Union’s chapter of the Student Members of the American Chemical Society is working on a play to teach high school students about stoichiometry, an area of chemistry that deals with the relative quantities of reactants and products in chemical reactions.
The organization has been performing plays from Fusion Science Theater in local schools over the past year.
The plays are designed to teach students basic scientific concepts in a simple, engaging way.
Organizers said the plays have been successful in teaching basic chemistry concepts to students in many schools in the Jackson area.
After performing several times, members of Union’s chapter wanted to write a play of their own, geared more toward high school students.
They chose to base the play on stoichiometry, a concept many high schoolers have difficulty understanding.
“Teachers have been really receptive to the high school play idea, and they’ve said stoichiometry is an ideal topic to help students understand, so we’re trying to figure out a play that helps with stoichiometric principles,” said Brooklin Byrd, senior biology major.
The play will be a new experience for the chapter because it is the first one to address a high school audience.
Tyler Jones, senior chemistry major, is the group’s community outreach coordinator, and he is working with others to write the play.
“The other plays we have done are on a more elementary level in that they are about concepts high schoolers already know about or would understand easily,” Jones said.
Members of the organization said they hope the new audience of high school students will react well to the play and learn from it.
“This is a fun way to get the community involved,” Jones said. “When we come across as being interested, it attracts students.”
The play is in the rough stages with many more drafts to go before completion. After the writing is done, members of the society will work on props and staging, which play a big part in the plays’ success.
Ideally, the play will be ready to perform at the end of October.
