Maddeningly scientific

Coral Wilson

As the Mad Science Day Camp came to an end, the room smelled of

ammonia, tables were covered with various colored powder and the

children were speckled with corn starch from their legs to their

noses.

“Science isn’t science unless you have a mess,” Mad Science

instructor Todd Fairchild said.

Monday was just the first day of the weeklong camp for 5- to

12-year-olds at the Huntington Beach City Gym and Pool, but the

children did not leave empty-handed. They had already made sidewalk

chalk, grown crystals and gained a new-world perspective.

“They don’t comprehend the molecular changes, but they begin to

understand the way science interacts with the world around them,”

Fairchild said.

Chemistry was the subject for the day. After a discussion of

chemical versus physical changes, the 20 children solidified their

new knowledge through experimentation.

Simple concepts were immediately put into effect as the group set

out to make their own sidewalk chalk. The most difficult part was

deciding on the color.

The children mixed plaster of paris with green, pink, blue and

purple powder, creating a variety of different colored combinations.

John Churilla, 9, and Scotty Schultz, 8, worked at creating teal.

“Yeah, we made it!” Scotty said.

Mad Science instructor Lisa Taylor added the final touch, which

created a magical chemical reaction, turning the powder into a solid.

Secret ingredient? Water.

As the chalk dried, the children checked on their polyacrylamide

crystals, which had grown significantly in the several hours since

they had added water.

“How big will they grow before they stop?” Thomas Check, 9, asked.

Stretching their arms out wide, some children imagined the

crystals might grow larger than themselves.

Next, the group put on goggles as Fairchild mixed another solution

of salt, water, ammonia and a laundry bluing solution.

“It smells like dirty feet, guys,” Thomas said. “Dirty feet!”

Each child got a cup with a sponge on the bottom and the stinky

mixture was distributed. Fairchild promised crystals by the next

morning and the children watched eagerly through the lid for the

first signs of growth.

Leaving everything behind, the group went outside to play with an

especially messy combination -- corn starch and water.

Instructors demonstrated how the mixture magically becomes a solid

when in motion and turns to liquid when still.

Huddled around the corn starch solution, the children were

fascinated.

Such moments are the best part about teaching the camp -- watching

the children as they begin to understand and have fun, instructor

Karl McMurtry said.

“Many kids don’t like science and some love it,” he said. “But by

the end of the camp, they all enjoy it.”

* CORAL WILSON is a news assistant who covers education. She can

be reached at (714) 965-7177 or by e-mail at

[email protected].