If you give a kid an Alka-Seltzer and water, they will probably give you a bubbling mess. If you give a chemistry student the same equipment, they will give you a bottle rocket.
A group of U students have taken on the task of traveling to different elementary schools to show them the “magic” behind science and make things like simple bottle rockets. On Friday, their last trip of the semester, the group brought chemistry into the classrooms at H. Guy Child Elementary School in South Ogden.
The American Chemistry Society Chapter at the U, or ACSSC, has been around for several years but has only recently seen a real growth in numbers, said Holly Sebahar, associate professor of chemistry and adviser to the group. There are about 30 active members in the group and 60 who participate throughout the year. Every week or so, 10 of these students bring science equipment to schools and do hands-on activities and demonstrations.
McKenzie Haws, the third grade science teacher at H. Guy Child, enjoyed seeing the kids create and test science rather than just read about it.
“With the amount of time we have to fit in the entire curriculum, we don’t have time for experiments. Hands-on is the biggest part of science, but we don’t have resources like this,” she said.
While this was the first time the group has come to this school, Haws hoped to make it more of a tradition as it is with other schools in the Salt Lake Valley.
It was many of the ACSSC students’ first time, but some have had more experience shocking the kids with science.
Jordan Flocken, a junior in biology, has been participating for a year.
“I love to see it in their eyes, because it’s like magic. I see how it affects them,” he said. “It’s like when anyone sees something for the first time. Even as university students, when we come up with a new idea or a new way of doing something, we get excited.”
Flocken remembers when a similar group came to his elementary school while growing up. What he saw left an impression and it changed his views about science being cool and fun, something the group tries to help kids realize.
The children each had their favorite activity — holding carbon dioxide bubbles, making slim, or hearing U students alter their voices by sucking out different chemicals from balloons.
ACSSC students come purely out of a love for science and desire to spread that to kids, but they take something away too.
“They gain the confidence to stand in front of people and talk about what they’re doing. It’s not easy, but they realize they can do it. I’ve seen a real transformation of those who participate,” Sebahar said.
The ACSSC students are a mix of years in school and mostly science majors, though there are more biology than chemistry students. They visit schools and have a long-term partnership with Bryant Middle School where they tutor at-risk students and help with their science projects.
As the group continues to grow, Sebahar said they will join the week-long summer camp program ClubU and continue to reach out to local youth to raise the next generation of scientists.