Growing Up STEM Minh-Thi Nguyen

A girl drops in her seventh Alka-Seltzer tablet, still perplexed that her cough medicine can transform her mundane plastic bottle into a colorful lava lamp.

“Again!”

Five boys laugh as their Coca-Cola rockets spiral through the air. The 300 kids squeal at the sight of the "Flaming Chicken" demonstration. Welcome to Growing Up S.T.E.M.’s Family Science Night.

In 2015, I founded the club Growing Up S.T.E.M with my friend. With the help of high school volunteers, Growing Up S.T.E.M. hosts community events to inspire and foster scientific interest among the youth of Los Alamitos. Seeing high school students trudge into their science classes everyday, I find contentment in observing not only the children, but also the volunteers who refuse to declare themselves a “science-person” become captivated by the hands-on experiments and projects.

Although I teach the students science, I never cease to learn; the powers of naivety in the young children intrigue me.

“At what age do I become an adult?” Vivi, a Kindergartener, once asked. Under my mentorship, her question transformed into an insightful Psychology research project for our S.T.E.A.M. Fair.

Not only do we provide opportunities for the children to learn, we also provide outlets for...