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PARTNERS | HEALTHY CITY | HOW HEALTHY | VISION | SUMMIT | PRIORITIES | FUNCTIONS | CITY OF FALL RIVER |
As
part of Community Development Recreation's
(CD-REC) Winter Olympics held on February 23, 2011, children from the Citizens
for Citizens and YMCA
after-school day care programs, as well as children from the community
who were on winter school vacation, had a chance to learn science and have
fun at the same time. Leigh
Picard of Mad
Science of Southern MA & RI held the attention of over 75 children
for an hour as they learned about air and air pressure through a series of
experiments and demonstrations. Mad
Science teaches science in a way that engages imagination and hands-on
learning. The event occurred following an
hour of vigorous activity held that same morning. Research
has demonstrated that new learning takes place more efficiently when
it takes place following physical
activity that promotes the growth of new neural connections. That's
one reason why Leigh's mother, School Wellness Coordinator, Marcia
Picard is working with Fall River School physical
education staff to ensure that children have frequent opportunities to
engage in vigorous activity as part of the school day. Click
here for a 30-second
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(Top row) Mad Science instructor Leigh Picard points to an inflated balloon and asks the children to describe their theories as to what would happen to the air if he were to let go of the balloon. (Middle row, left) Mr. Picard demonstrates the force of air pressure by asking two children to pull two plungers apart. (Middle row, center) Amy rides on a platform that blows air underneath to make the platform float above the floor. (Bottom row, left) Mr. Picard demonstrates the use of a pressure guage to remove the air from an empty soda bottle. (Bottom row, center and right) As Leigh's mother, Marcia Picard, watches from the bleachers, Leigh launches a tube of party streamers with compressed air at the close of the show. |
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