Engineering students share knowledge
Camp seeks to instil love of science and math in youngsters
Sarah Ladik
Northern News Services
Thursday, August 27, 2015
INUVIK
School is not yet back in session, but some kids are getting a head start on their peers this summer.
Last week, a science camp run by the University of Alberta touched down in Inuvik, one among a few stops in the Beaufort Delta for the engineering students turned camp counsellors.
Hosted at Ingamo Hall, the camp covered basic scientific principles in a hands-on method, making it fun for all the campers.
"It's targeted at Grades 1 through 6 to build on what they learned in school," said counsellor Max Wagg. "We do a bunch of really quick projects, basically with what you can find in your grocery store, to show them that science can be done with just about anything."
Wagg said they only had 10 campers on the Monday, but by the last few days of the four-day-long camp, the numbers were up closer to 15.
"I guess the kids went home and told their friends and word got out," he said.
Even for students who already enjoy science, the camp was a good experience.
Hayli Hoover said she likes science and math at school already, but had fun learning about things like static electricity and magnets.
"I like science a bit more now, and I wish school were a bit more like that," she said.
One of the experiments campers did was to design a better seat belt.
Wagg said they were each given a balloon full of water to mimic a human, and then had to build a structure around it in the hopes of helping it survive a simulated crash.
"We try to teach kids some basic scientific concepts, and we try to steer away from it being like school," he said.
The camp, called DiscoverE - the E being for Engineering - is run out of the University of Alberta in Edmonton. While on summer break, students head to communities that may not have regular access to specialty camps in an effort to get children interested in STEM (science, technology, engineering, and math) fields.
"The main point is to bring science to locations that don't have the resources normally," said Wagg.
