The Oak Park Education Foundation's 7th annual Vex Robotics competition between Julian & Brooks students on January 28 was an amazing display of middle school engineering talent. More than 80 sixth-eight graders worked with teachers, volunteer engineers, and high school mentors after school for months to design, build and program inventive robots that showed their stuff on a playing field at the Julian gym in front of a packed house of cheering fans, friends and family.

This year Julian took back the trophy from Brooks in a 319-95 win. But they're not finished -- five teams from each middle school are still preparing for a regional competition in Batavia on February 11 to compete against area teams, most of them high schoolers.

During the Robotics competition, OPEF also held our first Open House showcasing all our programs: Architecture Adventure, Art Start, Science Alliance, Geared Up, Vex Robotics and BASE Camp. The Julian Commons was full of parents and kids, ages 5-12, trying their hands at challenging, educational and fun activities. Kids operated Vex Robots, build pocket totem sculptures, designed LEGO machines and created innovative buildings of LEGOs, experimented with water, rocks and electricity with EPA scientists, and created Frank Lloyd Wright-inspired window designs.

Thanks to all who participated, supported, attended, or followed us on Twitter, including our event sponsors: Aria Group Architects, Forest Park National Bank, Hoy Landscaping, It's A Sign, and Starship Restaurant & Catering.

Make sure to check out our slideshow of photos from the Vex Competition and Open House from photographers Maria Soderburg and Paul Goyette.



 

Students in Mrs. McDaniel's 4/5 multi-age class at Whittier have been studying magnetism and electricity. Working with their Science Alliance scientist Dave Kupperman, a retired Argonne Laboratory scientist, they conducted a number of experiments demonstrating the properties of magnetism and electricity and how they are interrelated.

Dr. Kupperman told the students "the earth is a magnet" as they experimented with a battery to show how the magnetic north and south poles of the earth pull a compass needle. The students also learned how a manual flashlight works: spinning a magnet inside by squeezing the handle creates electricity. As a final experiment, Dr. Kupperman asked the students to stand in a circle around the room. Each student held an end of a copper tube with her neighbor, so that there was a complete circuit around the circle which then powered a small light bulb. In this way, the students act as electrical conductors because of the water inside their bodies.

Be sure to check out this slideshow of photos by Patti Quilling.



 

What has been your favorite Science Alliance project?

One thing I do is come into the class in my haz-mat [hazardous materials] suit. Or, to give a sense of how much garbage we produce I bring in sacks of potatoes. All the kids want to hold the 25 pounds of potatoes!

I like my rocks. I bring in the three different kinds of rocks and do some experiments with those, like the shiny pennies in the baking soda and vinegar.

Why are you involved with Science Alliance?

I like the idea of bringing science into the classroom. I think science can be really interesting. I was doing Earth Day projects in the preschool and 1st and 2nd grades, so [working with OPEF] was an opportunity to do the same thing in a slightly different way--with more of a science bent and 2-3 times a year, not just on Earth Day. I've been volunteering for five years.

How did you get interested in science as a career?

I was working with student environmental organizations while at the University of Illinois and that is when I knew I wanted to do something environmental. My major was psychology--environmental psychology--which is sort of a niche market. So I went on to get my masters in earth science. At the time there wasn't an environmental degree-- no environmental engineering, or anything like that. Even the geology before was more studying just rocks and searching for oil, not like what there is today [in environmental studies].

What is challenging about presenting to elementary/middle school kids?

I need to talk less and do more. I am not as interesting to 4th and 5th graders as I think I am! They want to see something happen. It's hard to make these rocks do something! They'd much rather see an explosion.

What area of scientific work/inquiry are you involved with as a professional?

I do environmental consulting. I'll do some remediation [of construction sites], but a lot of it is looking at if there is potential at a site for contamination.



 

Our visiting scientist program was going strong after 21 years, but we needed to make some changes. When we conducted evaluations of Global Village, people told us the name was confusing because it didn't sound like a science program.

So when our committee set out to renew and revamp Global Village, changing its name to Science Alliance made sense. We bring scientists into classrooms to work with students and teachers. To us, "Science Alliance" said it all!

But that's not the only change we've made to the longest-running OPEF program. This year one grade at each school will participate in Science Alliance so that every student experiences hands-on projects with their very own scientist at least once in his or her time in District 97. We're also recruiting more scientists from every field that uses the scientific process. Please contact us If you know someone who might be interested in being a Science Alliance scientist!



