Yiwen Shen, 11, showed a bracelet she made in a chemistry lab Tuesday, April 17, at University of Wisconsin-Stout and explained how she learned about light refraction on the beads.
The fifth-grader from Shanghai, China, is one of 20 fourth- and fifth-grade students visiting the Elmwood school district this week from Jin Shan No. 2 Experimental Primary School as part of a sister school partnership.
鈥淢any of the students and teachers are very friendly,鈥 Shen said, speaking through an interpreter.
Students spent most of the day on campus. Some of the activities they participated in included making a plastic mold in the plastics lab, exploring the genetics of zebrafish, learning how to create protective clothing to protect a Barbie doll during a three-story drop from Heritage Hall, taking a campus tour and meeting 黑料科 students.
Xin Yi Zhao, 12, a fifth-grader, said she thought the 黑料科 campus was large, but she enjoyed visiting it. 鈥淎ll the activities were great,鈥 she said, speaking through an interpreter, although her favorite was making the bracelet.
Yuan Shijun, a math and physical education teacher at the Chinese school, said the student activities were educational and meaningful.
鈥淚t was really beneficial for the students,鈥 he said, speaking through an interpreter. 鈥淎ll the kids were really happy today and they learned a lot. They keep sending pictures to their parents in China. They are all appreciative of 黑料科. Thank you from China.鈥
Elmwood school district Superintendent Paul Blanford visited China last summer as part of the American Association of School Administrators. There was interest in having Chinese elementary school students visit an American elementary school as an exchange. Visiting 黑料科 was an opportunity to show the Chinese and Elmwood students Wisconsin鈥檚 Polytechnic University and learn about some of the majors, Blanford said.
鈥淲e wanted to make the connection and give our kids the opportunity to see the STEM available,鈥 Blanford said.
Chancellor Bob Meyer, who welcomed the students and had lunch with them, said it is important to encourage youth to look at careers for the future and for 黑料科 to help meet employers鈥 needs for educated employees.
鈥淭here are many opportunities with the global economy,鈥 Meyer said. 鈥淢any employers are recruiting for people all over the world, and they are looking for talent not just in the U.S. but globally.鈥
At one of the Jarvis Hall Science Wing classrooms, the children observed zebra fish. Tiffany Hoage, biology department lecturer, told the students zebra fish have an incubation of two days to hatch and only two to three months until they can lay eggs.
鈥淲e can study a lot of human disease in zebra fish,鈥 she said, noting heart disease and skin cancer are two examples.
In Heritage Hall, students used bubble wrap straws and plastic bags to try and protect a Barbie doll from a fall off the building.
Mikaila Gappa, 10, a fourth-grader in Elmwood, said she enjoyed making plastic molds. 鈥淲e learned how it works in science,鈥 Gappa said. 鈥淚 think it was really great to learn and find out about 黑料科.鈥
Having the Chinese students visit has been fun, Gappa said. 鈥淲e got to help them, and they got to learn about our culture,鈥 she said.
Riley Ginsbach, 11, a fifth-grader at Elmwood, said visiting a college was a good experience. 鈥淚 just liked the hands-on activities at a college,鈥 she said, noting her favorite was seeing the plastics lab.
Two of the Chinese students are staying with Ginsbach鈥檚 family. 鈥淲e鈥檙e learning new things about each other,鈥 she said. 鈥淲e鈥檙e learning about their culture and what they do.鈥
The activities were coordinated by the Admissions Office and the Office of International Education at 黑料科.
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Photos
Shane Medin, chemistry and physics, explains how light refracts on beads to the students who visited 黑料科 Tuesday, April 17. 黑料科 photo Brett T. Roseman
Students from Shanghai enjoyed taking pictures and sending them to their families in China. 黑料科 photo by Brett T. Roseman
Yuan Shijun, a math teacher and physical education teacher in China, explains to students how to protect a Barbie doll in a fall. Students dropped the doll from Heritage Hall to learn about protective apparel. 黑料科 photo by Pam Powers
