The following article has been excerpted from Science Education for Gifted Students, one of six exciting books in the Gifted Child Today Reader Series. This series brings together the best articles published in Gifted Child Today, the nation's most popular gifted education journal. Each book in the series is filled with exciting and practical classroom ideas, useful summaries of research findings, and discussions of identification and classroom management, and informed opionion about educating gifted children.

To a science student with a basic understanding of atomic structure and electrons, the origin of visible light from within the atom is an abstract and difficult concept to comprehend. Textbooks offer two-dimensional diagrams and summaries that appeal to certain learning styles, but many science students continue to struggle with the concept.

When my science class approached a lengthy unit on the physics of light, I could see that many of my students were intimidated by the theoretical nature of the material. I started simply by asking my students to color-code a schematic diagram of an atom emitting visible light, but I had limited success in assessing their mastery of the concept. I asked another group to write a short essay, hoping that the process of translating this technical information into a language of their own would afford them a certain ownership of the idea. Again, my success was limited.

When planning activities with my science students for a weekly activity period, I developed a plan to integrate a physical education component with our work in science class and reinforce the abstract notion that electrons emit energy in the form of visible light, a form of electromagnetic wave. In teaching science, even to gifted learners, I have found that unconventional strategies can often simplify the understanding of abstract ideas and catalyze the thinking of students with alternative learning styles. Further, they add texture to the classroom experience and build a sense of community among middle school students—a coveted goal in classroom management.

I located an orange metal basket of bright yellow tennis balls and designed an activity that might engage my students on the soccer field. I sketched a large circle and labeled electrons at its outer periphery “high-energy electrons.” My students were learning that electrons in the outer shells, or energy levels surrounding the nucleus of an atom, occupy unstable high-energy states. These high-energy subatomic particles are known to shift to more stable low-energy states closer to the nucleus, giving off energy in the form of visible light in the process of switching orbitals. I created the “Atomic Relay” as a simple, concrete approach to constructing a massive human model of the atom emitting light, supplementing the teaching and reinforcement of this idea.

Students with yellow tennis balls line up along the edges of a large, loose circle about 75 yards in diameter. These students, representing “high-energy electrons,” hover farthest from the atom’s nucleus at high-energy orbitals. A student may volunteer to stand in the center of the large circle and represent the nucleus of the human atomic model, although a ball bearing would be more to scale. The remainder of the class gathers loosely around the “nucleus,” representing electrons at stable low-energy states that hover near the atom’s nucleus, attracted to the positive charges of protons there. Two are closest to the nucleus, while eight are a few yards further away at the next highest energy level. When instructed, students at the outer edge of the circle throw their tennis balls to students near the nucleus, representing the transfer of energy from unstable outer-shell electrons to stable low-energy electrons near the atom’s nucleus.

Immediately after, students at the outer edge of the circle run to the center, assuming their low-energy states, waiting for a classmate to “transfer energy” (i.e., toss a tennis ball their way). The key to the action is the pace. Middle school students tend to be a high-energy lot, and they thrive in game-like settings. I was encouraged to find my students at the inner shell calling out to outer-shell classmates, seeking an energy transfer and a chance to run to the outer part of the circle and select a classmate of their own to “promote” to a higher energy state and exchange places again. They moved quickly and randomly, as electrons orbit among energy levels within the atom.

The day before the Atomic Relay, I asked my students to wear sneakers and bring a sweatshirt to class for the activity. We mapped out the relay together on the blackboard, much like a huddle before a big game, formulating strategies and getting excited. My students were intrigued by the idea of having a science lesson outdoors, and they approached the relay with a keen sense of purpose.

“Where will I be?” one girl asked.

“You will start off as a high-energy electron at an unstable state,” I replied in a serious pregame coach tone of voice.

“You mean, I’m near the outside of the atom, right?”

“That’s right,” another student interjected. “You throw the ball to me, and I run to the high-energy orbital. I’ll look for you near the nucleus after . . .”

The day of the relay was cool and dry. Nearly every student came in sneakers. A few quickly went to their lockers for sweatshirts and light jackets. I was interested in the prerelay banter and expected to see eyes rolling, the familiar sign of indifferent teens’ gentle tolerance. But, I was surprised to overhear students chattering about where they would start, checking with each other about the simple rules of the relay.

“I’m starting out at a high-energy level, so I get a tennis ball, right?” one student asked her friend.

“Yeah, throw it to me. I’m stuck near the nucleus until you do.”

