Science in the Triangle

Editor’s note: Molly is an example of what can happen when girls are free to explore and supported as science activists - even when that means having a menagerie of 36 fish, salamanders, turtles, dogs, rabbits and other pets at home. She is a seventh grader at Resurrection Lutheran School in Cary and the founder of the Raleigh Aquatic Turtle Adoption. In this guest post, which she wrote with her mother, Molly describes how getting a pet fish led to planning a STEM summer camp at her school this year.

My name is Molly, I am 12 and I created STEM Leadership Camp.

Betta fish come in many colors. This is a green one.

When I was little I wanted tons of pets. My mom said I could have a betta fish if I took really good care of it. So I got Rainbow, who lived for two years. When I was 5, I got my first puppy, Zoe, who is my best friend.

Once we drove by a pond and I saw a turtle. I had seen one in a nature book, so I asked for a turtle. My mom and I looked up what kind of tank they like and where to get one.

Eventually, we adopted two turtles from an owner who couldn’t keep them. We decided to adopt more and realized we needed a permit to have more than four, so my mom applied for one and now we take care of many turtles.We also created Raleigh Aquatic Turtle Adoption (RATA) www.raleighaquaticturtleadoption.com and it has been running since 2006. RATA helps to get new homes for unwanted aquatic pet turtles.

I currently have about 20 fish, including 13 koi, three salamanders, 12 turtles, two dogs, two rabbits, one betta and three moon jellyfish, making a grand total of 36 pets.

I think everybody walks into the pet store thinking, “This is so awesome, I want to get a fish.” But when you actually end up taking it home and you learn how you have to care for it you get a different understanding of how that animal lives and what it needs. I think having pets has given me a little window into the natural world and natural environments.

My favorite animal is the cuttlefish. I think it’s so alien to everything - it can change color and the texture of its skin. I think “sci-fi movie” when I think about it. It’s really interesting that we’re sharing the same planet with this animal and I’m curious to learn more about it.

I’ve had different ideas for a STEM Leadership Camp for awhile, and I would say things like, “A dissection would really be awesome to have in a camp,” or, “I wish we had more guest speakers,” or even, “Mom, can you find a camp where everyone takes it really seriously but they still have tons of fun?”

One day last summer I said to my Mom, “You know I could really be good at running a camp, I could have STEM stuff like robots and Sudoku and every day could have a different theme and campers could all get journals…”

After half an hour of constant talking she eventually said, “Write it down.” I wrote everything on my white board and then created a Powerpoint that I presented to many people in the Research Triangle area, trying to find a home for my camp. My principal agreed and camp will run at Resurrection Lutheran School in Cary from June 20-24.

The first day of camp will be an introduction and we’ll talk about leadership, the rest of the days go in the order of STEM, science (Tuesday) technology (Wednesday), engineering (Thursday) and math (Friday). There will be a good balance of hands-on activities and listening to guest speakers. Hands-on activities will include bridge building, frog dissection, Rubik’s Cube, learning how to have a safe web presence by making one yourself and math activities.

I’ve created this camp because it’s very different than other camps in the area. There are many camps designed to motivate kids, but there is no bridge between “Yes, I’m motivated” and “Watch me run the aquarium.”

My plan is to have students apply so that I can learn why they want to be here. This has been put on the facebook page for the Contemporary Science Center, I’m emailing many STEM teachers in western Wake County, I’ve emailed my friends on Centennial Campus, it’s going in my school newsletter and I’ve told my STEM Facebook friends from around the country about it. I’m also promoting it by word-of-mouth.

STEM Leadership is especially designed to help self-motivated kids start a successful career. I believe that children thrive when they are surrounded by others who share the same interests and role models who inspire them. I’ve only met a little more than a handful of these kids and have gotten to know them really well, but those are the friends I trust the most.