Today the E is for Electricity

Electrons, circuits, soldering, knowledge is power on Day 2 of 4-H Biotech Day Camp.  Campers arrived at the Robeson County Office today to spend the day playing and accidentally learning.  We started with a little knowledge about atoms, electrons, protons, and what it takes to make them all work.  From there we became a human circuit.  Not just figuratively but literally.  Mrs. Stacie had a human electric detector.  Did you know humans can conduct electricity?  We tested the equipment by holding hands to make a complete circuit and set it off.  A few people dropped hands just to see if it worked and then they did the lights would go off.  The testers were really neat.
  After a quick snack we broke apart into groups and worked on circuits for cars, helicopters, sirens, and so much more.  One of the systems they worked with allowed the campers to create their own playdough design and use it to conduct electricity (who knew?).  Our campers rotated through 5 stations having to work together to make the final goal a reality.
  It wasn't long before it was time for lunch.  Thanks to one of our dedicated volunteers our campers enjoyed hamburgers and hot dogs from the grill along with chips, a rice krispie treat for dessert and of course something to drink.  The youth seemed to enjoy time together to socialize, fellowship, and talk with their new friends.
  From lunch we jumped into Lego Leadership.  Each group was given two bags with legos.  Each color of Lego represented a different leadership quality.  It was up to the group to determine which qualities were most important and why.  They also had a black Lego which was classified as "a wild Card", so it could represent any quality they wanted.  Each group had a representative stand up and explain to the group why they had placed the Legos the way they had.  It was exceedingly interesting to hear their views on leadership and the qualities of leadership.
  After that the group split in half.  Half went to the kitchen to work with another of our great volunteers, Mr. Mike Bower on electric projects and the other half works with Mrs Stacie and Miss Shea Ann on activities.  In the kitchen the youth learned about capacitors, resistors, and used soldering irons to make electric kits.  In the auditorium our youth used Legos, robotic arms, and programmed dance moves without a computer.  We also broke out the VR goggles to get a preview of tomorrow...shhhh!  That's top secret!  Overall they seemed to have a good time.
  Of course we can't help but learn from everything we do.  Snack time involved popping popcorn for our youth so we showed them the science of popcorn and what it looks like popping thanks to the Slo-Mo Guys on YouTube.  It was incredibly fun and drove us down the path to other really cool science experiments that these guys have done.
  Before long our Bladen and Hoke County counterparts had to head home.  We are looking forward to seeing them tomorrow for a mooving experience.