 

UPDATE: The photos sets linked below have all been updated with new photos from week four of BASE Camp. Check them out! (7/5/11)

Our Vex Robotics kids (entering 6th-7th grade) custom designed, built and programmed robots to meet a variety of challenges in the form of different games. They built a variety of bots, working in teams, and put on a great show for parents, guardians, siblings and friends at the final competition on June 30!

The Fibonacci Mural group (entering 6th-8th grade) learned and mapped the golden ratio, and then designed and painted a mural under the "L" tracks between North and South Boulevards where Forest Ave. meets Home Ave. On June 13, they took a field trip to get inspiration from many fabulous murals in Humboldt Park. On June 24, they hosted a reception to celebrate their fine work.

Our Architecture Adventurers (students entering 4th-6th grade) designed buildings and made models, with help from professional architects and high school student TAs. They also worked with Google Sketch Up to create 3D virtual models.

The Dissection: Comparative Anatomy and Medical Illustration class (for kids entering 5th-8th grade) spent 2 weeks dissecting specimens from chicken wings to fetal pigs to learn about human anatomy. They spent a day working with Pat Thomas, Board Certified Medical Illustrator and Oak Parker who explained the how and why of her trade and helped students with their illustrations.

Geared Up: Engineering with LEGOs campers (entering 3rd-5th grade) took on new challenges every week -- from structures to wind power, animals to vehicles. They experimented with motors and remote controls, tested their machines and made them better and better.

In Art Start: Arts Adventure, our youngest campers (entering 1st-2nd grade) spent 2 weeks exploring many of the arts, including theater, story, dance, music, and painting.

They presented the fruits of their labor, including an elaborate set, costumes and books made mainly from found materials, to parents and friends on June 24.

In Geared Up/Architecture Adventure: Engineering with LEGOs (for students entering 1st-2nd grade), kids built the White House, Willis Tower, Wrigley Field, Seattle Space Needle, the Grand Canyon and more. They learned about geography, history and architecture while creating very impressive models!

The last week of camp included Art Start: Maps of the Imagination (for kids entering 3rd-5th grade). The kids used painting, drawing, and printmaking to create unique versions of their own mind-boggling mind maps.



 

She came to Mr. Hayward's 4th-grade class in a Tyvek suit, hard hat, respirator, and goggles. Trained as a geologist, Mann parent Tricia Feeley looked a bit like a space walker. Really she was there for a series of Global Village presentations on the land and water around us.

Ms. Feeley is an environmental consultant. She explained to the students that she sometimes must wear the protective suit when involved with the disposal of hazardous materials, such as asbestos and old storage tanks, on land to be redeveloped.

Peter G. liked this first time Ms. Feeley came to class. "That was cool." She also showed them photos of work sites in which the suits are a necessity. Aidan R. said, "To see the actual thing was cool. Normally, you only see those suits in cartoons!"

In another visit to the class, Ms. Feeley talked about floodplains and erosion by water and glaciers. She helped the students set up a glacier melting in a tub--a chunk of ice along with sand, rocks, and mud--to recreate how erosion of the land happens over time. Of specific interest, she talked about Oak Park 100,000 years ago and what it looked like before and after the glaciers moved through.

Olivia N. told about another experiment they conducted. "She made a handmade thing from a Gatorade bottle to show how soil erosion happens," how the larger particles settle out first when you shake the bottle. According to Ms. Feeley, this is because "when water moves fast, it carries more sediment load." The students were impressed by an experiment in which they soaked pennies in a jar of salt, vinegar, and water to see the chemical reactions.

Ms. Feeley also talked with the students about various rocks and minerals. Olivia N. noted that "some people have rock kits but don't know how to use them, but she taught us how." Ben P. agreed: "Seeing the rocks close up and using a magnifying glass and how it looks was really cool." Ben also thought the presentations were neat since "if you want to do what she does then you can listen to her and know that you can do it too."

On this day, the students also participated in a game in which they had to describe their group's rock and then see if the rest of the class could identify which one was theirs based on the detailed description.

Mr. Hayward has worked with Ms. Feeley on Global Village projects for the past 4 or 5 years. He noted how her presentations link to their curriculum but that "she is teaching them scientific method as well." By sharing her studies and her work, Ms. Feeley said, "I hope kids think science is interesting."

Olivia N. was impressed. "She is a very intelligent person who loves what she does and enjoys sharing it with us."

Check out a slideshow of photos from Ms. Feeley's visit by Oak Park photographer Roy Phifer.



 

The 5th-grade science curriculum in District 97 focuses on the various systems in the body. But what if you could have some of those systems actually brought into the classroom to see?

