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On Monday, February 19th, AGSS hosted a workshop about Atoms and Elements at the Boys’ and Girls’ club at Southwood! At this workshop, which was designed by our Science Curriculum Head Cynthia Jia and hosted by our president Selena Akay, we went over the parts of an atom. Students were also introduced to the periodic table, its significance, and how to navigate it. To practice, we did a quick activity on how to extract information about the elements using the periodic table terminology!
We built upon the knowledge of atoms that they gained earlier by introducing the concept of molecules. Our activity for the day was creating atoms! First, they drew the atomic structure of the element of their choosing on a piece of paper, and then they modeled their drawing using pipe cleaners for electron shells, gummy bears for protons and neutrons, and marshmallows for the electrons. I’m positive that we’ll be keeping an ion these future scientists’ accomplishments!
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 On February 12th, UVA AGSS hosted a workshop on Non-Newtonian Fluids at the Boys and Girls Club of Southwood! Students learned about the different states and properties of matter. We then delved deep into the idea of a substance that could belong to more than one category of matter at the same time - non-newtonian fluids! We discussed real-world examples of this unique substance before moving onto our activity for the day.
The students were given supplies to make their very own non-newtonian fluid, oobleck. This fascinating substance is solid when compressed, but liquid when left alone. It’s totally unlike most materials seen in the world around us! Like real scientists, students made observations on what happened to the fluid as it was stirred or squished, and shared with the class.
On Saturday, January 20th, we hosted our geometry workshop at Logan Heights Library, where 35 girls learned all about two and three-dimensional shapes. After discussing our example woman in STEM, Emmy Noether, and her accomplishments in abstract algebra, the participants learned about various properties of triangles and quadrilaterals. They also earned prizes for answering questions such as naming types of triangles. Then, the girls proved that the angles of triangles add up to 180 degrees by folding the corners of paper triangles into a straight line. Before moving on to three-dimensional shapes, the girls learned about how proofs work and how mathematicians discover them.
To begin our section on three-dimensional shapes, participants learned about types of prisms, pyramids, polyhedrons, and more! They then put this into action with paper nets, which showed how 3D shapes are made out of 2D shapes. After taking a quick break for snacks, we then moved on to examples of the math that the girls learned about in nature. Finally, the girls created modular origami and put 2D origami shapes together to make a variety of shapes including cubes and polyhedrons. One participant commented that “my favorite part was the origami because I liked making all the different shapes with paper.” Be sure to look out for our ecology workshop on February 17th! On December 16th, we hosted our annual Holiday STEM Party at the Logan Heights Library. At various holiday-themed stations, our participants tested their engineering, logic, and craft abilities in various STEM activities.
First up, participants created Elf Potions. Using red cabbage juice, we learned about chemistry and tested the pH of vinegar, milk, water, baking soda, and dish soap. One participant “I liked seeing the different colors of the mixture when we added cabbage juice.” At our next festive station, the girls competed to engineer the tallest or sturdiest gingerbread houses, using knowledge of geometry and structural design. Each team chose to focus on stacking the highest tower of graham crackers and candy, or to use frosting to make their house last the longest in an earthquake test. One participant exclaimed: “I just love making gingerbread houses,” and her teammate added: “Or in this case, graham-cracker houses!” After the break, to learn about geometry and angles, participants folded and cut their own fractal snowflakes! Some folds made right angles, while others made acute angles. By cutting out different shapes, the girls could open up the papers and see a beautiful, geometric snowflakes! In another thrilling competition, participants constructed their own Candy Catapults to try and launch peppermints into a cup. They incorporated knowledge of simple machines and physics to engineer their catapult. One participant “liked that it was challenging.” Lastly, the girls solved some holiday mystery puzzles! From sudoku with holiday images to solving a Gift Mix-Up problem, we challenged our minds to spread some fun holiday cheer. We hope you can join us for our next workshop about Geometry on January 20th, which will take place at Logan Heights Library. Happy Holidays!!
On Saturday, November 18th, we hosted our Engineering Design Workshop at the Allied Gardens/Benjamin Library, where 35 kids worked together in groups to build cars. We began by listening to a short lecture on the basics of engineering design, including what it is and what steps it requires. Then, we started our main activity, which was building cars. The first step was identifying the problem: how to go from point A to point B in the fastest and most efficient way possible. Then, we reviewed knowledge on friction, air resistance, mass, weight distribution, and potential and kinetic energy that would be helpful to keep in mind when building the cars. After that, we went to the second step, which was sketching the car designs. The kids used the material list to plan their designs for ten minutes, and then they moved on to prototyping. They made a first version of their car using cardboard, tape, hot glue, straws, and many other materials, keeping in mind that they had the opportunity to improve upon it later. After a quick snack break, the kids tested their cars on ramps around the room, and used their experiences to try and improve their cars. One girl commented that “this is my favorite part because it’s super fun!” Finally, after the redesigning, all the groups competed against each other. Their cars were evaluated on three criteria — fastest, most materially efficient, and best-looking. Overall, the girls had lots of fun, with one of them saying that “I really want to come back.”
 On November 13th, UVA AGSS hosted a workshop on Sound Waves! Students were first given an overview of the physics behind sound waves. They learned that all sound is actually just energy created by a chain reaction of vibrating particles. They then were taught how to identify the parts of a sound wave, such as compression and rarefaction, and how animals use sound waves in the form of echolocation to find objects.
