What did you do as a Peer Mentor at Science Club for Girls this summer?

Kaychette: Monday through Wednesday we prepared to teach young first graders and young teens about science for Thursdays.  We would have a lesson with a certain topic and experiment for them to do and learn from.

Lucy: During our prep time we talked about how to make science more interesting for younger kids. We challenged ourselves to set up exact schedules and give each Peer Mentor a piece of the lesson.  For example, Chynere would do a stimulating introduction and then the rest of us (Lucy, Kaychette, Ari, and Fawzia) would split up the activities and speaking parts.

Ari: I got to do stuff I never did before.  I never actually taught kids like an actual teacher.

Did you learn about any science yourself?

Lucy and Ari test an experiment with their students.

Lucy: We did a few science experiments, such as getting a balloon to the top of the stairs with only tape, straws, and string… In terms of science, I learned about proteins, balloons and rubber, buoyancy, surface tension, laughter, “fun facts,” etc.

Ari: I learned a lot of new hands-on science activities that were really cool.

What other activities did you do?

Lucy: Team building games and activities such as “Mad Libs” in new accents/voices, or talking about one topic for a minute without saying “like” or “um.”  Sometimes our games were scientific, sometimes they weren’t…We went on field trips and we interacted with the head scientists/students and got tours of their buildings.

Did you learn anything outside of science this summer?

Lucy: I learned so much: about how to work with a group, how to be enthusiastic around kids, how to be a leader, how to have good input in a discussion, etc…We learned quite a bit [on field trips] – suggestions about our futures (more…)