Science Night Success at James Dougherty Elementary School

Students and parents alike had great fun conducting experiments and exploring scientific concepts at the Science Night held at James Dougherty Elementary School.

The two-hour event was attended by almost 600 students and was a collaborative effort by Dougherty Elementary, Wells Middle, Fallon Middle and Dublin High schools. It was the first time such a collaboration had been arranged for the Science Night and proved to be a highly successful model.

Activities included the testing of Earthquake-proof buildings for their strength and design using an earthquake simulator. Third to fifth grade students had done a wonderful and creative job of constructing earthquake-proof buildings using recycled/reusable material.

Physics experiments demonstrated by students from Wells Middle School got attendees involved by making a catapult-like structure that they got to understand the mechanics of and take home. This table was highly engaging and a firm favorite of the Dougherty students.

Posters on display included ‘Children’s Health Awareness’ describing the consequences of poor health choices regarding nutrition and exercise.

Science Night chairs were Ms. Samriti Singh and Ms. Francis Anaya and they were supported by a host of volunteers. Vice Principal of Dougherty Elementary, Ms. Heather Schlotz-Ghereben was actively involved in driving the initiative.

Ms. Singh was very grateful to the volunteers for all their support. She also thanked all the families that took the time to attend the event and described it as one of their most successful events to date. “It was the first time the Dublin school community came together in this way - high school, middle school, teachers , elementary students, volunteers and outside vendors. All thanks to Ms. Schlotz-Ghereben” said Ms. Singh and encouraged everyone to keep up the Dolphin Spirit.

Students from Fallon Middle School were present to explain the Science Olympiad and played science-related games with the children. The staff from MAD science made slime and provided dry ice to enthrall the participants.

Teachers from Dougherty Elementary also contributed to the learning experience including Mr. Price, who did a booth on compost and Ms. Ting who educated the crowd about the responsible use of plastics.

Ms. Francis Anaya also expressed special thanks to the Dougherty PFC for sponsoring the event and the parents in the Dougherty community whose generous donations enable these types of events to be arranged.

Mr. Dean Barnes, a volunteer at Dougherty commented that the event was a lot of fun. “What was really appreciated too, was that even though the planned closing time had been reached, the astronomy volunteers didn't pack up and run - they stayed. Despite being so cold outside, they were very cheerful and seemed genuinely thrilled to be there and talk about the items we were viewing" he said.

In conclusion he remarked "I think if any kids had a passion for space starting to spark, these volunteers certainly fanned the flames for them to keep it going”.

Photos courtesy of Dougherty Elementary PFC and Community