Science night at Colt Andrews School is a hit

Students conduct experiments, learn from experts, and have a good time

By Kristen Ray
Posted 12/6/18

Third-grader Olivia Taylor was standing by, waiting. The film cannister she’d just given a good shake to was filled with water and Alka-Seltzer, simply resting on the table before her like a …

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Science night at Colt Andrews School is a hit

Students conduct experiments, learn from experts, and have a good time

Posted

Third-grader Olivia Taylor was standing by, waiting. The film cannister she’d just given a good shake to was filled with water and Alka-Seltzer, simply resting on the table before her like a ticking time bomb.

Sure enough, just seconds later, pressure from the carbon dioxide gas that had been building up, exploded the cannister high into the air, like a rocket on its way to the moon.

It was worth the wait.

“That was awesome!” Miss Taylor exclaimed, just before racing off to participate in another favorite activity of the night — the slime station.

Moments such as those filled the Colt Andrews Elementary School gym on Thursday, Nov. 29, as families from each of the school’s grade levels were invited to participate in the annual Science Night affair.

Beginning at 6 p.m., students and their parents were able to run from station-to-station, each one featuring a fun, different science experiment for them to engage in. On behalf of Save Bristol Harbor, Rep. Susan Donovan used sprinkles and a watershed model to illustrate the impacts of pollution on the Narragansett Bay, while Assistant Superintendent Diane Sanna displayed a video showcasing the district-wide fourth-grade sailing program.

Mt. Hope High School Robotics Club members Alexander Enes and Katrina Loueiro unleashed the Lego Robotics, while in addition to their demonstrations, Roger Williams University professors Stephen O’Shea and Adria Updike brought more than a dozen students from collegiate clubs Science Alliance, Engineers Without Borders, Society of Women Engineers and Future Teachers of America to feature a variety of scientific topics, ranging from chromatography to electricity and magnetic fields.

As an alumnus from Rockwell Elementary School, RWU civil engineering student Annelise Boylan is happy for the opportunity to serve as a leader in an event similar to ones she enjoyed attending as a kid.

“I always loved events like this,” Miss Boylan said. “It’s nice to promote events like this.”

At Colt Andrews, Science Night was made possible through funding provided by the Bristol Warren Education Foundation several years ago. Initially intended to peak student interest in the Science Fair, the event has since become a regular staple in the lineup of monthly Family Fun Nights the Colt Andrews Parent Group hosts. In her third year co-chairing the event alongside Cady Harrington, former high school chemistry teacher Elizabeth O’Shea has loved introducing the real-world opportunities science can bring at a critical developmental stage.

“To get that spark of curiosity at a younger age is so important,” she said.

While Mrs. O’Shea is working alongside the rest of the Parent Group and school district to build upon the opportunities currently available to students at Colt Andrews, any additional help from the already supportive community would be welcomed; in order to keep popular programs like the new fourth-grade sailing program alive, more funding is needed, and the opportunity to establish partnerships is available. For Mrs. O’Shea, these programs not only help students academically, but are vital for students' social and emotional health as well.

“Anything to help kids feel like they belong, we should be doing,” Mrs. O’Shea said.

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