AMENIA — Despite the looming bad weather on Saturday morning, Feb. 25, the Webutuck STEAM fair was a resounding success. The Eugene Brooks Intermediate School (EBIS) gymnasium was the site of about 40 projects presented with titles ranging from the whimsical to the thoughtful.
Co-chairs and middle-school science teachers Danielle Fridstrom and Christine Gillette were gratified to see the results. “We were happy with the turnout this year and learned much from the enthusiastic participants,” Gillette noted, adding, “I think the key piece for getting students to participate is to encourage them to pick something that interests them. Whether it be dairy farms to corgis or Jolly Rancher candies, it is important to choose something they are excited about. This then makes the project fun and not a tedious task.”
As to differences in fairs from year to year and ongoing similarities, Fridstrom continued: “It was terrific to see the creativity this year — even jokes were added to ‘This Project is Bananas’! We always struggle getting seventh- to 12th-grade participants so we are thrilled to see any of them show up and present.”
That latter group was represented by 11 students with projects ranging from top winner “Gummy Bear Osmosis” to technical explorations like “Archery Science,” “What Puts the Pop in Popcorn?”, survey studies (“Jolly Rancher Preferences”), keen observations from real life in “Digestive System of a Cow” and the sobering “We Destroyed: The Oceans.”
On the value of the yearly fair, Fridstrom said, “It’s a great opportunity to practice doing science …While we certainly do lots of hands-on things in class, we’re always amazed at the kind of things students come up [with] to investigate, and it’s always exciting to see the investigations into things we don’t know answers to.”
The spirit of youthful playfulness was in evidence in projects with titles like “Tiny Dancers — Homopolar Motor,” MacGyver Award winner “Elephant Toothpaste,” and the hilarious and informative “This Project is Bananas!” by the ebullient Schultz sisters, Charlotte and Alivia.
The role of older student “listeners” was touching to observe. One was Gillette’s daughter Zoe, who reflected, “We get them to open up and reveal more than they thought they knew,” adding that it seemed wise that participation in the fair is a voluntary effort based on students’ deep interests.
Exploring our region’s natural resources with a family angle, two Lawrence siblings with firsthand knowledge explored dairy cows, one with the use of a drawing previously made by their mother and overlaid with anatomical terms relating to the bovine digestive system.
In terms of environmentally focused work, two projects took a broad view toward solving a problem that may seem intractable: plastic waste, particularly in our oceans. In “We Destroyed: The Oceans,” Lyla Kern and Andy Mersand, both seventh-graders, looked at the decomposition rate of plastic and paperlike materials in three conditions: plain water, water over time, and water containing enzymes. Though some materials may be labeled “flushable,” their investigations showed that those claims may be less than accurate.
Taking off from one of science history’s great serendipities, fourth-grader Zoe Gellweiler’s project, “Milk Plastic/Bioplastic! The Single Use Plastic Solution,” explained how, in 1897, German scientist Adolf Spitteler’s rather clumsy cat was responsible for the invention of casein. Pronounced “kay-seen,” the word refers both to the protein in milk that provides its white color as well as a type of plastic made from it. An overnight spill of formaldehyde into the feline’s milk bowl resulted in a hard, horn-like substance that was eventually used to make combs, buttons, buckles, beads, handles for various implements, pens, game pieces and even bowls until the 1930s.
Zoe’s project suggests that food wrap films made from casein could help to solve the problem of single-use plastics, since casein plastic is stronger and biodegradable under home composting conditions, without the toxicity of petroleum-based plastics. Whether our habits can revert to pre-petroleum practices or the deep links between the plastics and petrochemical industries can be undone are issues for adults to ponder.
The program ended with all participants receiving gift bags, some students getting book vouchers from Oblong, and winners in various categories claiming their prizes and certificates of participation. As adults helped to pack away projects destined for the County Science Fair at Dutchess Community College in late March, or the district’s upcoming Math and Science Night, several young scientists dashed around the cavernous gym, seeming to enact some basic principles of kinetic energy.
More information, and pictures of winners in all categories, are available on the Webutuck Central School District website -www.-webutuckschools.org
Second-grader Lois Musgrove indicates one of her favorite parts in her investigation of fossils. Photo by Deborah Maier
Nora Garcia, 6, of Millerton, bottom right, gets a face painting treatment from Maddy Rowe, a Webutuck High School senior. Nora’s sister, Juliana, 8, top right, is decorated by Giana Kall, a Webutuck senior. The program was sponsored by the Webutuck PTA.
Bee Bee the Clown offered everyone attending the Millerton Street Fair balloon figures, jokes and musical sleight-of-hand. “I can make 50 types of balloon animals without thinking and probably around 100 if I concentrate,” the most complex being a rabbit in a top hat made from balloons, Bee Bee said. The clown, who also bills herself as Jackie the Magician, merged her two disciplines of clowning and magic to entertain visitors for the length of the fair.Bee Bee’s commitment to her craft appears beyond her performance, as reflected in her brightly-colored outfit and carefully-applied makeup. “The control exercised over the line work detail” of her eye makeup and the proper choice of footwear — no smaller than the size-16 shoes Bee Bee wore — are two of the aspects of clown dress which Bee Bee noted as being most important to her costume.Photo by Charlie Greenberg
The NorthEast-Millerton Library joined in the fun, hosting a book sale inside and a cookie bake-off on the front lawn.
Live music on the lawn of the Millerton Methodist Church supplied good vibes to those within earshot. The John Stey Band started the morning with classic country, western and bluegrass tunes. The afternoon wrapped up with a few hours of Afro-Cuban jazz from the Berkshire Resilience Brass Band.
Townscape and the North East Community Center joined in participating as non-profit organizations in the Millerton News Street Fair, coinciding with the regular weekly Millerton Farmers’ Market that attracts more than a dozen vendors to sell fresh produce, baked goods and more.
Eloise Gerstle, 2 and a half, posed with her balloon animal and her mother, Aimee Couture, both of Sharon, enjoying the fun of the Millerton News Street Fair on Saturday, June 28.Photo by Leila Hawken
Lisa Cope, Village of Millerton Town Clerk, was there to hand out “Save the Date” cards for next year’s 175th Anniversary of Millerton.
“I know it’s early,” she said. “but it’s coming.”
Amanda Coppola, the Webutuck Elementary School principal, was on hand to discuss after school programs, and mentioned a new pre-K program for three-year-olds that is the first in Dutchess County.
And Century Boulevard was packed with cars. License plates from across the Northeast could be spotted lining the wide street, including New York, New Jersey, Connecticut, Massachusetts and even Pennsylvania.
Reporting and photography from Leila Hawken, Charlie Greenberg, Nathan Miller and John Coston contributed to this article.
Photo by Nathan Miller
Brody Reyes of Millerton, left, and Aaliyah Velie of Millerton, right, run and play with a beach ball in the parking lot of the Millerton Firehouse on Century Boulevard.
The Millerton Fire Company was a popular destination with its hot food — dogs and burgers and homemade french fries. The volunteer firemen ran the concession. Patti Lynch-VandeBogart was also on hand with popcorn and flavored ices.Kelly Roger, treasurer and a fire police captain of the department had pulled together the fire department’s food court.
A touch-a-truck event for children was popular, leading occasionally to a loud blast of a fire truck horn from an excited youngster.
