Rewards of undergraduate participation in a local family science adventure program

CHED 1398

Stefan M. Hailey, shailey.311@gmail.com and Malcolm J. D'Souza, dsouzama@wesley.edu. Department of Chemistry, Wesley College, 120 N State Street, Dover, DE 19901
The ‘Family Science Adventure' is an annual program for kids in grades K-12 that is sponsored by the DE-ACS Section. For the past five years, students enrolled in the Organic Chemistry II course at Wesley College, have had the option to participate in this day-long event for additional class-credit. These undergraduates are expected to formulate experiments/demonstrations/hands-on activities, understand content and safety and, budget time and money. Through this interactive program the Wesley College participants gained experience in demonstrating scientific principles, improved their appreciation for basic science, became adept at finding available resources, and benefited from the opportunity to participate collaboratively. This interaction also fostered connections between our undergraduates, the participating kids, and the other volunteers who are local industrial scientists.