On October 3, twenty-eight San Jose State University students in Maureen Scharberg’s chemistry class came to the Selma Olinder Elementary School after-school program to show students that science is exciting.

 Seventy students from Olinder were sitting in the school cafeteria with safety glasses on as the SJSU volunteers explained the directions for the science activities.

Olinder students were fascinated as they learned about density, physical properties and other basic concepts of chemistry

 “It’s hard for us to run lesson-plans because of the amount of students in our after-school program and the limited number of staff,” said an after-school program employee.

The SJSU students haven’t finished teaching the basic concepts of chemistry yet.  They will also facilitate science activities at Anne Darling Elementary and McKinley Elementary Schools. 

This is another example of elementary school students, SJSU students and community members benefiting from service learning.