Round Table Science

An Easy Way to Reach Science (Walk-Up Activities)

We want to present an easy way to reach science. For this purpose, participants will join three different walk-up activities: making a connection, properties of water and 3D geometric shapes with toothpicks.

Making a connection:
Participants will try to make an electric circuit with two small balls of dough, a battery with leads and a LED. Moderator follows these steps: ask the participants if they can make the LED light up. Explain how electricity is moving through each component. Have them push their balls together. Ask what happens to the LED. Explain that electricity always takes the shortest route home. Through completion of an electric circuit, each participant will learn a new way to teach series and parallel circuits.

Properties of water:
In this program, participants explore properties of water such as adhesion, cohesion and refraction by performing simple experiments with everyday objects. Firstly, participants predict how many drops of water will fit on the coin before the water spills of. They drop the water onto coin and count the drops. Secondly, they try the same experiment with salty and soapy water. They predict how many drops of water will fit on the coin, test and compare results to their prediction. They discuss about why the water doesn’t spill over immediately.
Participants quickly drop a paper clip into water to see that normally it does sink. They discuss why the paper clip floats.
Throughout all activities, participants share their observations and ideas.

3D geometric shapes with toothpicks:
Firstly, participants try to make a 2D shape with 4 toothpicks and 4 small ball of play dough. They poke the toothpicks into the play dough balls to make a square with a small ball at each corner. Then they poke another toothpick into the top of each small ball and put a ball on the top of each toothpick. Participants connect the balls with toothpicks to make a cube.
They can make a very big structure out of squares and cubes, but it’ll be wiggly and probably fall down.
If participants try to make a structure out of only triangles and pyramids, it will not be wiggly. When they make a structure that uses both triangles and squares, they can make big structures that are less wiggly.
For the workshop we need three tables (they can be round table format); on each table, we will be featuring a different activity. Participants will rotate between tables and learn more about the different subjects (physics, biology and mathematics) and methodologies by direct interaction with the moderator at each table.
Participants will acquire numerous informal teaching strategies throughout the workshop that will enhance their questioning techniques. Participants will also learn strategies for managing hands-on activities in the science center/museum.

Encouraging scientific methodology as a life skill
The session aims to provide techniques and approaches to encourage students in the classroom towards science. The session will highlight the following dimensions:
­ Why do we learn science at school? Answering this question and challenging students to find the answer will encourage the students towards science and will raise their curiosity.
The workshop, through exercises and activities, will challenge the educators to find their way through this question and will help them better design their lesson plans and focus on the most important learning outcomes.
­ Connecting science to real life experience.
This is one of the very important requirements for successful interactive science activities/classrooms. Through the workshop the teachers will be challenged to work on hands on projects with highlight on different science concepts to introduce to. The focus will be on using minimum materials as this is a challenge for most of the schools in our areas.
Apart of the hands-on-projects, educators will be challenged to design educational expeditions that connect science to the life around us.
­ Our role as science educators is to encourage a way of thinking that will motivate students to become more innovative in solving life challenges and problems. We look at scientific methodology as a life skill, not only needed for introducing new innovations, but also to become active citizens in the community.
Science classrooms should encourage problem solving, questioning, research, experimenting and communicating results.
The session will challenge educators to look at science classrooms and scientific methodology as a life skill training sessions for students.
This will be done through worksheets and challenging activities.
We believe that every citizen uses this methodology daily in his life. This will help encourage all students to get engaged in the classroom even if they don’t plan to become scientists or engineers.