St. Olaf students learn chemistry is fun

BOUNTIFUL — "Think safety. Playing with chemicals, especially mixing them, can be extremely dangerous," said John Johnson to the St. Olaf School student body in an assembly Sept. 28.

Johnson works for Mobile Education Productions. He lives in Illinois, but pulls a trailer, stays in recreational vehicle parks, and travels throughout the western states teaching students safety tips and how to have fun with chemistry.

Although Johnson earned Bachelor’s Degrees in economics, political science, and radio broadcasting from Blackburn College in Carlinville, Ill., he has always been interested in chemistry and magic. He has performed magic in circuses, on cruise ships, and in schools.

Johnson said science goes back to the medieval times when our ancestors used to practice alchemy. Two hundred years ago alchemy became chemistry.

"The alchemists discovered many different chemicals and safe ways to use them," said Johnson. "When you think safety, you are much less likely to hurt yourself or others. Follow the directions and safety rules because they will tell you what to do and what not to do. Students should have a parent or teacher present to offer advice.

"When you mix chemicals, make sure you know what they are and what the chemicals can do," said Johnson. "Above all, do not eat or drink your experiments no matter how good they look. Always wear safety glasses and a lab coat so you do not damage your eyes or your clothing."

Johnson said in chemistry there are liquids, gases, and solids. All liquids have their own size but not their own shape. They take on the shape of the container in which you put them. You can mix solids and liquids, for example, water and ice.

Johnson said we need oxygen to breathe, but oxygen used the wrong way can be dangerous. We must be careful around gasoline because even the vapors can ignite. Tell your parents not to smoke cigarettes or talk on a cell phone while filling their vehicles with gasoline because a spark can cause an explosion.

The safety tips St. Olaf students learned will help them when they perform experiments of their own in their newly renovated science lab. St. Olaf School was awarded a $95,000 grant last spring by the E. L. Wiegand Foundation of Reno, Nev. The foundation supports organizations and projects in the fields of education, health and medical research, civic and community affairs, arts and cultural affairs, and public affairs.

The grant helped create a state-of-the-art kindergarten through eighth grade science lab. The construction took place during the summer and was completed when school started in September. The new science lab is complete with infrastructure and supplies to provide hands-on, developmentally appropriate science education to all students. Younger students will benefit from geology kits, pulleys, rockets, and simple chemistry sets. The middle school students will work with more sophisticated technology and equipment including digital microscopes, telescopes, electric hot plates, balances, new Dell laptop computers, and a Smartboard, which is an interactive screen that replaces the overhead projector.

St. Olaf physical education and middle school science teacher Jim Haggart said they laid wire under the floor so there are electrical outlets under each new science table for the 20 laptop computers. They are expecting five more to arrive. The largest class has 21 students.

"We bought new textbooks for all three science classes," said Haggart. "The books have interactive websites the students can go to for five-minute ‘Brainpop’ movies, which they watch on their laptops. The movies have an interactive quiz they take afterward. They can also practice test questions on the website, which gives them hints and feedback to let them know if their answers are right or wrong.

"The digital microscopes we bought will interact with the laptops," said Haggart. "The students can actually go outside and take pictures, bring them back in, look at them through the microscope, and then print pictures. We have three telescopes, a sink, a lab table, a water pollutant lab, a model DNA (deoxyribonucleic acid) structure lab that will show students how DNA is passed on from generation to generation."

Haggart, who has a Master’s Degree from the University of Arizona in exercise and sports science said it is nice to be able to combine health, science, and physical education. For example, the new heart-rate monitors can be used in the exploratory program this semester which is stress management. The students will be able to see their heart rates go up after exercise, and drop through relaxation techniques.

The students are excited about the new science lab, and love the more open area in which they can do experiments. Haggart said he wants the students to become more aware of their environment and to question things. He wants them to use scientific methods to figure out things in all areas of life, not just science. He also uses the book of Genesis from the Bible to teach students what we believe as Catholics.