At CCHS, one club has been quietly shaping future scientists for decades—one marshmallow, one spaghetti stick, and one splash of curiosity at a time. The club, called Teach Our Youth Science (TOYS), connects high school students with elementary students to share the joy of hands-on science while giving high school students the opportunity to earn volunteer hours.
How does a typical meeting work?
The motto is simple: science is best learned by doing. Every Wednesday after school, club members gather in the CCHS cafeteria to travel to local elementary schools, such as Alcott and Hunt Gym.
Elementary school students are divided into small groups, each led by one or two high school students. Every experiment is interactive, introducing young students to core STEM concepts. Experiments range from engineering spaghetti-and-marshmallow towers to exploring the strange properties of oobleck.
None of these experiments requires prior knowledge; all younger students need is curiosity and a willingness to learn.
The Club’s Impact
TOYS members emphasize that learners don’t need prior knowledge, and teachers don’t need perfection either! Nor do they need to have taken advanced science courses. Evan Moffit, a senior at CCHS, recounts, “The kids learn best when they’re allowed to tinker, ask questions, and sometimes fail. Half of teaching is just being there to guide them when curiosity strikes.”
As Fennell Wisseh, a junior at CCHS, explained, during a tower-building experiment where structures kept collapsing, she used it as an opportunity to teach “how engineering is a long-term process…[that] takes patience. [She] always [told] them to never give up.”
Both Moffit and Wisseh emphasize that letting kids make mistakes is part of teaching. Even seeing their “teacher” make mistakes at times shows that errors are inevitable, but it’s important never to give up.
It reveals the true nature of the club: not only teaching science concepts, but also instilling endurance and critical thinking that students can apply throughout their lives.
TOYS stands out for how it has shaped not only its learners, but also the high schoolers. As Wisseh shares, “I’ve seen myself grow so much. I’ve become less afraid to take risks.”
How Do I Join?
With 30 years of success at CCHS, TOYS thrives by showing that curiosity is contagious. All students are welcome to join! Interested students can join the Google Classroom (code: jqwhplv) to receive weekly reminders about upcoming visits.
The TOYS club isn’t just about checking a box for community service hours. Instead, they’re helping shape how kids see science—and themselves. While science can seem intimidating, TOYS shows that a little creativity—and a lot of curiosity—can go a long way.
