8/24/01
AU OFFERS FREE SATURDAY SCIENCE SESSIONS TO JUNIOR HIGH SCHOLARS
AUBURN -- Auburn University's College of Sciences and Mathematics is looking for junior high school students interested in exploring science with the help of exceptional teachers to participate in its Fall Youth Experiences in Science program.
At no cost, seventh, eighth and ninth grade students can choose from a variety of two-session, six-hour courses, each taught from 9 a.m. until noon on Sept. 8 and Sept. 22, both Saturdays. Courses include:
** Polymer Chemistry: Students will learn about chemistry and its applications in the real world through work with slimy concoctions, ghost crystals, shrinky dinks, grow creatures and creepy wigglers and the exploration of chemical reactions. Taught by Gina Watkiss of The Heritage School;
** Biological Science: Students will build a microscope, deconstruct a camera, dissect a four-valve heart and a sheep's eye, and graph the activity of their own hearts with special calculators. Course will be taught by Robert Lishak of the AU Department of Biological Sciences;
** Blood, Diseases and Forensics: Students learn to count red and white blood cells, recognize diseased blood, learn to distinguish between abnormal and normal red blood cells and "solve a crime" from clues on a stained piece of cloth. Taught by Kat Milly West of the AU Department of Chemistry;
** Global Positioning System Mapping: Students will learn how to use GPS to find specific locations, map GPS points on an aerial photograph of the AU campus and locate on the Internet an aerial photo of their own house. The course will be taught by Phil Chaney of AU's Department of Geology and Geography;
** LEGOs with Computers: Students will learn and work with levers, gears and robotics and learn how to measure light and temperature. Taught by Frank Ware of Samford Middle School; and
** Codes and Cryptography: Students will learn how math is used in compact disc technology as well as about satellite imaging, Internet security and more. Course will be taught by Chris Rodger of AU's Department of Discrete and Statistical Sciences.
"The purpose of the YES program is really two-fold," said Mary Lou Ewald Howard, outreach director for COSAM. "It will allow students to familiarize themselves with a university setting and, more importantly, allow them to explore and study with exceptional teachers."
Howard said that, whenever possible, hands-on activities will be used instead of lectures and campers will all be given materials to take home and use to continue their learning process. Participants will also receive certificates of completion at a ceremony set for noon on Sept. 22.
COSAM hopes to enroll more than 200 young scholars in the program, which will continue later in the fall with a second session, set for Oct. 20 and Nov. 3. Some of the course topics expected for the second session include epidemiology, environmental science, geometry, web page design, electronics, genetics, Alabama dinosaurs and electronic kit building.
Interested students may download a YES application (Click on enter, then click on Outreach) and mail the completed form by the Aug. 31 deadline for the first session to YES, COSAM Outreach, 108 Tichenor Hall, Auburn University, AL 36849 or fax the application to 334/844-3409. Those without Internet access may request forms from Howard by calling 334/844-5745 or by email to ewaldml@auburn.edu.
Students interested in obtaining more information on the Oct. 20-Nov. 3 YES session may do so via the web link or by contacting Howard. The application deadline for the second session has not been decided.
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CONTACT: Howard at 334/844-3409.