BUSHLAND, TEXAS -- The toughness of the STAAR exam across Texas is no secret to teachers and students. But an Einstein Lab is helping to prepare Bushland kids for it with hands-on Science experiments.
From the sounds of the laughter coming from the Einstein Science Lab it's hard to believe there is actual learning going on. Each week, elementary school students take turns coming into the lab, and doing hands-on experiments.
This week, students have been making sounds using vibrations and dry ice.
"Wine glasses with water, not wine, with different levels of water in there to do the different pitches. Just different things so they can more understand that sound is made by several different vibrations," said Jana McKinney, Einstein Lab Teacher.
McKinney says it's proven Science, and students learn more by taking a lesson out of a book and putting it into motion.
"Once you're alone and you see it with your own hands other than reading it from a book, you can remember it so much better".
It's working on that memory that's the key to getting these kids ready for the rigor of the STAAR.
"What we're trying to do is enable them to know more about Science and not just, I mean we're so concentrated on Reading and Math and Writing that Science is kind of forgotten".
Bushland Elementary is Title One campus, that means it is required to have parent involvement. So parents volunteer in the Einstein Lab.
"I enjoy watching them learn and it's just an amazing program. My sons are both of them come home and say, "you know what we did in Einstein Lab today?" and they'll want to redo it at home," said Tanya Alloway, Parent Volunteer.
The kids aren't just learning from experiments. You'll also find in their classroom, three snakes, two geckos, a guinea pig, and a rabbit.