Dr. David Hines, M.D., a veteran of OPEF's Global Village program and a specialist in infectious diseases at Rush Medical Center, has done just that. In the past couple of months he brought the skeletal system to Ms. Yigzaw's classes at Holmes in the form of human and animal bones, and the cardiovascular system in the form of a sheep's heart.

During his first visit in April, Dr. Hines showed deer and human spines and asked the students to look for the differences. The students could see that the vertebrae on a deer are all about the same size, while those on a human get larger further down the spine. As one student noted this is "because deer have 4 legs and their spine is horizontal," so weight is evenly distributed. Humans, however, are upright and the lower spine has more weight to carry.

Another student asked "Is it fake?" Dr. Hines told the kids, "I only bring real stuff here." An avid bird-watcher, he said he finds deer and other animal skeletons while bird-watching in Thatcher Woods. Jack W. enjoyed carry the human spine up and down the rows to show his classmates. The 5th graders were captivated by the good-humored Dr. Hines.

Dr. Hines also showed students a real human skull. He asked them "Why do skulls have sutures [the seam down the top of the skull]?" One student responded "because the skull isn't all one bone." Students went on to piece together the clues of how our skulls are formed and why they are formed that way. The kids were able to examine various specimens of animal skulls as well as delicate fish cartilage.

Dr. Hines also showed the 5th graders an x-ray, holding it up against the light of the window. He explained that x-rays work because the calcium in our bones causes the x-rays to bounce off. The light can't get through, so the shapes of the bones show up--a bit like a shadow in the sun.

On a subsequent visit from Dr. Hines in May, the 5th graders got up close and personal with sheep hearts, as they dissected them in small groups. Savannah S. said, "It is nasty but educational." To demonstrate she noted, "If you put a toothpick [into one of the blood vessels] and move it, it looks like the heart is working!"

Ryan M. agreed: "It's nasty but it's a good experience. It's not just the computer, but here in real life, so you can see how it works."

Ms. Yigzaw also emphasized this advantage. "It's nice for them to see it up close. We have a model [of the heart], but this is better. It's really nice to have Dr. Hines in here. He obviously really knows what he is talking about."

See a slideshow of photos by Holmes parent Michelle Gill.



 

With the help of Dr. Oliver Pergams, Whittier 4th/5th grade students in Ms. McDaniels' class used their own cheek cells to extract samples of their own DNA.

Dr. Pergams began the session by asking the kids what they know about DNA. One student offered, "It's who you are with your genes." Dr. Pergams is a professor of evolutionary and conservation biology who works and teaches at several local institutions, including the Field Museum. He has worked with OPEF's Global Village program for 9 years.

In order to get at their DNA, students scraped their cheeks with their teeth while swishing Gatorade in their mouths. Gatorade has a lot of salt in it so cells won't burst and the DNA will stay intact. In a less than savory moment, the students then spit the Gatorade back into the cup, hopefully with some cheek cells somewhere within it.

Nathan D. said, "Not everyone knows what DNA is, so this is kind of nice to learn the basics of DNA, the letters [proteins] that make up DNA."

The next step was to add a "cell lysis" buffer to the Gatorade. This solution is basically a detergent that breaks down the cells so you can get at the DNA which is now floating in the solution freely with all the other cell contents in a sort of soup called the "cell lysate."

To isolate the DNA strands and render them insoluble, ethyl alcohol is added on top of the solution. When the alcohol meets the cell lysate soup, the DNA rises up out of the solution and into the ethyl layer. As Dr. Pergams explained, "That white stuff floating around in there? That's your DNA."

Emma S. said the experiment was "interesting and it's cool that you can see your own DNA and that you can easily get it without hurting yourself!"

Students then transferred the suspended DNA into a plastic pendant which they strung with thread to make a necklace! The kids were engaged and despite the "ick" factor were truly eager to see evidence of their own basic genetic make-up.

Brian G. was impressed: "it was cool to figure out how to separate out your own DNA. I didn't know you had DNA inside your mouth!"

Dr. Pergams will be back in Ms. McDaniels classroom again after spring break. He plans to teach about evolution, using teeth in a variety of local mammal skulls, followed by an owl pellet dissection. He will also do a lesson on invasive species, followed by a field trip to a local natural area.

Dr. Pergams views these field trips with Global Village as particularly important. "We are becoming increasingly videophilic, with our children spending 5-10 hours per day in front of screens and only 20 minutes per week in unstructured play outside. Each year fewer and fewer students have been in the woods before." With Dr. Pergams, students will take their classroom learning into the woods where they will remove samples of invasive species.

Click here to see photos by OPEF reporter Ginger Yarrow.



