ST. LOUIS AMERICAN • AUGUST 25 - 31, 2016 A15

SCIENCE CORNER

New University City

Superintendent, Dr.

Sharonica Hardin-

Bartley, gives a STEM

lesson in math to 4th grader

Myles Dunkin and 3rd grader

Kohlia Dunkin, at the Barbara

C. Jordan Elementary School in

the School District of University

City. Photo by Wiley Price/St.

Louis American

DID YOU KNOW?

African-American Inventor and Entrepreneur Madame C.J. Walker

Madame C.J. Walker was born in Louisiana in

1867. Her parents were former slaves and very poor. They

both passed away before Walker was 7 years old. Walker

worked with her older sister in a cotton field in Mississippi

until she got married at the age of 14. In 1885, she had

a daughter and her husband died two years later. Walker

and her daughter then moved to St. Louis to live with her

older brothers, who were barbers. Walker earned money

to support herself and educate her daughter, by working

as a laundrywoman. She became involved in the National

Association of Colored Women.

Walker had a scalp condition that caused her to lose her

hair. She was very embarrassed by this and tried a variety

of methods to restore her hair growth. Many of these home

remedies used natural oils. Walker had good success with

hair products created by the African-American entrepreneur

Annie Malone, so she began to sell those products. She then

moved to Denver where she remarried.

Walker experimented and

developed her own line of

products to treat the scalp

and promote hair growth.

She called this product the

Wonderful Hair Grower. She

traveled door-to-door to sell

her products. In 1908, she

opened a college to train

others. Her system became

known as the Walker System

and her company grew to include over

3,000 employees.

Walker is quoted as saying, “I had to make my own living

and my own opportunity. But I made it! Don’t sit down and

wait for the opportunities to come. Get up and make them.”

Learning Standards: I can read a biography

about a person who has made contributions

to the fields of science, technology,

engineering, and math.

Teachers, if you are using the St. Louis American’s NIE program and would like to nominate your class for a Classroom Spotlight, please email: nie@stlamerican.com.

CLASSROOM SPOTLIGHT SCIENCE STARS

MAP CORNER

Enjoy these activities

that help you get

to know your St.

Louis American

newspaper.

Activity One — Capital Critique: Circle

words beginning with

capital letters in the

newspaper. Discuss why

each word begins with a

capital letter. Then identify the words

that are proper nouns. Write them in a chart labeled person,

place, or thing.

Activity Two — Types of News: Use the front

section of the newspaper to evaluate the type of

news stories represented: local, state, or national.

Create a bar graph that displays the coverage that

each type of news story receives.

Learning Standards: I can use the

newspaper to locate information. I can identify

capitalization rules. I can evaluate types of

news stories.

Use your problem solving skills to answer the following

questions about hair.

z Sarah donates 8 inches of hair to make wigs for children

with cancer. She still has 5 inches of hair left. How many

inches of hair did she have before she made the donation?

______

x In the 5th grade classroom, there are 8 students

with brown hair, 10 students with black hair, 3

students with red hair, and 2 students with blonde

hair. What percent of students have red hair?

______

c If your shampoo costs $6.95 and lasts two

weeks, how much does each day’s worth of shampoo cost?

______ How much would it cost to buy shampoo for the

month? ______

v Anthony went to the salon to get his hair braided. If he

was there 90 minutes and finished his appointment at 3:30

p.m., what time did his appointment begin? ______

b If you spend 10 minutes per day fixing

your hair, how many minutes do you

spend fixing your hair per week? ______

Learning Standards: I can add,

subtract, multiply, and divide to solve

a problem.

Problem Hair

Hair is the second

fastest growing tissue

in the body (bone

marrow is the fastest

growing). 90% of the

hair in your scalp is

growing, while 10% is

resting.

Did you know oils are very beneficial

for your hair? There are so many types

of oils, how do you know which one

is best for you? In this

section, you will read

about six types of

oil used to treat hair.

q ARGON OIL:

Contains protein,

vitamin E, and essential

fatty acids. It makes your hair softer,

thicker, and shinier. It is

ideal for people with

dry, coarse, frizzy, or

damaged hair.

w COCONUT OIL:

Contains protein,

vitamin E, fatty acids,

vitamins, and minerals. It makes your

hair stronger, shinier, and thicker.

This oil is helpful for people who have

hair that tends to break easily.

However, it can be used on all

hair types.

e OLIVE OIL: Contains

vitamins A and E, and

antioxidants. It makes your

hair stronger and shinier. It is

helpful for hair that has

been damaged from chemicals

and styling. It can be used on

all hair types, even fine hair.

r CASTOR OIL: Contains

vitamin E and essential fatty

acids. It can help your hair

grow more quickly and reverse

hair loss. Because of the amount of

moisture in castor oil, it is only suited

for dry or coarse hair.

t MACADAMIA

OIL: Contains

antioxidants. It

can help restore dry,

damaged hair. It can heal damage from

heat and chemicals. Macadamia oil

contains a lot of moisture, so it is only

suited for dry, damaged, or coarse hair.

y JOJOBA OIL: Contains iodine, zinc,

and vitamins B and E. It can help

detangle frizzy hair and it helps

with dandruff and dry scalp. It is

best suited for dry and damaged

hair.

Learning Standards: I can read nonfiction text for

main idea and supporting details. I

can make text-to-text and text-to-self

connections.

Hair Oils

Have you heard the expression, “Water and oil

don’t mix”? The expression is literally true,

because these substances have different

densities. When an object is more dense, it will

sink to the bottom of the container. In this

experiment, you will observe how freezing these

substances changes their properties.

Materials Needed:

• Clear Plastic Container

• Water • Oil • Freezer

Procedure:

q What is your prediction? What

will happen when you combine equal

parts oil and water in a clear container?

Will these results change or stay the same when you

freeze the container? Why?

w Add equal parts oil and water to the container.

Wait 10-15 minutes and observe. What happens?

Which substance is on top at this time? Why?

e Place the container in the freezer for 2-3 hours.

Observe. Which substance is on top? Why? Is this

the same as your prediction? What conclusion can

you draw about how the substances change density

when frozen?

Learning Standards: I can follow

a sequential procedure. I can create

and test my prediction. I can make

observations and draw conclusions.

SCIENCE INVESTIGATION

Hair is 50 percent

carbon, 21 percent

oxygen, 17 percent

nitrogen, 6 percent

hydrogen, and 5

percent sulphur.

Hair is mostly made up of

keratin. Keratin is the same

protein found in animals’

horns, hooves, claws,

feathers, and beaks.

OIL AND WATER

The St. Louis American’s award winning NIE program provides

newspapers and resources to more than 7,000 teachers and

students each week throughout the school year, at no charge.

“Questions or comments? Contact Cathy Sewell

csewell@stlamerican.com or 314-289-5422

Hair is used to insulate

our heads, just as fat

is used to insulate our

bodies. Goosebumps are

caused when cold or fear

causes the hair follicle to

contract, which forces the

hair and surrounding skin

to bunch up.

MATH CONNECTION