Smash it! Crash it! Launch it!
About the Teacher
Mr. Calderon is a graduate of the University of Texas at Austin with a bachelors degree in Psychology (Pre-Med) and a Masters degree in counseling from St. Edwards University. He has been a middle school teacher for Pflugerville I.S.D. at Westview Middle School for 7 years. He has taught 6th, 7th, and 8th grade math and science. He has also been a cheerleading coach and a boys soccer coach for at Westview for 4 years. The Westview Middle School Cheerleading team achieved a National Championship in 2010 and a Regional Championship in 2012. The boys soccer team also recently won the district championship for P.I.S.D. in May of 2012. Mr. Calderon is also a GED instructor for Austin Community College where he has personally achieved over 120 graduates from program. Mr. Calderon’s philosophy in teaching and coaching is to create a positive, comfortable environment where students have the ability to learn and excel. He is an avid chess player and always enjoys a quick game to keep his students engaged. During his off time, Mr. Calderon enjoys spending time with his daughters (Victoria -15 and Isabella-7) bike riding, swimming and golfing. As an ongoing project of 6 years, Mr. Calderon has volunteered time to collect blankets and clothing for Austin’s homeless as well as donations for the Boys Scouts Club #2 in his home town of Chihuahua, Mexico. He is excited to join this wonderful organization and looks forward to spending time this summer with his new students.
A note from the teacher & some of the things the campers learned while in camp
Dear Parents,
It has been my honor and pleasure of getting to know and teach your children the fun of science and physics! On Monday, the campers began this exciting camp by learning about the effects of momentum. There’s not a better way to learn about this topic than falling eggs! Students were tasked to building a safety apparatus in which they would place their egg. Students then went outside and dropped their eggs from the top of the play ground. Campers quickly found out some secrets to a successful landing such as soft padding(toilet paper). We then increased the challenge by the eggs from over 15 feet. If any eggs survived these challenges, than they would be subjected to a high speed pitch into a concrete wall! (None survived FYI)
On Tuesday the campers learned about aerodynamics. From cars to paper airplanes, students worked in teams to investigate which methods were more successful with vehicle travel. Students then designed the perfect paper airplane. At the end of the day we had a challenge and the winning paper airplanes was launched and flew appx. 50 ft.
On Wednesday the campers began working with catapults. Students began studying the design of a catapult and started making artillery (paper wads). We finished the day by having a real life battleship fight in which students were unable to move from their original locations. All shots had to be fired via a catapult. Bombs Away!
On Thursday since campers were so excited about catapults, we decided to take our new knowledge to another level. Therefore, we loaded our catapults with water balloons and had a water balloon battle. During the second half of class, students built parachutes for eggs. Students had to investigate which design and material is best. Things got quite sticky and wet.
On Friday we saved best for last! Campers investigated controlled reactions that lead to propulsion. After discussing how NASA uses these techniques to send rockets into orbit, we then decided to create our own controlled explosion. Students each took a turn in putting a minty-fresh mentos into 2 liter bottles of dietary carbonated water with high fructose corn syrup also known as diet coke. These mixtures yielded from one inch to 15 foot controlled explosion.
So parents beware if your kids start buying mentos!
