Wisconsin School for the Deaf - The Wisconsin Times Vol. 135 No. 4 Summer 2014 | Page 18

Total Disappearance Kasen Lopez, son of WSD staff members Carlos Lopez and Karen Turcsany-Lopez, put together a project for his school science fair. Based on the fact of the black hole that exists in our galaxy, he developed something tangible for anyone who visited his demonstration to get the full picture of how gravity plays a big part. Kasen brought his project to WSD to share with the elementary and middle school boys on B-3. In one gravity demonstration, Kasen used a blow dryer and a Ping-Pong ball. He turned on the hand-held blow dryer and placed a Ping-Pong ball in the path of the blowing air. In another gravity experiment Kasen used an hourglass shaped vase. Everyone was encouraged to release a coin or a marble on the very top and watch it spiral down towards the narrow base. Kasen explained to the students that the objects released in the vase represent the stars and the vase represents the black hole. Stars that get too close are pulled into the black hole and will never be seen again due to the gravitational force being so strong that even light cannot escape. Students shared their fear that our solar system will get too close to the black hole. Their imaginations ran wild as they shared their fears. Kasen assured them that it will not happen during their lifetime or any time soon due to the fact the black hole has been in existence long before anyone could acknowledge it. John Michell and Pierre-Simon Laplace first considered objects whose gravity fields are too strong for light to escape in the 18th century. Kasen did a wonderful job showcasing his research on gravity and his science project at WSD. Kudos to Kasen! Circle of Trust Jamie Chapin meets with the elementary girls on Tuesdays after school. This group was set up to develop trust among the girls. The goal of the activities is to reduce tattling and bullying. The girls made tattle monster boxes in order to help the girls learn to solve their own problems rather than diverting staff from their time on the job. Each girl decorated a box and labeled it, ‘Tattle Monster.’ When an issue arises, the girls are encouraged to write the problem on a piece of paper and put it in her Tattle Monster box. At the end of the day after attempting to resolve it on their own, if the issue has not been resolved, then they may present the issue to a staff member who was there at the immediate location to see if mediation can solve the problem. BELOW: Caitlyn Buchman-Pozca adding some feathers to her dream catcher. 2013-14 Summer - 18 BELOW: Erian Danke, Tania Rooker, and Ra’Nell Smith creating their dream catchers. Another activity was making a dream catcher. Some of the girls confessed to going to bed with negative thoughts and some even had nightmares and lost sleep. Jamie explained to the girls that they should hang the dream catcher on the wall near their bed. Before they go to sleep they are to state their negative thoughts to the dream catcher. Hopefully the girls will have a good night sleep and sweet dreams!