As the 5th grade science teacher at the Northeast Campus, I had the privilege of selecting from among many eager students vying for the opportunity to attend The EXPO Inspire! 2014 Public Symposium at the George R. Brown Convention Center on September 20, 2014. Madison Barnett was chosen to attend and below is an account of her experience:
(Ms. Rhonda Brown, 5th grade teacher, Northeast Campus)
“When I first walked in the door of the GRB I was amazed at all the wonderful things. There must have been about 500 people there and students from all over Houston. The people were happy and friendly. My mom, my brother, and I stayed there about 4 ½ hours.
“There were trees lighting up, there was a book fair going on and there was an igloo that played a space movie inside of it.
“Then I went to the arts and craft area and made a butterfly. I used a folded coffee filter, colors, washable markers and water spray to design the butterfly. The first step to making the butterfly was to color the coffee filter. Next you spray the coffee filter with water and this caused the colors to mix. Then you shape it and tie it with a string.
“I made a bottle rocket using Alka-Seltzer, water and a plastic bottle. First, you fill the bottle with water. Then you place one half of the Alka-Seltzer into the bottle, top it and shake it up 3 times. I placed the bottle on the floor and in 4 seconds the cap and water shot out of the bottle like a rocket blasting off. Super cool!
“I had a chance to create a “community” on Mars. A community is a place people visit to work. Things I needed to start my community were a hospital, fire station, and a laboratory for research. I used a foam board, plastic cups, toothpicks, tape, cardboard and markers. The project took about 20 minutes to complete.
“My brother and I went to the face-painting area where I got a butterfly and my brother got a Spider Man painted on our faces. After that, we had lunch. Then we headed home. It was a fun-filled day!
“I learned a lot during the trip to Expo, mainly that science is fun and interesting. The entire Expo had hands-on stimulating exercises that encompasses several science objectives."
--Madison Barnett
Ms. Brown added:
“As we delve into our rigorous curriculum, we will cover matter, rocks and minerals, force and energy, and the nature of science which covers science safety and how scientists investigate. These are some of the objectives that were displayed at the Expo Symposium.”
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