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Space Week -- Oak Grove Studies Orbit Around Stars

Posted on: Thursday, 12 May 2005, 12:00 CDT

Fourth-graders at Oak Grove Central Elementary School in Hernando this week are traveling to a place few people have gone before - space.

As part of an annual Space Week at the school, the youngsters are studying about the planets, astronauts, black holes, supernovas and many other astronomical things. They have built hot-air balloons from tissue paper, made paper rockets and have seen them fly.

And they've drunk a "space shake."

Teacher RaeDena Hill said, "The students got to experience what it would be like to eat as an astronaut. We mixed Jello, Kool-Aid and milk. They drank it from a Zip-Loc bag with a straw."

On Tuesday, Hill and teacher Brandy Bailey were launching the hot- air balloons in the school's gymnasium. Heated air rose through a small stovepipe from a heating element below and passed into the mouth of each balloon, which was pulled over the top of the pipe.

The youngsters cheered as each balloon floated upward.

In the rocket activity, the small hollow paper rockets were placed over a pipe. When compressed air was released into the pipe, the rocket was propelled across the gymnasium. The builder's name was written on each rocket.

The rockets were left where they landed on the floor so that the distances traveled could be determined.

Student Kevin Robinson was in charge of turning the switch that released the air and launched each rocket.

Mitch O'Brien, 10; Raza El, 10, and Holli McNeer, 9, said the space activities were fun.

Holli said, "I like everything about the week."

Mitch said, "This was really fun because we got to make stuff."

Raza, who said he particularly liked making the rockets, said, "We are learning about space and doing fun projects."

Cayala Word, 10, said, "We got to pick out a planet, any planet we wanted, and then we had to write a page about it, everything we know."

She picked Jupiter, the fifth planet from the sun. "It's the biggest planet," she said. "It's nickname is 'Big Brother.' It is 15,000 feet deep with liquid hydrogen."

For extra credit, Trey Freeman, 10, built a model of Saturn. He said he chose Saturn because "I like the rings on it and it is the second biggest planet."

The rings, he said, are made of gas es.

Trey described how he obtained materials at a store and then built and painted the model. He said his dad got the wire that was used in attaching the rings.

Various sections around the gym carried names, including teachers' names such as Womble's White Dwarfs, Stogner's Super Novas and Sluder's Solar Eclipse.

The teachers were having as much fun as the youngsters Tuesday.

Hill said, "We are letting the children experience what it would be like to be an astronaut in the space program. . . . It is fun for both of us because as teachers we could set them up in stations. They get to pretty much figure everything out on their own and we get to guide them through the process. It is pretty much them doing a self-learning project.

"It is just a really fun week."

- Jimmie Covington: (901) 333-2010

Source: Commercial Appeal, The

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