‘Spies’ at the library

KENT — The Kent Memorial Library was transformed into a training center for spies and secret agents on Saturday evening, March 26, when the junior room hosted “spy training” for middle school students. Eleven spies-in-training attended the event — but had to decode a clue before they could begin the program. Upon walking in the door, the children found a sheet of paper with a clue written on it in invisible ink.They eventually figured out that they had to apply heat to the paper in order to read the message.“It just so happened that Ellen [Paul, co-director of the junior room] was ironing in the corner,” said junior room Co-director Sarah Marshall. The spy training was led by Julie Saxton, a science and engineering teacher who currently lives at and works part-time at the Kent School. Saxton used the program to make science fun. Many of the activities involved finding messages written with invisible ink. Saxton explained what chemical reactions would make the inks become visible. The children also made their own codes and ciphers and created spyglasses using marbles and tubes of paper. A highlight of the event was a scavenger hunt. Many of the clues referred to books or movies that could be found in the library. “Throughout the night, the children had to work as a team — but also be secretive,” Marshall said.