Author: Tammy Lane • First Posted: Friday, November 05, 2010

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Sixth-graders launched tiny marshmallows to test their catapults' range and accuracy.

Something intriguing is always afoot in the sixth-grade science lab at Tates Creek Middle School.

It could be an art project making wind socks to display the elements in the periodic table or math calculating the atomic mass of their isotopes. One week, early in a physics unit, the hands-on project happened to be catapults – building and testing them for distance and accuracy.

Missy Schmidt, a veteran teacher who is in her first year in Fayette County Public Schools, has no trouble keeping the kids’ attention. And as they readily admit, they love to be challenged.

“Most everything I’ve asked them to do that was upper level, they’ve figured out,” Schmidt said. “They’re so inquisitive.”

While she previously taught on the high school and college level, she has found these young gifted and talented students are up for any adventure.

“They feel like they’re getting to do something daring,” she said.

Elle Ogden, who says this class has a great reputation around campus, particularly likes working with real chemicals now in a middle school lab. Of course, Schmidt first spent a week talking about safety and how to do things the right way.

“We once roasted a marshmallow to observe whether it was a physical or a chemical change,” young Thomas Werner recalled.

And in the latest experiment, the kids used marshmallows to test their catapults in the hallway, away from harm. The key lesson was how to turn potential into kinetic energy.

“Aiming the catapult is much harder than trying to get the distance,” Schmidt explained as students paired up with tiny ammunition in hand.

Some used plastic spoons, wooden Popsicle sticks and rubber bands. Others opted for a slingshot approach. In the end, their results were as diverse as the kids themselves. And that was OK.

Schmidt, who is available before and after school for extra help, never leaves anyone behind and tries to make sure all her students grasp the material.

“I try to differentiate in lots of ways and give second and third chances for kids who struggle,” she said.

Along with science core content, she introduces her students to related ACT questions and pushes the kids to stretch themselves. That meshes with Tates Creek’s recent designation as an International Baccalaureate Middle Years Programme, which provides a framework of academic challenge that encourages students to become critical and reflective thinkers.

“Human ingenuity is one of the IB characteristics,” Schmidt pointed out. “As an IB learner, it’s really important to see that human ingenuity being worked out in the science field.”

Thus her students are monitoring research projects at the University of Kentucky, seeing how science plays out in their local community.

In her classroom, Schmidt also incorporates the IB concept of organization, having the kids collect data and make their own study guides.

“I spend a lot of time talking about what they need to bring to the table to be ready to learn,” she said.

Ultimately, she hopes her students realize there’s always a “why” behind every process and that they figure out how to ask the right questions. Meanwhile, the youngsters already benefit on many levels.

“We enjoy being challenged because she explains what it means and how it works,” said Jordan Strange, adding, “It’s good to have a science teacher who lets us have a lot of fun.”