The Graduate Association of MABE Engineers (GAME) is sparking interest in science in elementary school students through a recently developed outreach program. This February, four graduate students gave a presentation and provided hands-on demonstrations on non-Newtonian fluids to two fifth grade classes at John Hay Elementary School in Morristown, TN.
The demonstrations brought the fifth grade classes an opportunity to learn about oobleck, a shear-thickening non-Newtonian fluid.
The demonstrations were designed around the class curriculum to provide a fun and interesting learning experience that complemented their education.
The classes weregiven the chance to handle oobleck and gain a concrete understanding of concepts they had learned about in class. The students were asked questions to invite them to think of similar fluids they experienced in their daily lives and to think of unique ways that non-Newtonian fluids could be used to solve problems.
The demonstrations were well-received by the students and teachers, with some of the fifth graders asking when the UT graduate students would return for another round. Other teachers at John Hay invited the graduate students back to provide similar demonstrations for other classes. GAME is now pursuing other outreach opportunities in the community.