By Ishika Desai
On August 3rd, the San Diego Chapter of JuSTEMagine led a successful online event highlighting the field of neuroscience. The Chapter, led by Nupur Bhalla and Tanvi Movva, hosted a virtual event for kids ranging from 3rd to 8th grade. The San Diego Chapter was interested in Biology, but wanted to host an event based on a specific sector of science that applied it instead. They presented on a variety of neurological topics such as the brain and different neurodegenerative disorders, such as Alzheimers. At the end, they did an interactive trivia game which was based on applying what the kids learned. When asked about the impact the event had on the Chapter, Nupur stated that, “It was cool to see the impact that the event had on the kids, especially during the trivia portion as we were able to see them apply what we had taught them.” Using the knowledge gained from the event, the San Diego Chapter came to the conclusion that teaching and using trivia to have a fun and engaging way to learn was the right way to go, but to move forward, they wanted to expand into in-person events.
They accomplished their goal by hosting a materials science event at a local library. Using clay and toothpicks to build different structures, the 20 participants were able to experiment with different shapes to test what structures were the sturdiest. To add on, they also learned about the different components of structures, types of materials, and strength to build to build the structures according to the fundamentals of engineering principles. At the end, the kids did a trivia with candy as the prize over what they had learned during the event.
Overall, it is evident that the San Diego Chapter is doing very well in engaging their community in building foundational principles in STEM. They are aiming to continue having more in-person events covering a variety of science topics. By creating an engaging learning environment, the San Diego Chapter displays the power of education through fun and intriguing events.
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