Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: TUESDAY, July 25, 1995 TAG: 9507250054
SECTION: CURRENT PAGE: NRV-2 EDITION: NEW RIVER VALLEY
SOURCE: HALE SHEIKERZ
DATELINE: LENGTH: Long
That was the biggest complaint last week at the microbiology "Microscope Mania" class.
The kids compared the smell of the bacteria they were testing to rotten eggs and deadly fumes.
"It smells like the boys," said one of the girls in the class.
The boys had their own solution to the smell: gas masks - the collar of their T-shirts pulled up over their noses.
"But it doesn't block out enough," said Chris Grosshans, a third-grader from Christiansburg.
Even with the smell, however, the eight pupils in the class agreed they loved what they were learning: microbiology and how bacteria affects their everyday life.
The pupils met everyday for two hours last week at Christiansburg Primary School. The class, for pupils in grades three through eight, was part of Montgomery County's summer enrichment program. This was the first time the class was offered the county, said Norma Nelson, class instructor and a research microbiologist at Virginia Tech. This week, Nelson teaches the Teeny Tiny World, a microbiology class for first- and second-graders.
Nine-year-old Ashley Lavender said she didn't know anything about microbiology before she attended the class but has learned a lot now.
"I'm interested in learning about bacteria and how it makes you sick and how it can help you," Ashley said.
The kids learned what bacteria is, where it can be found, its shape, its characteristics, how it multiplies and even how it lives and grows in their sneakers.
When Pamela Burcham swabbed her sneaker for bacteria sample she was surprised and just a little nauseated. She said the bacteria almost covered the entire petri dish. And it smelled.
Callie Waggaman said her favorite part of the class was making media, which is bacteria food, and looking at it under the microscope.
After looking at bacteria under the microscope, Matthew Miller used his workbook to draw and color what he had just seen.
"This is fun and I've always wanted to learn about microscopes," Matthew said.
He and the other boys, Nick Curtin and Stan Harvey, sat together, away from the girls, talking about how they like microbiology, the bacteria and playing with the microscopes, but not the foul smell. Chris said none of the boys knew each other before the class started but they became friends really quickly.
Walter Morgan, playing with the pan balance to weigh paper, said the best part of the class was when he grew his own bacteria and culture. And yes, using the microscopes.
The microscopes, borrowed from Virginia Tech, also were used to look at stained microscope slides of human blood.
Each pupil also got to examine bacteria from their hand and air. They examined the two cultures in separate petri dishes and counted the number of colonies of bacteria present.
In general, the kids learned that bacteria lives all around them, on their desk, food and even their best friends. They also learned that bacteria helps make many foods they eat, like pickles, swiss cheese and cottage cheese.
They even learned that germs are a form of bacteria that makes them sick.
Almost like the cuckoo germs the boys have, the girls said.
The last day of class, each of the kids received a certificate recognizing them as an environmental microbiologist. Nelson hopes that the kids were left one important thought, "working with bacteria is a lot of fun." She added the county may offer a Microscope Mania II next summer.
John Hess of Christiansburg is spending two months at Brevard Music Center in North Carolina this summer. He is recipient of a scholarship made possible by Brevard Music Center Scholarship Fund.
He will take private violin lessons, participate in performing ensembles and attend classes and seminars presented by faculty and guest artists.
Hess is a rising 11th-grader at Christiansburg High School where he plays the trumpet in the school band. He also plays the violin in the Roanoke Youth Symphony.
Hess is the son of John and Ann Hess.
Four members of the Christiansburg Elementary School 4-H Lightning Learners Club recently planted flowers in front of the Montgomery County Courthouse.
Nikki Mitchem, Amanda Stone, Julie Woolwine and Tiffany Poole planted geraniums and marigolds on the courthouse lawn.
The flowers were donated by Virginia Tech Horticulture Department.
Three Blacksburg Middle School students recently received awards for poetry in Virginia Highlands Writing Contest. The students were members of the school's creative writing class that was newly formed last year.
Brendan Adams, rising 8th-grader, placed first in the poetry contest. Salome Balderama, also a rising 8th-grader, placed 2nd in the poetry contest and Leah Wechtaluk, a rising 9th-grader at Blacksburg High School, placed 3rd.
Teacher Jane Goette encouraged the students to enter the contest in the spring.
The three students will receive their awards and will be recognized at a Creative Writing Day celebration at the Martha Washington Inn in Abingdon in August.
There's still time to sign up for the Children's Early American Day Camp being offered at the Smithfield Plantation House in Blacksburg.
The camp, Colonial Life for Children, is for children ages 8, 9 and 10. The sessions meet everyday from 9 a.m. to noon at the Smithfield house, a Colonial Home built in 1773. The course is designed to take two weeks and include different activities each week; a one week option is being offered for either week.
The camp is organized and taught by elementary school teacher Sue Hodge. Activities will include writing in caligraphy, sewing a strip quilt, interpreting a mock archeological dig and making Indian clay coil pots with a local potter.
Classes are limited to 30 students and registration deadline is August 5. Following is a list of sessions and their cost:
Session I: August 14-18, $65.
Session II: August 21-25, $65.
Session III: August 14-25, $100.
For more information, call 231-3947.
by CNB