Rocio Chavez: ¡explora! - Blog # 4

¡Hola a Todos!

The fourth week of my internship with Explora was busy, but very fun. I had the opportunity to get to know to the staff and volunteers better. I continued to give group tours and doing prep. I also helped in the summer camp called “Chemistry in the Kitchen”. Although I was always busy with something, I felt comfortable in the working environment that Explora offers.

The tour groups, as usual, went great. It’s amazing how I’m still learning from all the museum floor areas and exhibits. Children are the teachers at Explora, they are the ones that “think outside box’. Every time I asked them what they were doing, they responded with something that I would’ve never imagined could be done at that exhibit. The number one rule at Explora is to “touch and experiment everything”.

“Chemistry in the Kitchen” was for children from grades 2-3. Here they learned about the different ingredients that make dough raise, the types of fats for cooking, and how to distinguish healthy foods from unhealthy foods. Each day had a theme, on Monday they worked with cabbage juice to test the pH level of different liquids. They mad a painting, in a piece of cloth that had been pre-soaked in cabbage juice, using different liquids to make shades of green (base) and red (acid). They also made green eggs using cabbage juice instead of food coloring. Tuesday, they experimented with baking soda and baking powder, and made three types of biscuits. One batch with backing powder, one with baking soda, and the last with no baking powder or baking soda. Wednesday, they learned of the different types of foods that contained proteins, fats, carbohydrates, potassium, and sugar. They learned what proportion of each they should eat. Thursday, they made Snicker Doodle cookies, using different types of fats, for snack time, then created their own cookie recipe. Some cookies were good and others not so much. This Friday we experimented with yeast, and made their own Pizza Margarita from scratch. They also made their own yeast bread. All the participants enjoyed this camp for both the delicious snacks and the chemistry behind the kitchen.

Overall the forth week with Explora was amazing. I only have three days left in this internship, and I know that I will miss it, from interacting with guests to cleaning up the camp area. I am excited for what the last three days will offer, but sad that it is almost over.  

-Rocio Chavez