Kids have a blast at Science Blast
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EmailDozens of children descended on the 4-H Children's Garden as part of Michigan State University Extension's 4-H Science Blast on May 20.
EAST LANSING, Mich. -- Dozens of children descended on the 4-H Children’s Garden as part of Michigan State University Extension’s 4-H Science Blast on May 20. Whether it was learning about biology by building a custom fish, understanding physics with the help of a catapult or using the basics of genetics with the help of pipe cleaners, it was a fun, hands-on look at science in action.
The goal, said event organizers, was to take science out of the textbook and bring it to life.
“Hands-on knowledge is what gets kids excited,” said Jenny O’Neal, who helped organize the 4-H event on the campus of Michigan State University. “They can go out and practice what they learned in their (science) book and take that to the next level.”
O’Neal, an MSU Extension educator based in Eaton County, said making science education accessible to children is vital. “The catapult teaches kids physics, but it’s also exciting. It’s what they’ve seen in their video games, but it brings it into the real world.”
Helping students understand the real-world applications of science is a great challenge for educators, but it is a challenge Extension educators embrace.
“If you can take what’s on the page and turn it into something real, that makes a difference,” said Jake DeDecker, MSUExtension children and youth program leader. “We need to change the image that science is someone in a white coat with glasses. We need to build interest; get (kids’) hands’ dirty.”
For their part, it seems the children at Science Blast had, well, a blast.
“It’s very fun,” said Bradley Seyffert, a first-grader enjoying his very first Science Blast. “I really like science. It’s about my favorite thing to do,” he said.
Robert Andretz, who brought his two young children to the Science Blast, said he appreciates programs that encourage science education for young kids.
“It’s important to get kids interested in science when they’re young,” said Andretz, who credits his fifth-grade science teacher for instilling a lifelong love of science in him. Andretz, a lawyer who studied biology as an undergraduate, said to be competitive, students must embrace science.
“I think so many jobs require science, and it is also just a wonderful thing to enjoy. It’s nice to know how the world works.”
MSU Extension offices throughout Michigan are conducting Science Blast events this summer as part of Extension’s “I Know MI Numbers” initiative to promote science literacy. To learn more about upcoming Science Blast events, become a fan of the official 4-H Science Blast Facebook page, or visit the MSU Extension website.
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