 

Ms. Rajashekar's Beye 4th graders got a powerful lesson about the effects of alcohol on the mind and body from Dr. Liz Kovacs of Loyola University Medical Center. In these photos, students used goggles that simulated alcohol exposure. Kids measured the effects on coordination by clocking their time doing tasks with and without "acute alcohol exposure."

Click here to see photos from the program by Oak Park photographer David Kindler.



 

Wikis. Infrared thermography. Home energy assessments. Longfellow 3rd graders and Brooks 6th graders are using these tools in a collaborative Global Village project to explore energy efficiency and how it relates to caring for our earth. Ms. Flowers' 3rd graders and Ms. Frick's 6th graders first met in person in early January to kick off their project, DoSomething.

In order to communicate with each other remotely, analyze their data, and post their observations and recommendations to the public, the students and staff created a wiki--a collaborative website in which contributors share, update, and comment on information about a given topic. This wiki is open for the public to see but only students can comment and add to the wiki.(See http://dosomethingcollaboration.wikispaces.com)

Ms. Frick has been working for several months with Elise Jury--a D97 technology leader--to teach her Brooks 6th graders how to use a wiki. They first created a plants- and-poetry wiki so that kids in all of Ms. Frick's classes could collaborate and develop their wiki skills. This was in preparation for a unit on catastrophic events in which they hope to communicate with students in California, Florida, and Louisiana.

"Then I came up with the idea to practice these skills with a teacher friend of mine, Sandra Flowers, who is in the district but in a different building, as the next step to practice for collaborating across the country," Ms. Frick explained.

In the meantime, Ms. Frick received a call from Energy Men, a Chicago-based company, looking for a school partnership. Mr. Grafft said he is interested in helping students "relate in a global sense to something that is very close to them, for example, between global warming and wasted energy in people's homes." Thus, another Global Village project was born.

Mr. Grafft explained that Energy Men provides "a physical for your home." Their consultants collect data on overall efficiency, run diagnostics, and then suggest ways to address any energy issues on a home or building. He noted that most people "want help with comfort and that is closely linked to efficiency and cost savings."

"To begin with, this was not going to be a public wiki, but we thought it needed to be to bring these ideas to the world," explained Susan Oxnevad, also a D97 technology teacher leader. Because of the subject matter and the technology, she added, "this project is constantly evolving."

Ms. Frick agreed. "Goals change daily with this project and it can get frustrating. Therefore, one of the learning experiences from this is to be flexible and let things go if they don't work out!"

During the kick-off meeting at Longfellow, Mr. Grafft walked the students through the Home Energy Performance Data Collection--their essential document for the project. He spoke with students about important energy facts. For instance, he explained that "fifty percent of electricity generated at the power plant is lost between the plant and your home." He also explained some of the choices and alternatives people have when heating and cooling their homes, such as using a tankless water heater to heat the hot water only when you need it.

Sixth-grader Olivia F. liked listening to Mr. Grafft's presentation, such as when he explained "how they sucked all the air out of a house to see where the cold was coming through."

Twenty-four pairs of students--one 3rd grader and one 6th grader--will communicate with each other via the wiki. Each student will complete the data sheet at home and then will input the information on a website called energysavvy.com. This site will generate a score for the home's energy efficiency. The students will in turn take this information and post the data they collected, brainstorm ways to address any energy issues, and discuss the data and ideas with their counterparts--all online. The two groups will only meet in person two times over the course of the project.

Ms. Flowers connected the merits of this project to the larger goals of the curriculum. She explained that in language arts she is teaching them how to respond to literature. "So they read something, they think about it, and they respond to it. We do this when we read a story and when we study something in science, and now we are doing it with this."

After listening to the Energy Men presentation, Natalie S., a 6th grader, said she had "already learned a lot about electricity--where it comes from and how it's used" even before getting into the assessment of her own house. Tyler H., another 6th grader, said "We learned about a camera that takes pictures of heat and energy." Yes, Mr. Grafft had with him an infrared thermography camera, and he took photos of the kids so they could see how much heat their bodies give off. Such a camera is used in the field to show hot and cold spots in a building.

Third-grader Charlotte S. likes the project so far "because we get to learn a lot about things we don't know."

Abby Z. said, "I really enjoyed going to Longfellow to meet our buddies." Olivia F. also liked the fact that she was going to be able to work with these younger kids.

Abby did note the project can be challenging for her time-wise. "Sometimes it's hard to get on the Internet to get the work done." Olivia admitted that entering the data on the computer was not her favorite task, but in terms of communicating on the wiki, "I was excited to try it."

According to Ms. Frick, the best aspects of the project long-term are "learning to collaborate online in creative ways and to expand the classroom to share ideas with other students and other interested parties anywhere in the world."

