"I think the stew is almost ready," Wiggins told a class of third-graders who eagerly awaited another science experiment.

At the bottom of the liquid nitrogen-filled container sat a blue rubber ball, one of several props in a new Free Family Monday program that kicks off Monday at the Utah Museum of Natural History. On the first Monday of each month, families can come to the museum free for science programs.

Students from Wasatch Elementary School received a sneak peak at the museum as Wiggins, along with fellow educator Tori Spratling, demonstrated basic principles of physics using balloons, bicycle wheels and yes, a certain blue rubber ball.

During the program, Spratling blew into a white balloon and held it aloft.

"What's in here?" she asked the students seated on some nearby stairs.

A disjointed chorus of kids shouted back "air!"

"Fuel," Spratling excitedly added.

To show how action and reaction worked, she let go of the balloon. As the air rushed out, the force shot the balloon out of control around the room before it plopped to the floor.

Wiggins later stepped in to attach a plastic propeller to an upside-down air-filled balloon, a favorite moment for third-grader Chance Barber.

"If you let it go, it flies straight up," Barber said after watching the escaping air push the propeller around to create a mini-helicopter.

Paolo Gondolo, a University of Utah physicist, said children like Barber and his classmates are at an age where they are naturally interested in science. Educators need to find ways to maintain that interest, as studies indicate kids stray from that early love of science in later years, he said.

"We're going to show that science is fun," said Gondolo, adding that the Physics Department is a partner in the Monday program.

At the end of the demonstrations, Wiggins led the third-graders to the museum's front entrance as he carried the metal cask containing the chilled rubber ball.

Standing in a light drizzle, Wiggins reached into the container - cooled to a temperature of 321 degrees below zero - with a pair of tongs to grab the final prop. Holding the frozen blue ball high in the air for dramatic effect, he then sent it hurtling toward the sidewalk.

A small explosion sounded as the ball splintered into dozens of frosty fragments. Moments later, the students rushed out to snag the remnants as a reminder that maybe there is a fun side to science after all.

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* GREG LAVINE can be contacted at glavine@sltrib.com or at 801-257-8620. Send comments to livingeditor@sltrib.com.

Free Family Monday program

The Utah Museum of Natural History is on the University of Utah Campus at 1390 E. Presidents Circle. Free Family Mondays takes place the first Monday of each month, and runs from 9:30 a.m. to 8 p.m. The museum and the U.'s Physics Department teamed up for the program, which is funded with money from Salt Lake County's Zoo, Arts and Parks program.