Parenting is eggsactly like that: AP Psychology students embark on the annual Eggsperiment

If you saw an NSHA student pushing an egg down the hallway in a tiny stroller a few days ago, you weren’t imagining it. The AP Psychology students are completing the annual “Eggsperiment,” which requires them to parent an egg for a seven-day period. They must take their egg with them at all times, or find a babysitter if they’re going to be busy.

Each student in the class, taught by Ms. Amy Glasgow, chooses one of three parenting styles: permissive, authoritarian, or authoritative. Over the seven days, the egg matures from a newborn to an 18-year-old, forcing the parents to deal with different types of conflicts, such as a toddler that refuses to share or a middle schooler caught shoplifting.

The project-based learning gives students an opportunity to apply the psychology that they’ve learned while studying for the AP test by considering how psychologists like Piaget, Erickson, and Kohlberg might respond to each parenting challenge. The project also requires the students to make a baby book and calculate how much it costs to raise a child from birth to 18, including diapers, childcare, and other expenses.

“I think one of the most wonderful things is how attached the students get to their egg babies,” said Ms. Glasgow. “It’s beautiful to see how students apply the psychology they learned to these egg challenges and how much they care about these eggs by the end of the project.”