THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1994, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Thursday, August 4, 1994 TAG: 9408040228
SECTION: SUFFOLK SUN PAGE: 12 EDITION: FINAL
TYPE: Cover Story
SOURCE: BY LINDA McNATT, STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: FRANKLIN LENGTH: Long : 139 lines
AS THE FAMILIAR strains of the soundtrack from the movie ``Jaws'' filled the computer room at Paul D. Camp Community College, 10-year-old Matthew Kelly sat back and grinned.
``I did this at home, with the organ,'' he said. ``I recorded it and put it into the report.''
The sound effects were just one of Matthew's personal touches.
He also added his own drawings, animation and other special effects to his detailed report on the creature he has been fascinated with since he first saw the movie about a giant killer shark.
``This is the research report of the future,'' Pam Saunders said, smiling as she watched Matthew display his project.
``This is the way it will be for all students by the year 2000. We will have to have an abundance of computers to do it, but it will be wonderful for the children.''
Saunders was director this year of the Tidewater Governor's School for Science and Technology, a program funded by the state Department of Education and supported by public and private schools throughout western Hampton Roads.
The state provided the bulk of the money necessary for the school, which offered academically gifted students a window into the future.
Each participating division, both public and private, provided ``in-kind'' support, such as computers, transportation and postage.
About 180 students in grades four through seven applied for the program, which ran July 11-28.
Only 60 students were selected to attend the half-day program Mondays through Thursdays on the Franklin Campus of Paul D. Camp Community College.
A committee made up of representatives from each school division hand-picked the students after examining standardized test scores, classroom performance and teacher recom-mendations.
Applicants also had to present a portfolio on themselves for review.
``Each school got a certain number of slots according to average daily attendance,'' Saunders said. ``There were some tough decisions.''
Eleven of the 60 students were from Franklin, 14 from Isle of Wight County, 12 from Southampton County, 18 from Suffolk, two from Nansemond-Suffolk Academy and one each from Peninsula Christian, Isle of Wight and Southampton academies.
``The focus this year was independent study,'' Saunders said. ``And we had some wonderful projects. The students studied cancer, AIDS, earthquakes, endangered animals.''
Students selected their own topic of interest and researched it using computer technology like CD Rom, Laser disc, Virginia Pen, Learning Link and Pro Quest.
They also used more traditional forms of research - the Franklin Public Library and the one at the community college.
And they took a field trip to Washington, where they conducted research at the Smithsonian Institution.
Students made their computer screens come to life with multimedia presentations, integrating sound, animation, photographs and video images of themselves and their friends into their reports.
Space shuttles lifted across screens, and video ``pictures'' popped into range via a ``video spigot'' program.
Keith Slaton, a fourth-grader from S.P. Morton Middle School in Franklin, selected space travel as his research topic.
His Lego model of a satellite twirled above his computer as two miniature astronauts bent as if to make repairs.
``To be an astronaut, you have to go to a special college in Florida,'' said Keith, 9. ``You have to go through many tests to see how your body would react when you go into space.''
Aubrey Anderson, Carmen Stagg, Melody Baker and Mary Jo Brooks jointly researched and reported on aquatic animals.
Years from now, the four girls - all friends from Smithfield Middle School - will be able to look back at the computer discs they took home and see themselves as they were at the School for Science and Technology in the summer of 1994.
Thane Everett, a seventh-grader at Southampton Academy, used a ``Zap Shot'' camera to take still pictures of a tractor at the Smithsonian and transfer them to his computer screen.
The tractor made a trip from Texas to Washington in 1979 as part of a ``tractor-cade'' to protest low commodity prices.
The photo was part of Thane's report on soil fertility. His family has been farming for generations, and their donations helped put the tractor in the Smithsonian, he said.
``If you have to do a report for class, this can really make it more interesting,'' said Thane, 12. ``I wanted to do something that would help me in the future.''
Parents and friends were invited to the camp July 27, just before the program ended. The following day, the students had an opportunity to share their projects with each other.
``They will all be evaluated on this project,'' Saunders said. ``The evaluation will be mailed to their homes. It will be something to remember.''
To accentuate his report on sharks, Matthew used Legos to build a crane similar to those on fishing vessels.
He connected the miniature crane, complete with a tiny shark in the grip of its Lego jaws, to the computer. The crane then rose and fell, lifting the tiny shark.
On the screen, Matthew's computerized sharks had voracious appetites.
Instead of eating humans, however, they took bytes out of the computer's memory, eating their way across the screen as nuggets of information about their history, size, habit and general nature popped into view.
``The average shark is smaller than an adult person,'' Matthew, a fifth-grader at Driver Elementary School, said in his report.
``A full-grown cigar shark could sit comfortably in the palm of your hand,'' he said, adding, ``but you might want to wear gloves!'' ILLUSTRATION: Color staff photos by JOHN H. SHEALLY II
Keith Slaton, a fourth-grader from S.P. Morton Middle School in
Franklin, selected space travel as his research topic and
illustrated it with a Lego model of a satellite.
Staff photos by John H. Sheally II
Keith Slaton, left, a fourth-grader from S.P. Morton Middle School
in Franklin, checks his project on the computer. He selected space
travel as his research topic and built a Lego model of a satellite
with two miniature astronauts bent as if to make repairs.
This class at the Governor's School is a beehive of activity as
young science buffs test the technicalogical waters.
Jason Sawyer works on his project with Legos at the Governor's
School for Science and Technology. He was one of 60 students
selected to attend the program on the Franklin Campus of Paul D.
Camp Community College.
\ by CNB