The Science of Leadership – Using Cool Science Demos to Increase Participation in Student Council
In 1996 I was asked to be a student council sponsor at Willow Creek Elementary. We had a problem getting kids to show up to student council meetings at 7.30am.
Working with Dr. Earl Reum, we came up with the idea of using engaging science demonstrations to help illustrate some basic concepts of leadership and team building. We called the program the Science of Leadership – where kids learn how to act as leaders and develop their leadership skills using science experiences. One of our first connections used a classic demo called a Windbag or a Bernoulli Bag to teach the concept of goal setting and the idea of using lots of “outside help” to accomplish what seems to be impossible. A Windbag is a giant plastic bag measuring 8 feet long by 10 inches around. Ask how many breaths it will take to blow up the bag? About 40-50? If you know the secret, you can inflate the giant bag in a single breath. The secret is to hold your mouth away from the bag, breathe, and the fast-moving stream of air from your lungs helps to pull air in from the side. It’s …
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