Spitting Image Garry Middle School Students Get A Fun Lesson In Applied Science

A straw, a spit-drenched wad of paper and a mischievous smile are usually a recipe for trouble for seventhgrader Corina Lewis.

Make it a room full of Corinas, armed to the teeth with spit wads, and Garry Middle School teacher Jim Kappelman should be running down the hall screaming about revolution.

But Tuesday, Kappelman shot back, showing his first period science class the secrets of blowing gooey wads.

“It’s the right balance of volume of air behind the spit wad coupled with enough moisture to break down the cellulose in paper to get it to stick. In other words, blow hard and lots of spit,” said Kappelman, who learned the art from a rebellious brother who once pierced a girl’s ear with a spiked spit wad.

Under the guise of a lesson in the metric system, students competed in what Kappelman called the 1st annual Garry Spit Wad Olympics, hucking wads across the room at hunting targets. Students competed in the 2-meter short spit, a 5-meter accuracy launch, and a basket-shooting heave.

By the time the distance shooting wrapped up, spit wads dotted the walls like bugs on a windshield and littered the floor like confetti.

“The janitor is going to kill us,” said Kappelman.

Teaching science in unconventional ways makes dry lessons like the metric system sink in, said Kappelman. All of his classes had heard classroom lectures; the Olympics were a chance to apply what they had learned.

So distance shoots were measured in meters, accuracy from the target in centimeters. Students had to measure the diameter of their shooters in millimeters and weigh their spit wads in milliliters.

Gold medal winner Mavis Blanton appreciated the thought, although she said she didn’t learn much about the metric system.

“It’s pretty cool,” said Blanton, 12. “It’s better than doing work.”

After some initial spit wad experimentation, the students settled on their strategies. Blanton used a customized number, a sawed-off straw. Lewis, the silver medal winner, hunted for a foot-long Swizzle Stick last night, but found only a Slurpee straw.

Brandon Compogno’s aim was spotty, hitting bull’s-eyes, then the wall. He is a veteran, hucking recreationally at bowling alleys, and chose the tube of a Bic ballpoint pen.

He started shooting with brown classroom paper towels, but switched to notebook paper after the towels proved too heavy.

Kappelman’s aim was above average, with a couple of near-bull’s-eyes in the distance shoot-out. He wasn’t a medal winner.

But he has a chance to redeem himself. A “building the perfect peanut butter and jelly” contest is scheduled next week.

, DataTimes ILLUSTRATION: Color Photo