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Defying the laws of gravity, Beverly Berekian, a general science teacher at Serrano Middle School in Lake Forest, recently took a student-created experiment into zero-gravity flight.
A seventh-grade teacher in Saddleback Valley Unified School District was one of eight middle school teachers nationwide to receive a special invitation to experience Zero-G, the world’s only Federal Aviation Administration-certified zero-gravity flight provider. .
During flight, the modified Boeing 727 G-FORCE ONE aircraft achieves weightlessness through precision aerobatic maneuvers known as parabolas performed by highly skilled pilots.
Belekian, who also teaches part-time at several local community colleges, first learned about the Wisconsin Space Grant Consortium program in 2022 when she attended a space symposium in Colorado with fellow Space Foundation International Teacher Liaisons. I did.
“It’s hard to put into words how I felt when I found out it was a tough competition to get a spot,” Belekian said. “I felt honored, grateful and humbled.”
The program is funded by the NASA Flight Opportunities Program and the International Space Station National Laboratory.
The longtime educator boarded a plane in early March with a duffel bag filled with classroom experiments. She and the other teachers on her ship planned activities for each parabola, each of which involved experiencing weightlessness for 20 to 30 seconds.
Although Berekian’s students were not able to witness the experiments firsthand, they explored a variety of scientific topics, including the behavior of regolith on the Moon and Mars, sloshing in space, and the interaction of liquids of different densities in microgravity. I had a chance to watch a video of her exploring this.
7th grader Carson Little said, “We learned that different types of matter behave differently in microgravity, and it helped us understand how the universe is explored and how objects interact in space.” It has become,” he said.
Belekian explains that this experience created an unparalleled bond between her and the classroom, making her more invested in her learning than ever before.
“This experience stimulates a mindset of inquiry and research-based experimentation, encouraging both teachers and students to step out of their comfort zones and do serious research,” Belekian said.
On April 9, Intermediate Teacher Serrano will speak at the Space Foundation’s symposium in Colorado.
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