Allentown fifth-graders get hands on with concrete

Penn College concrete science technology originator Franklin H. Reber, instructor of building construction technology, and part-time instructor Harry W. Hintz Jr. took concrete science technology to 110 children on June 2, teaching individual sessions to all four fifth-grade classes during Career Day at the Allentown School District’s Central Elementary STREAM Academy.

In a hands-on activity developed by Joe F. DiBucci, instructor of building construction technology/concrete and masonry at the college, students were given an introduction to the history of concrete, cement types and chemical admixtures that they would be using, as well as the robust job prospects and salaries of the concrete science program’s graduating students.

Reber demonstrated the student activity, which included wearing safety glasses and rubber gloves, measuring and staging the ingredients for their concrete mixes, adding integral color, hand mixing the ingredients, and placing and consolidating the concrete into various shaped molds of their choice.  When the high early strength concrete hardened a little, students scratched their initials onto the back of their concrete coasters for ID when they picked them up to take home the following day.

The presenters received positive feedback from Allentown Central Elementary educators, who called the program “the best ever” for Career Day activities.

Reber arranged the visit to the elementary school to generate interest in the rewarding, in-demand careers in the concrete industry, and in Penn College’s concrete science technology degree.

Concrete is the second-most used material on the planet after water. Penn College’s associate degree prepares students to succeed in the production and analytical evaluation of concrete, as well as the applications, aggregate selection and admixture techniques and products specific to the concrete industry.