July 18, 2014 at 2:59 p.m.
Library's Fizz Boom Read program combines science and fun
Library's Fizz Boom Read program combines science and fun
By Kayla Thomason-
The first experiment involved dry ice. Some small slivers were placed in film containers and sealed while the main block was put in a bucket with warm water.
Soon banging noises could be heard as the little canisters popped. Children jumped in surprise.
In another experiment, pink "elephant toothpaste" surged out of a glass bottle and encased it, and a section of the table, in thick-looking foam.
Another experiment the children enjoyed was the patriotic potion.
A beaker was wrapped in foil and corn syrup with red food coloring was added. Next came whole milk and Tom Hurlburt, children's librarian and interim director, asked the children what color they thought the mixture was.
Many responded with pink. Blue lamp oil was then added. The children were asked the question again and many responded with various shades of purple.
They were surprised when the foil was removed and all the liquids were separated into layers.
Trey Holtz and Ellie VanCamp liked the red, white and blue container as well as the elephant toothpaste.
"I like when they mix up colors," Trey said.
Trey's brother, Brett, liked the lava lamp, which consisted of vegetable oil, water, food coloring and Alka Seltzer in a container that sits on a flashlight.
"We like the ones with the dish soap, those are fun, there's a lot of dish soap ones you can do," said the boys' mother, Carol Holtz.
Fizz Boom Read was a hit with other families too.
Another mother, Ann VanCamp, liked the lava lamp and elephant toothpaste. She said she would incorporate them into her home-school curriculum.
"We home-school them so this is a good thing to add to what we do," she said.
Hurlburt said a lot of thought and research went into the experiments.
"[Cheryle Miller], she did a lot of research and we tried a good combination of things some of it you can with home kitchen products, a few were bought with kits, kind of simple, kind of fast at the age we entertain you got to keep it moving," he said.
Another benefit of the program is it keeps children interested in reading and science.
"I just like it because it is a great chance for the kids to decide to look into some of the books," Holtz said. "They didn't realize there were so many experiment books out there and now they are 'Oh there is a whole bunch more you could do.'"
The Rhinelander District Library staff hopes children will keep reading, especially over the summer.
"We hope they will come visit and take home some books and continue reading because sometimes - they call it the "summer slide" - kids will lose some of their reading skills because they are not reading during the summer," Hurlburt said.
Schedules for the upcoming Fizz Boom Read programs are posted on the library's website www.rhinelanderlibrary.org.
Kayla Breese may be reached at [email protected].
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