A hair-raising lesson in science

Lauren Vane

Students at Golden View School in Huntington Beach were treated to a

visual display of impressive scientific wonders during a school

assembly last week.

There were loud bangs that made the room full of students gasp and

scream, and there were displays of light that made them shriek with

delight.

“We like to get you guys excited about science,” said Edie White,

a presenter with Science Adventures, an enrichment program that

offers an after-school club at Golden View.

Nothing gets students excited about science better than a burst of

fire exploding out of a tube. And that’s exactly what students saw

when White demonstrated to them the power of energy. White added peat

moss powder to a giant test tube and it resulted in a spectacular

explosion of stored energy.

“Do you wanna do it again?” White asked.

The crowd of students responded with a resounding: “Yes!”

For 30 minutes, White gave the students a visual science lesson on

just about everything imaginable: the difference between energy and

matter and the nature of light properties. Using interactive

demonstrations that required student volunteers, White performed

several awesome experiments that caught the children by surprise.

To show students how humans can be electricity conductors, White

asked for volunteers to form a human chain, with a child at both ends

holding a light bulb.

“I want to see if people like you can be a human extension cord,”

White said.

The students held hands as White lighted one bulb, and jaws

dropped as the students saw the light bulb at the opposite end of the

chain light up. The students were witnessing the light energy

connecting through their classmates.

Everyday household items like light bulbs can be examples of

science, White said.

“You have something laying around and usually you can turn it into

some- thing science,” White said.

The Science Adventures after-school program is offered to Golden

View students at an additional fee. Science Adventures donated

several school assemblies to the Golden View because of the school’s

support of the program.

“It’s something that children can be actively involved in,” said

Golden View Principal Karen Spane. “It brings their learning to

life.”

The experiments performed for the Golden View students will no

doubt leave a lasting impression in their minds for a long time, and

that is the idea of Science Adventures.

“Please don’t stop thinking about science,” urged White.