discovered how black lights function and how to work Wild Planet’s Super
Sonic Ear, which allows individuals to eavesdrop on other conversations.
By the time she departed the 40-foot exhibit trailer called the Trailblazer,
Moore’s face was marked with glow in the dark chalk and she couldn’t stop
talking about her short journey. Thanks to the Texas Alliance for Minorities
in Engineering and Dow Promise, Moore can add science and technology to her
list of possible career choices. But it’s still too early to tell if it will
reign over her dreams of becoming a firefighter.
“I really enjoyed all of it,” Moore said after checking out dead bugs
through lenses. Moore recalled learning about Newton’s third law concerning
motion, and how magnets work. Friday’s trip through the Trailblazer was
cooler than class, despite the warm temperature, she said.
Throughout the week, sixth-graders at some Brazosport ISD schools got a chance
to walk through the traveling exhibit, which featured stations on everything
from magnets and the solar system to black lights, weather stations and
aerodynamic displays.
It was an effort to encourage them to pursue careers in science and
technology. Pam Cook, executive director of the Texas Alliance for Minorities
in Engineering, said a lot of kids don’t have access to science equipment
and the ones that do have access don’t have access on a regular basis.
“But once they are exposed to it, they find it very engaging,” Cook said.
One of the organization’s goals is to help increase the future work pool by
getting to students before they have a chance to lock themselves into the
courses set on a career path.
“We don’t want kids to shut themselves out of future careers,” Cook
said. The exhibit featured seven stations, including a globe where students
could learn facts about social studies and science at the same time.
Students learned how gyroscopes work, how tornadoes form and how turbulence is
affected by wind and the angle of a plane’s wings. How aerodynamics explain
how planes fly and how different eyeglass prescriptions have varying effects
on the same-size typeface were also among the day’s lessons.
“The response has been very good,” Cook said. Students walked away with
newfound knowledge, but they didn’t come on empty. Cook recalled how one
student began naming bones in the human body after stopping at the X-ray
display.
Josanna Lopez, 11, recalled a recent science experiment.
“We took 30 noodles and taped them together and made a pyramid to see
if it would hold a book,” Lopez said, noting the noodles could be cut. Some
noodles were able to hold the book, but others didn’t, she said. It depended
on how we applied our skills, she said.
Lopez, who wants to become a singer, said she has considered a career in
science or technology. Those are words that Isha Cogburn, a Dow Chemical Co.
spokeswoman, wants to hear.
Cogburn and other volunteers from Dow Promise put in nearly 120 volunteer
hours helping and answering students’ questions. The purpose of Dow Promise
is to positively impact economically and educationally challenged communities
near Dow sites, she said.
When there is talk about mobilizing Dow’s resources one usually thinks about
money, Cogburn said, but it includes establishing partnerships to benefit the
community. As students made their way to the end of the exhibit, Cogburn’s
thoughts flashed to the future.
“Imagine if all of these kids decided to pursue a career in science,”
Cogburn said. “That’ll be great.” But even if they didn’t sway
students to a career in science or technology, Cogburn said “At least
we’re planting a seed.”
Don Harrington Discover Center visit, September, 2003
The
following is the article that appeared in the
Amarillo Globe-News online edition posted on Sept, 17th, 2003.
|
|
|
Web posted
Wednesday,
September 17, 2003
5:01 a.m. CT |
Traveling trailer ignites kids' interest in science
By Sara Sepulveda
ssepulveda@amarillonet.com
|
Look At That: Fifth-grader Brenda
Carreon uses some of the materials in the Texas Alliance for Minorities in
Engineering's Trailblazer at Robert E. Lee Elementary School.
Michael Lemmons /
mlemmons@amarillonet.com
|
The pop and crackle of electricity filled the air inside the Texas Alliance
for Minorities in Engineering's Trailblazer - a traveling science exhibit - on
Sept. 4.
Fifth-grade students at Robert E. Lee Elementary School seemed to like the
Van de Graff generator: Jasmine Tinner picked up a short rod connected to a
small metal sphere. As she held the ball closer to a larger one, a thin, light
blue line flickered between the two objects.
"You're creating static electricity, like when you touch the doorknob in
your house," explained David Salas, a mechanical engineer who works at
ConocoPhillips' Borger refinery.
Tinner said she could feel a funny stinging sensation while she held the
rod. As the students played with the generator, a few strands of hair rose
from their heads.
"You should go do that," said classmate Viviana Herrera.
Melissa Thompson liked the Super Sonic Ear, a handy device for nosy people.
"We had on (headphones) and when you press the button, you can hear people
talking louder," she said.
Salas painted Veronica De Los Santos' fingernails with a special polish.
"When you put it under the (black) light, it glows," she said, playing with
some glowing models of the planets.
Angel Anguiano saw "gooshy, squishy blood" through a microscope. Shandra
Telford put a piece of gauze on the scope and looked at the material's tiny
holes.
Next to them, Darryl Anthony instructed a classmate to breathe deeply while
he listened to his heart with a stethoscope.
Debbie Carr, a fifth-grade teacher at Lee, said the children were excited
to visit the trailer.
"They like to touch everything," she said. "The whole experience is
supposed to show the students the fun engineering can bring. There are
(stations) on magnets, electricity, wind. They listened to my heart - they
found out I had one," she said, laughing.
It's fun to watch, Carr said, because the children are learning about
science and don't realize they are.
The Don Harrington Discovery Center brought the traveling science exhibit
trailer from Austin for its Discover! 2003 fund-raiser. JoDee Cazarez,
education coordinator for the science museum, said they got it for the whole
week, but decided to send it around to Amarillo-area schools instead of
letting it sit in the parking lot.
"It's a great resource, so why not utilize it?" she said.
Salas, who graduated from Palo Duro High School and the University of Texas
at Austin, volunteered to help with the TAME trailer. He said the TAME
programs he participated in while he attended Palo Duro sparked his interest.
"The purpose of TAME is to get more minorities and women interested in
engineering," Salas said. "Engineers aren't visible in the community, and it's
important - especially for young kids - to meet them and get an idea what they
do."
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