Students learn about creativity, problem-solving at science day program

By Jim Cook

Published: June 13, 2008

William Hudson and William Dovre prepare to test their creation — an invention sure to strike fear in the hearts of balloons everywhere.

That may be overstating it a bit, but the two Montana Magnet students did learn about creative problem solving during the Camp Invention program, a weeklong day program held at Landmark Elementary School designed to teach elementary-age students about science through hands-on activities.

Hudson and Dovre spent part of the week working on an assignment to create a Rube Goldberg-like machine to pop a balloon. Goldberg was an American cartoonist famous for his drawings of machines that perform simple tasks in complicated ways.

Hudson and Dovre’s machine was a zip line that would carry a cable car mounted with a sharp tack to a balloon attached to an old computer casing. Part of the Camp Invention program involved using recycled items as part of the inventions. The machine worked on the first run, Friday, popping the balloon.

Angie Maddox, a resource specialist at Landmark Elementary School, said having to build inventions out of recycled items pushed the children to think creatively to solve problems. The creative use of junked items appealed to Hudson.

“I like taking things apart, looking at them and seeing how they work,” he said.

Maddox said the program gave students who aren’t athletes or artists a chance to shine in academics. She said she was surprised at how well many of them took to working together in groups to solve problems.

“We got to see a different side to a lot of our children,” she said.

Lavonda Gosselin, a parent whose children participated in the program, said she was pleased at how it catered to both boys and girls.

“A girl can come here and think about science and know that it’s just not a guy thing,” she said.

About 82 local students participated in the program which cost about $180 per student. Several local businesses, individuals and organizations helped sponsor students participation in the program, including: the Wiregrass Foundation, Teresa Davis, Barfield and Associates, Chris Maddox, the Tuesday Teacher Supper Club, Pamela Paramore, Evergreen Presbyterian Church and Landmark Elementary School.