As part of the project, the students will also travel at the end of January to the Chicago Center for Green Technology, so they can further learn about local possibilities for energy efficiency and new ways to take care of our environment.

Click here to see photos from Matt Baron of Inside Edge and Ginger Yarrow. Or click here to see photos of the group's field trip to the Chicago Center for Green Technology.



 

Click here to read Global Village Coordinator Seth Baker's editorial on the importance -- and the thrills -- of engaging young minds in science.



 

With the help of Global Village scientist Naomi Pooley, Mrs. Chang's Irving 4th graders have been hunting down bacteria at school for their microbiology unit "The Invisible World Around Us." The students took samples from around the school, and then inoculated Petri dishes to grow bacteria. Click here to view photos of this project.

 

The Shedd Aquarium's April Keller visits with Mrs. Diviacchi's and Ms. Fotopoulos's Mann 4th graders as part of OPEF's Global Village program. April brought some of the Shedd's animals to school and talked about what it's like to be a marine biologist. The students' study of ecosystems will culminate with a field trip to the Shedd Aquarium in May. Click here to see the photos by Mann parent Emily Opalski.

 

Global Village scientist Patricia Feeley "talks trash" with Mr. Hayward's 4th grade class at Mann. The students conducted experiments about landfills and recycling. Click the photo above to see a slide show from Oak Park photographer Roy Phifer.



 

Ms. Vickers's Holmes 5th graders had an exciting time dissecting sheep's eyes with their Global Village scientist, Dr. David Hines. Click here or on the photo above to see pictures from Holmes by Sheila Barabad.



 

See a slideshow from a recent Global Village class at Brooks here, or click on the photo above. Jim Gill, an engineer with Earth & Sky Energy LLC, worked with students on some of the nuts and bolts of alternative energy.

 

[from the fall 2007 issue of OPEF's newsletter, Take Note]

This year, the Oak Park Education is bringing more experts than ever into classrooms to work with students! Our programs are growing, which means more architects, artists, scientists and technology buffs are opening eyes and inspiring young minds.

For example, this year Global Village will expand to bring scientists into all 6th grade classes for year-long, hands-on residencies, in addition to the scientists already working with 3rd-8th graders throughout the district. Global Village is nearly doubling with 1,140 students working closely with scientists in 2007-2008.

Architecture Adventure is also growing. Launched in 2006 in the middle schools to take advantage of our community's wealth of architecture and professionals in the field, Architecture Adventure is now reaching into the K-5 classrooms as well. We'll have after-school clubs and an architecture summer camp later this year.

Our Vex Robotics Teams have dramatically increased their supply of robot parts and equipment, and added programming capability and adult supervisors since last year. The after-school clubs began in October for 6th, 7th and 8th graders at both middle schools. One of last year's participants said of the program, "My favorite part of robotics is learning mechanics. I always wondered how stuff works and I found out."

The Foundation's budget has also increased, in part thanks to major grants from Community Bank of OP-RF, the OP-RF Community Foundation, the Oak Park Area Arts Council and Target. But the vast majority of our funding comes from individuals in the community, responding to our requests with generous donations. You've asked us to keep the momentum growing: to provide innovative programs in our public schools, to keep the community connected to the schools and to continue developing, funding and implementing exciting programs.

Our programs exist only with your support! To make a donation to the Oak Park Education Foundation, click here. You can also reach us by mail at 970 Madison Street, Oak Park IL 60302, or by phone at (708) 524-3023.

 

"I love science now because of [our Global Village scientist]. I wish we had more time with him. I'd trade recess for more time with him."

"It's so cool to actually have [a Global Village scientist] who does this with you. It opens new doors, new ideas. I might even want to do this -- You know, I never knew science could be that fun."
--District 97 4th grade girls

The Oak Park Education Foundation recently received a $6,460 grant to add 10 scientists each year to the Global Village program's current roster of 30 scientists. Working in collaboration with 3rd through 8th grade students and teachers, the scientists will reach approximately 450 more students across the district.

Global Village makes science "come alive" for students and inspires them to consider careers in science. Our experts (all Oak Park residents) come from esteemed institutions such as Argonne National Laboratories, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, and many area universities and hospitals.

Global Village scientists conduct environmental tests on area rivers, dissect sheep's eyes and owl pellets, build and launch rockets, plan and design rain gardens, study infectious diseases, and much more. The program also includes field trips as well as the Young Scientists Conference.

This new ongoing grant is awarded by the Oak Park-River Forest Community Foundation's Gunzburger Educational Fund.