STIMULATING INTEREST IN HIGH-SCHOOL CHEMISTRY* SISTERMARYANGELICA, MOUNT SAINT MARY'S ACADEMY, LIWLEROCK, ARKANSAS
I shall endeavor to make a long story short by describing from among the various devices used in my classes to stimulate interest the one which includes them all. The activity referred to is the exhibit and open house that has become an annual affair in our chemistry department. Early in May each year we put on a program to which we invite the members of the Parent-Teacher Association, and particularly the parents of the students who are enrolled in chemistry. On that day and during the remainder of the week, we have on display the posters and exhibits which have been gotten up during the year. The making of these posters and exhibits never fails to arouse the keenest interest and some very excellent posters have been made on such subjects as glass, rayon, rubber, soap, ink, cotton, etc. The posters are often a source of a good deal of merriment. One pupil said on hers that in water hydrogen and oxygen form a compact. Another declared that iodine has a violent vapor. A student who was makinga poster on the life and work of Priestley became so engrossed with the subject of oxygen that when she was asked in geometry class to give the names of various polygons, she said, "A polygon of five sides is a pentagon, six sides, a hexagon, eight sides, an oxygen." Another was in the economics class. The letters H.C.L. occurred in the headlines of an article in World News. When asked the meaning of these letters, she immediately replied, "hydrochloric acid." The best notebooks, and some arc quite attractive, are placed where the visitors may examine them. The class &rap Book is another source of interest. It contains clippings, pictures, and diagrams, with each page bearing the name of the student making the contribution. Visitors who are subject to the cross-word puzzle mania are surprised to see puzzles neatly worked out, but are puzzled by the unfamiliar terminology and secretly resolve to look into the subject of chemistry. Students who have submitted worthwhile essays in the National Prize Essay Contest have copies out for inspection. When the audience has assembled, the program is opened with a poem such as "The Chemist" by Edgar Guest, "Ode to a Chemist," or something similar. Short papers on such subjects as "Why Study Chemistry?" are really instructive to the mothers who, in their school days, did not study chemistry and are interested in learning something about this fascinating science. A student with superior technic is chosen to give a lecture-table demonstration. Last year a student gave a little demonstration entitled, "Some Interesting Color Changes," which included the preparation of Prussian blue, the precipitation of chrome yellow, the effect of a base on phenol* Presented before the meeting of the Arkansas Education Association at Little Rock, November 14, 1929. 834
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phthalein, etc. I n the course of her talk she mentioned the interesting color change produced by having nitric acid accidentally spilled on her hair-which is red. The posters are brought before the audience one by one, and the particnlar subject of each is explained by the student who made it. An account of an inspection trip that has been made during the year is given by one of the students. The visit to the local water purification plant is always of general interest, but others are sometimes used. Other activities can be worked in, as the illustration of a paper by means of Keystone slides, the dramatization of an original play on chemistry, etc. The feature that arouses most general interest is the chemical spelling match. This is worked out in various ways. Last year we called it "Chemical Baseball." We held a preliminary match and the two winning students were entitled to select their respective teams. Eight innings were played beforehand a t intervals of several days. The score up to that time was posted on the blackboard and much interest was manifested as to which team would be victorious. It was a source of wonderment to the parents to hear their daughters declare that washing soda is NaZCO3.10Hz0,borax, NazBnOylOHzO,and alum, K8Oa.Alz(S0&.24HzO. As many as possible of the compounds named were those with which the audience was familiar. It was a hard fought contest and the victors were quite elated with their success. The last feature was "Chemical Fortune Telling." The visitors were allowed to draw apparently blank slips of paper. On these slips we had written amusing fortunes with cobaltous chloridt, or "sympathetic ink." Wben these were heated over Bunsen burners, writing appeared as if by magic and deiighted the owners with interesting prophecies. All in all, the exhibit and program are most effective in stimulating interest. Students who have not studied chemistry visit the laboratory and are quite impressed by the activities of the class. Teachers from other departments also enjoy looking over the work that is on display. The program is not burdensome to the teacher since only one or two items require extra preparation-the major portion consists simply of projects that have been worked out during the year. It is quite refreshing to see the enthusiasm of the youngsters, working with so much earnestness and taking such keen delight in the accomplishiig of something worthwhile. Watermelon Seed Makes Useful D N ~ . An extract made from watermelon seeds and given the technical name of cucurbocitrin has proved its usefulness in relieving many cases of high blood pressure, Drs. T. I,. Althausen and William J. Kerr of the University of California Medical School have reported. These scientists stated that their work confirmed the results obtained with the watermelon seed extract by its discoverer, Dr. I. S. Barksdale, of Greenville, South Carolina.-Science Service
