RUTHER GLEN, Va. –
As Caroline County Public Schools Instructional Specialist Rebecca Schieber gathered volunteers prior to the STEM Fair at Lewis and Clark Elementary School (LCES) Oct. 27, she encouraged them to fill out comment cards providing feedback to the students.
“These kids light up when they receive the comment cards,” Schieber said. “It’s very important to them. You’ll see them smile when they get them back.”
Two of the volunteers who made the children smile are Naval Surface Warfare Center Dahlgren Division (NSWCDD) employees Jacob Barber and Jane Sullivan.
Barber, a scientist in the Integrated Combat Systems Department, and Sullivan, a biologist in the Electromagnetic and Sensor Systems Department, served as volunteer judges for the STEM Fair in which each teacher sent out representatives into the hallways to showcase their classroom project.
No winners were selected for the fair, which was designed to encourage students and for them to receive feedback from the judges on the comment cards.
“This is my first time at an event like this,” Sullivan said. “It was a lot of fun. I really liked seeing their enthusiasm. They’re obviously really excited about doing it and that’s what’s important – to get kids excited about STEM.”
Some of the projects on display included an apple volcano, a dissolving pumpkins experiment, constructing a bubble wand and cloud dough, which combined corn starch, conditioner and food dye.
“It was exciting to be able to do this important STEM outreach,” Barber said. “It was important to let these kids express their interest in science and STEM.”