One student explained to his friend on the way past the front office, “It’s just like a big human model of an atom giving off light. We’re supposed to be the electrons.”

“Oh, I get it,” was the reply.

On the field, “high-energy” students lined up at the outer edges of a big circle, eyes looking sideways at their peers. I tossed a tennis ball to each student at the edge of our circle and blew a whistle. Students began tossing the balls and running back and forth, calling out to other students, running past each other as they switched orbitals.

Some of the kids were laughing, others wore serious expressions of intent, watching for tennis balls, waiting to take up “energy” and run to the outer orbitals. I let the first round go on for about 12 minutes, then gathered the class near the nucleus. I complemented them on their relay and asked students to recap the event.

“What’s happening here? What’s the point?” I asked.

Several students, panting, offered excellent summaries. The tone was informal, but informative, similar to the tone students use when describing the activity of a baseball game to a latecomer. After a 5-minute recap, I asked the students if they would like to run another round of the Atomic Relay.

“Yeah!”

I quickly reassigned energy states and blew the whistle for another round. After another 12 minutes, I called the class together and we returned to the classroom. At lunch, I overheard students—my students—bantering about the relay.

“Your face is red,” one student in another grade commented to one of my students in the lunch line.

“I know. We ran that Atomic Relay in Mr. Menelly’s class.”

“But, Mr. Menelly teaches science.”

“I know, but today we went outside and ran and ran . . .”

Later in the week, as part of our first light physics assessment, I asked students to explain the Atomic Relay in a short essay. “How did our class represent a model of visible light emission during the Atomic Relay?” Students drew sketches, labeled energy states, and relied heavily on their science vocabulary to describe the purpose of the activity. They impressed me with the seriousness of their descriptions. Several light physics labs my students performed further into the unit complemented the Atomic Relay nicely. At the end of the year, I included an extra credit question on the final exam about the Atomic Relay, and I was struck by the clarity of my students’ recollections of the activity and its premise.

The next year, several of my students, then high school freshmen, returned to say “hello” and see my new classroom.

“Are your classes going to run in that Atomic Relay like we did last year?” they asked, grinning.

I told them I thought so, but that I might try something a bit different, such as asking the students to design their own relay. So far, student response to similar approaches to teaching abstract science concepts has been encouraging, and I plan to experiment more with the process as I move forward in my own learning, modifying instructional styles to suit different students as they appear each September in my science classroom.

The Atomic Relay Objectives Students use cooperation and planning skills. Students gain concrete understanding of an abstract science idea through an interactive, physical activity. Students build a stronger sense of community through participation as the whole group assembles a massive living model of the atom emitting visible light. Students correlate the motion of a living model to the motion of subatomic particles within the atom, another model of sorts. Alternative Activities Smaller and larger groups of elementary school students can assemble for the Atomic Relay. A lesson could be team-taught with a physical education teacher, making an important link between a core subject and an allied or unified arts subject. For enrichment, motivated learners can add structure to the Atomic Relay by designating concentric circles for each orbital, allowing specified numbers of peers to remain at each energy level, according to orbital theory. Smaller groups could modify the Atomic Relay to involve wheel barrels and pumpkins, soccer balls, or another suitable item to represent electrons “filling up” various orbitals. The Atomic Relay can be photographed or videotaped from a nearby hillside or third-story classroom and broadcast in classrooms to show the topographical image of the massive human model. Student “directors” and “property masters” could produce the video segment and add features to dramatize its operation. For example, red crepe paper streamers could be attached to the “electrons” to show their passage among orbitals when photographed from above. Velcro “energy” vests could be substituted for the tennis balls. Orbitals could becoming “changing stations.” Brightly colored, easily changed vests are available in most school gymnasiums and may offer a safer alternative for younger science students. Middle school science students could present their Atomic Relay to elementary science students. They may even “coach” the latter in running a relay of their own, reinforcing their own learning while affecting the learning of others. Different sections of science classes may design their own versions of the Atomic Relay, comparing results with peers in different classes. Strengths Students are encouraged to view abstract ideas in science in a concrete, interactive way. Their learning is purposeful, enjoyable, and developmentally appropriate. “Real physics” is demystified for students intimidated by its nature and traditional physical science pedagogy. Students strengthen essential planning, design, and cooperation skills. Teachers assume a collaborative role, “coaching” science students through an alternative to “pencil-and-paper” reinforcement activities. The identity of science instruction is expanded. Students are encouraged to succeed in science by making use of skills usually associated with other subject areas. An important connection is made between science, teamwork, motion, and fun.