Whither the weather?
“Do you think it will rain?” the mother asks her daughter, eyes scanning the sky.
“No, Mom. Those are cirrus clouds; they’re not heavy enough to produce rain. Plus, a high-pressure system’s making its way in from the west. And frankly, Mom, the warm and cold fronts coming through would make rain virtually impossible.”
“Oh,” the mother replies sheepishly. “Well. Okay, then.”
Beware Heights residents: amateur meteorologists are loose in the city, thanks to a recent visit to Saint Ann School from COSI on Wheels, a traveling science show that dares students to have fun with science. Every October, the Center for Science and Industry (COSI) visits Saint Ann School, and true to its motto, urges students to “Explore Science. Discover Fun!”
On a recent morning, students learned about extreme weather. Well, to be totally honest, they lived extreme weather. With hands-on participation encouraged, students determined that air pressure is mighty enough to crush a steel drum. That a cloud starts off as a dust particle. That air actually weighs something. And, above all, the students had fun—dare we say it?—learning.
Third-grader Madison Miluk triumphantly pumped her fist in the air and screamed, “Whoo-hoo!” as she used variations in air pressure to create wind. Another third-grade fan of COSI, Claire Peyrebrune, succinctly sums up why this annual visit is so meaningful to her: “You can actually do stuff, and not just study, and study, and study.”
Matt Welsh, outreach demonstrator for COSI has been getting kids to learn about science in a fun way since 2002. “This program,” he notes, “gets kids learning for the fun of it, for something other than a test.”
The program certainly is popular. This year alone, COSI on Wheels has 700 reservations for its services in Ohio, West Virginia, Kentucky, and Wisconsin.
“COSI Day is one of the students’ favorite days of the school year,” observes Saint Ann School parent and COSI Day coordinator Katie Lougheed. “And we’re lucky this year that COSI chose us to premiere this new program on the weather. And we’re also lucky that we have so many helpful parents who act as volunteers!”
Indeed, hosting COSI on Wheels is a collaborative effort, but the end result is wondrous. “If the kids aren’t taking anything away from this experience,” asks Welsh, “then what’s the point?”
To showcase COSI on Wheels at your school, log on to www.cosi.org and click on the “educator’s” tab.
Stephanie Applegate is a life-long resident of Cleveland Heights and the mother of two boys. She also currently serves on the board of Heights Community Congress.