ASMSA will host a free Science and Engineering Institute Saturday, May 5 giving students in grades 6-10 the opportunity to learn about musical acoustics, computer programming and chemistry. The classes will be held from 9 a.m. to noon on the ASMSA campus in downtown Hot Springs.
Students may attend two of the following courses:
Musical Acoustics - This session will describe how musical sound is made and how it is perceived. Students will learn why musical instruments are built the way they are and why similar looking instruments often sound very different. Students will discuss how they can use this information to improve their playing. Taught by Dr. Brian Monson, ASMSA Science Department Chairman, physics instructor and musician.
Evidence for Chemical Change - This activity will introduce students to chemical reactions. Each student will perform a series of reactions and observe properties of the products. This will be a hands-on laboratory experience. Taught by ASMSA chemistry instructor Dr. Jim Luba.
Art Through Programming - Students will use computer science techniques to create interactive pieces of art using the easy programming language Python. ASMSA computer science instructor Nick Seward will fill students’ brains with terms like variables, loops, assignment, functions, and conditional statements. By the end of this session, students will be able to tell Python how to draw a picture and it will do it!
The classes are open to all Arkansas students enrolled in sixth through 10th grade. At least one adult must accompany each student. Pre-registration is required. Register online at bit.ly/ASMSASEI. Classes will be filled on a first-come, first-serve basis.
Free enrollment in the Science and Engineering Institute classes is being provided by a grant from the Elisabeth Wagner Foundation. For more information about, call Stephanie Rizzo, ASMSA Marketing and Research Specialist, at 501-622-5133.