Science Teacher Mrs. Esther Flores coordinated a Girls STEM Night on December 13 in her classroom, room 2.  The Girls STEM night encouraged and inspired girls to engage and participate in the math and science disciplines by meeting female mentors, who have made careers in STEM fields.  Participating students also completed a lab-like activity. STEM stands for Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math.

“I think it’s important that students see and experience real science from people who are scientists and engineers,” said Flores.

One project they worked on during this event was writing secret messages. Basically, students wrote messages in invisible ink and then used a process that made the ink visible.  Students mixed lemon and water in a bowl and then used cotton swabs to write their messages on paper. Subsequently, they let the message dry. Then, they put their papers on bright white light that caused the lemon to go through a chemical reaction and turn brown.

“It was so fun learning how chemical reactions happen especially since I want to get into science more and learn more about it,” said eighth grader Maricela Bonilla.

The mentors encouraged all participating students to study the STEM fields.  They asked the participants questions about their interests, what they liked in school.  The mentors also explained their careers and professional duties as well as the schooling it took to earn a job in the STEM fields.

“It was exciting and fun.  I learned a lot about my future and much more,” said seventh grader Sophia Mejia. 

“The best part was talking with our mentors about what we like in our classes and what we have done.  They were like friends,” said Maricela.  

In the end, the participants wrote letters to their mentors to thank them for their time and inspiring, motivating words.  The mentors wrote back letters to their students, too. Each mentor had four students.

“The best part was when we wrote letters to our mentors,” said Sophia.

A second STEM night occurred on February 13, and students created bath bombs for Valentine’s day.