Spooky science
St. Albert chemistry wizards will once again take students on a scientific adventure this week at a pair of free shows meant to get kids more interested in science.
About 200 Leo Nickerson and Sir Alexander Mackenzie students will be at Paul Kane Oct. 25 for the seventh annual MakiNg Halloweenie Spooktacular science magic show. Organized by Paul Kane chemistry teacher Michael Ng and his high-school helpers, the show sees Ng and company use scientific principles to conjure fireballs, disintegrate Styrofoam heads and make pumpkins vomit.
Ng and his crew will perform similar feats of science sorcery the next day at the University of Alberta’s Katz Group Centre for Pharmacy and Health Research as part of the eighth annual School of Witchcraft and Wizardry show. Some 2,500 Edmonton-area students are expected to attend.
Ng said the School of Wizardry and the Spooktacular are both meant to wow students with science demos they might not ordinarily see in class to make them more enthusiastic about science.
“We want them to be future scientists.”
Organized by Let’s Talk Science, the School of Witchcraft will see 5- to 15-year-olds learn about science through hands-on Harry-Potter-themed activities, said event co-organizer Nicole Jankovic. Guests will get to meet live owls, snakes, spiders and kittens, experiment with ferrofluids and VR technology, and turn bananas into pianos using circuits and coding.
The highlight of the day will be the Potion Show put on by Ng and fellow science wizard Lucio Gelmini of MacEwan University.
“Dr. Gelmini loves to play with fire,” Ng said, so he’ll be doing a lot of tricks with light and explosions. Ng said he would conjure oozes and colour changes using chemistry.
While the two shows are similar, Ng said the Spooktacular features big fireballs and Mentos-and-Coke fountains he could only do in Paul Kane’s high-ceiling gym, while the School has more tricks with liquid nitrogen (which you can’t get at Paul Kane).
Ng said he does these shows as a way to give back to the community and enjoys seeing the reactions of the audience.
“Just getting them laughing and smiling makes me happy.”
The School of Witchcraft runs from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Oct. 26. Tickets are free but going fast. Visit ltssoww.wordpress.com for details.
Vaping talk
A St. Albert school board is hosting a free talk this Thursday to help prevent an “epidemic” of vaping amongst St. Albert teens.
St. Albert Public Schools is holding a free Vaping 101 talk for parents by Alberta Health Services Oct. 24.
The talk is meant to teach parents about the potential harmful effects of vaping, which has taken off amongst local junior and senior high students in the last year, said St. Albert Public deputy superintendent Marianne Barrett. Alberta Health Services says some 20 per cent of youths aged 15 to 19 have reported trying out e-cigarettes.
“I think it has the potential to be a health epidemic amongst our teens,” Barrett said, and the more we know about vaping, the better our chances of keeping it in check.
The talk is one of several local efforts underway to get the facts out about vaping, Barrett said. The RCMP have added a lesson on vaping to their Drug Abuse Resistance Education (D.A.R.E.) program this year, and all junior high students will learn about vaping as part of National Addictions Awareness Week in late November. St. Albert Public and Greater St. Albert Catholic will make a joint call for a ban on advertising vaping products to youth at next month’s Alberta School Boards Association meeting.
The talk is at W.D. Cuts from 7 to 8:30 p.m. Visit www.spschools.org/parent-sessions for details.