After learning about the science behind how guitars amplify sound, we then guided them through our activity for the day: rubber band banjos! Students created their own instruments with paper plates, rubber bands, and a wooden stick, and let their imagination run wild with the decorations. We loved hearing everyone’s banjo songs and seeing their creative designs!
On October 14th, AGSS hosted our Power and Electricity Workshop at Mission Hills Library, led by La Jolla High sophomores Anabel Weinstein and Siena Lin. We started off by exploring batteries, which the girls connected to the batteries inside of phones and TV remotes. What are some examples of electricity in our lives? Participants answered: “video games, lights in our house, and microwaves!” We witnessed real-life examples of electricity, such as the static electricity from rubbing a balloon on our hair, or creating a human circuit with ALL the participants and volunteers! Diving into our first activity, we explored whether certain materials were conductors of insulators — whether they allowed electricity to pass through it or not. We created our own circuits using different halloween-y materials (i.e. paper ghosts, leprechaun coins, gummy worms, witchy erasers), and we discovered that some were conductors and allowed the LED light to turn on, and others were insulators, and the LED light stayed off. We then explored different forms of renewable power, such as solar power, hydro power, and wind power. The average human, as it turns out, uses over 29,000 Watts of power a day! This is all the more reason for us to work towards conserving energy or finding more environmentally-friendly/sustainable forms of power. Our final activity was creating our own electrical circuit critters!! Using pipe cleaners, batteries, and LED lights, participants One student exclaimed: “The light is my favorite color, and I’m so glad I can make it light up!” We had many creative animals made, such as bats, butterflies, and bugs! We hope to see you at our next workshop, the Engineering Design Workshop, on November 21! On September 27, UVA AGSS hosted a workshop on Tessellations! These fascinating patterns are made of shapes that tile together perfectly without any gaps or overlap. Students saw examples of tessellations, from famous mosaics to everyday examples like puzzles and honeycombs in nature. They learned to sort these patterns into two categories: regular and non-regular tessellations, and tied these concepts to geometry and polygons.
They then learned how to use math transformations such as rotation, translation, and reflection to create their very own tessellations! With some guidance, students were given time to plan their designs and ensure they would fit together. Then they finally constructed their tessellations by cutting out the tiles from pieces of paper. We loved seeing each student’s creativity as they combined their artistry and STEM knowledge to design something truly unique!
On September 2nd, AGSS hosted our first workshop of the 2023-24 year! Over 40 girls attended our DNA and Biophysics workshop led by junior Emmie Kao. We first discussed how Biophysics — a lesser known discipline in science — is the intersection of Biology and Physics. Starting with Biology, we looked at cells, the building blocks of the universe, and their components, called organelles, and the differences between animal and plant cells. We then zoomed in on the nucleus, which houses DNA. We learned about the structure of a DNA molecule and how it determines the traits in living organisms. Our first hands-on activity was constructing candy DNA, where participants created double helices with licorice and lifesavers. Of course, we happily ate our DNA creations afterwards. We also took the chance to discuss Rosalind Franklin’s contributions to the discovery of the structure of DNA, featuring her as our Woman in STEM. Next up: Physics! What is a force? It can be a push or a pull, such as gravity. Forces cause motion, but what does motion look like in a fluid? Some fluids, like water, are easier to move through than more viscous fluids, such as honey. Our bodies are made up of many fluids, and we can apply these concepts of physics to track movements in our bodies, like blood flow. This is an example of Biophysics. We can even track moving particles such as DNA! Our next activity was Strawberry DNA Extraction, during which we crushed strawberries, put them in an extraction solution, and watched the DNA bunch up and become visible to the human eye! We talked about the movement of DNA during the lab and shouted with glee when our DNA finally began to form. One participant exclaimed: “It was really cool to see the parts of a strawberry that you couldn’t see from the outside.” Another participant said: “It was cool that a couple liquids could make the DNA visible!” Lastly, we placed our clumps of strawberry DNA into different solutions to measure the velocity at which it moved through a certain liquid. A participant stated at the end of the workshop that her favorite activity was measuring the velocity of DNA because she “loves doing science experiments.” We hope to see you at our next workshop, the Electricity and Power Workshop, on October 14th at Mission Hills Library! On June 13th, AGSS hosted a workshop about Engineering and Rube Goldberg Machines! Hosted by our graduating president, Kasie Leung, we first started by learning about the basics of machines by covering some simple physics, including potential and kinetic energy, force, gravity, and more. Kids answered questions such as “What is force?”, talking about it in both the context of Newton’s Second Law and examples of force in their everyday lives. Afterwards, the kids then did an awesome mini lab to get them thinking about machines. Using pool noodles, they built their own roller coasters on their tables, incorporating different materials, slopes, and more. Using this mini lab and various physics formulas, the kids got to see the Conservation of Energy in action.
We then moved on to learn about some “Simple Machines” such as levers, pulleys, and more, and how we see these simple machines are incorporated into more complex ones. The kids looked at various examples, including cars, slides, and seesaws. Finally, today’s workshop culminated with the kids building a Rube Goldberg machine that spanned across the whole library room. A.k.a, a super complex machine to do a very simple task, that being popping a balloon today. Using what they learned in the past two hours, their task was to incorporate at least two simple machines into their design. Another challenge was that they also needed to communicate with their adjacent teams to make sure their machines could all be connected together. The kids all had so much fun, and the final product included a mixture of pulleys, ramps, and more. Barring some technical difficulties, the machine was, at the end, able to pop the balloon as intended! Thanks to everyone who came, and we hope to see you at the NASA Astrocamp on either June 30th or July 1st! <33 |
All Girls STEM Society is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization.