Excitement was in the air at Shoreham-Wading River’s Miller Avenue
School when kindergarten students took part in a program that showcased
the state of the atmosphere and the effects of weather, using a unique
approach to teach them scientific concepts.
Professor Soda Pop, a teacher from Mad Science, an educational program
that works to spark students’ curiosity, led the students in conducting
hands-on experiments to understand how and why weather occurs.
In one example, students acted as meteorologists in Argentina, Australia
and Russia and learned how the climate in those regions plays a part in
predicting the weather. They also learned about thermochromic paper and
how its color changes when it reaches a particular temperature, along
with experiencing other measurement tools used by weather forecasters.
The workshop was presented in conjunction with the grade-level study of
weather and aimed to reinforce the students’ understanding of the
content and concepts taught in class.