This past week marked the beginning of our Spring quarter launch. Students were tasked with building a tower out of only spaghetti, marshmallows, string, and a piece of tape. What at first proved to be a daunting task ended up as a huge success. Students collaborated to design a prototype, build, and test their tower-- all in 18 minutes! Whoever could build the tallest, free-standing tower won a bag of delicious (and highly coveted) Takis. We were so happy to see the students working so cooperatively and thoughtfully, just like any professional engineer would. If last week is any indicator, this quarter is sure to be filled with thinking, learning, and friendship.
Additionally, Curieus hosted our Future Chemists and Future Neuroscientists workshops at the Redwood City and East Palo Alto Public Libraries. In our Future Chemists workshop, students learned about the science behind slime, lava lamps, and chromatography.
The slime station was beloved by all-- students got to mix and stir an array of ingredients from Curieus' secret slime recipe. More importantly, they learned that their concoctions were polymers, or a substance that exhibits both properties of a liquid and a solid.
Next up was the lava lamp station. Students combined food coloring, oil, Alka-Seltzer, and water to make their very own lava lamps. Our volunteers explained how density and polarity of a liquid can determine the attraction (or lack of) between two liquids.
At the chromatography station, students were presented with a case of a stolen bike. Using chromatography, students had to decode the note and determine which pen was used to write it. Whoever owned the pen was deemed the thief! Students learned about similar methods that scientists use to test dirty water, study crime scenes, and check food for dangerous chemicals.
At our Future Neuroscientists workshop, our volunteer and budding neuroscientist, Maya, led a series of activities where students learned about the billions of tiny messengers in our brain, otherwise known as neurons. Maya explained the key roles our neurons play in our five senses and led a demonstration where students got to smell and taste an assortment of mystery scents and foods and guess what they were. The students' neurons did not fail them, and they were spot on for almost every one!
Students modeled a neuron out of pipe cleaners and connected them at the end to form a long chain, much like the neurons in our brains do.
After the students modeled their neurons, they moved on to the egg drop activity, where our volunteer, Rachel presented the students with an egg that represented the brain, and challenged them to build a helmet to protect it during the drop.
Although not all students' eggs made it, they showed excellent thinking and reasoning as they built a safe helmet for their eggs in true engineer fashion. After the drop, students were able to observe the region their egg cracked in and compare it to the regions of the brain. Based on the area, they could see how the fall would have affected the person, as well as make adjustments to their designs if they were to do the experiment again.
If you missed out on our workshop fun this time around, don't fret! We have lots of opportunities for you to come see what Curieus is all about and channel your inner scientist.
Visit us at the Redwood City STEAM Festival on Saturday, April 27. Click here to learn more.
Join us on Sunday, May 19 for our Future Engineers workshop at Redwood City Public Library.
Upcoming Workshops:
May 19, 1:30-4:00 pm: Future Engineers at the Redwood City Public Library
June 16, 1:30-4:00 pm: Future Astrophysicists at the Redwood City Public Library
July 21, 1:30-4:00 pm: Future Biologists at the Redwood City Public Library
August 4, 1:30-4:00 pm: Future Ecologists at the Redwood City Public Library
Keep your eyes out for future workshop dates coming your way. We are thrilled to have such wonderful students and supporters!
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