Dozens of children from Jefferson City celebrated the end of the Missouri River Regional Library's Summer Reading Program with a bang and a buzz Saturday morning.
Each year, MRRL holds the program to encourage students to read so their reading skills won't decline during the summer. As their reward, MRRL staff members gave them a show that taught them about science in exciting ways.
More than 200 children and their parents attended the event at the main MRRL branch at 214 Adams St. In all, 1,035 students participated in the program this summer, MRRL children's program director Eric Lyon said.
The library breaks the program into categories which require old and young students to hit targets by reading set amounts of hours throughout the summer. If students reached the first of those requirements, they earned books. The second target hit gave children tickets that could be entered into a drawing for more books and games after Saturday's event.
"It's just a big bash to thank them for spending their summer reading because we know that the library is in big competition with other things going on in the summer," Lyon said.
Emily Crawford, in character as mad scientist Electric Emily, set the room ablaze - with excitement - Saturday morning. During her hour-long show, Crawford showed students how chemical reactions work by setting off a tiny chemical explosion on a pizza pan, pulling a rope through an oversized metal garbage can to demonstrate friction and by using a Slinky to teach children about transverse and longitudinal waves.
Midway through the show, children buzzed as Crawford attached a pair of nails to a pickle, which contains salt, and connected it to a fuse box. The pickle buzzed and glowed as electricity pulsed through it, showing the children how sodium conducts electricity.
Near the end of the show, Crawford heated the end of a metal pipe with a blow torch and showed students how the rising hot air resonated off the side of the cool pipe. Her last trick - and the students' favorite - shot a potato chunk from an air gun across the room to show how air can propel objects.
"We want to entertain the kids while also making sure that they learn something," Crawford said.
Shawn Bailes brought his three children - Jameson, Gianna and Jacob - to the event. Jameson, 8, said he read 38 books throughout the summer.
"That's a lot of books," his father added.
Each year, MRRL holds a different event to end the program. Last year, it offered a "vehicle petting zoo" outside the library where children could see different types of vehicles.
Throughout the show, children and their parents kept trickling in. Near the beginning, Lyon estimated at least 150 people crammed into a small room on the second floor of the main MRRL branch. Later, he revised his estimate to about 180, then 200 people.
After the show, he beamed as he told Crawford 215 people attended.
Rushan Sinnaduray attended the event with his wife and their son, Aran.
As the Sinnadurays left, it became clear MRRL got through to the students. When Aran Sinnaduray tried to think of what he learned during the summer, the shy youngster smiled and could think of only one thing to say - "Reading is fun."