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Happy Spring!  It has been a busy and productive fews months for the Children's Science Center.
 
Share your ideas. The Children's Science Center wants to hear from you!  Join us at our last two Community Conversation events on April 22 or April 29.  The first event on April 22 is especially for community leaders and is being sponsored by Chairman of the Fairfax County Board of Supervisors Sharon Bulova. The second event on April 29 is open to everyone. (Details below) 
 
Fund development continues. The Children's Science Center was the beneficiary of a STEM Awareness event hosted by the Junior League of Northern Virginia.  At the event, guests heard about the need for the Children's Science Center as well as moving first-hand stories from "celebrity scientists" and how they were motivated toward careers in science through their childhood experiences.  We continue to move forward with our goal of raising $250,000 in seed funds by mid-2010 so that we may hire an Executive Director and finance our experience plan for the museum. Please donate today to help us meet this initial target!
 
Get involved as a volunteer. Whether you have a few hours or are looking for a regular volunteer role, we want you as a volunteer for the Children's Science Center. We have an exciting schedule of Museum without Walls events throughout the region in the comming montns and would welcome your help. If you are interested in lending a hand, please send an email to Volunteer@TheChildrensScienceCenter.org. 
 
Science in Action.  The White House Easter Egg Roll jumped right in with science activities encouraging children to try out science.  Read the article for some fun ideas. 
 
As we heard over and over at our Community Conversation events with parents, educators and business leaders, the time has come for Northern Virginia to have a children's science center!  We continue to receive very positive feedback about our vision and mission.  We need to harness this interest and enthusiasm and desire for a science-focused children's museum and translate it into support for the Children's Science Center - volunteers, funds and evangelists. If you would like to help us, please let me know.
 
Thank you for your support! 
 
Yours,
Leo G. Rydzewski
Chairman, Board of Directors
 
Share Your Ideas With Us 
Community Conversations are THIS WEEK and NEXT WEEK

The Children's Science Center has partnered with Leadership Fairfax's Emerging Leaders Institute (ELI) to conduct a series of seven community forums in Northern Virginia.  Dubbed the "Community Conversations" project, the goals are to spread awareness about the proposed Children's Science Center and to learn more about the experience the community seeks in a children's science center. 
 
There are two more Community Conversations planned: 
 
Community Leaders (April 22) THIS THURSDAY! 
We want to hear from community leaders and incorporate your vast knowledge of our community into the plans for this Center.  The event will be at the Reston Community Center at Lake Anne from 6:30 - 8:00 pm.
 
Open Forum for all those interested (April 29) NEXT THURSDAY!
Our last community conversation is open to everyone (parents, educators, business leaders, organizations that work with children, community leaders, etc.)  If you want to learn more about our project, this is the perfect opportunity.  The event will be held at the Fairfax County Government Center from 7:00 - 9:00 pm. 
 
       Community Conversation for businesses        Community Conversation with educators 
 
If you are interested in participating in one of the forums, please let us know by contacting us.
Volunteer!
We Need You!
Volunteers are the foundation on which the Children's Science Center is being built.  If you have some time and enthusiasm, we would love to have you!  We are especially in need of volunteers with experience in fundraising and grant writing.  If you are interested, visit our
Web site or email us.
Wish List
Can you assist with these wishes?
 
The Children's Science Center would like to develop a short video to explain our project to others. 
 
Let us know if you can assist.  We need people who are skillful in creating videos. 
 
Museum Without Walls
Join us for a full calendar of events this spring 
 
Spring is filled with numerous festivals across the region. Learn about the wonders of science by participating in a Museum Without Walls event this spring as visitor or as a volunteer. 
Foam painting 

Coming up fast...
Sunday, April 25: Check out our table at the Junior League of Northern Virginia's Strides for Success 5K Race and 1K Fun Run!

Mark your calendars: 

May 30 - 31 Herndon Festival: The Herndon Council for the Arts is thrilled to have us back with our popular magic shaving cream activity.

June 5 - 6 Viva Vienna! Festival: We will be debuting a new activity at this popular event. 

To learn more or to volunteer for a shift, please contact our Museum Without Walls leader,
Elizabeth Ross.
 
Challenge: Celebrate Earth Day 2010
Science Activities Just for Kids

  1. Talk about it: Believe it or not, more than interesting games or crafts, this is the best way to get kids involved, and the best way to get them thinking. Talk about our planet, what earth day is all about, about conservation and its impact. Show them pictures of different parts of the world or watch shows about the earth and its diversity. Use all the props you need, but focus on the conversation.
  2. Write Your Own Earth Month Book: Your own book on conservation. Why not? You can keep it very simple. Just start with photos of things you are doing during earth month that are special or different (such as any of the activities below), write some captions and dates, and there you have it. The books can range from easy topics for the younger ones, to more complex topics and questions for older kids that you can research together. You can then read it to your child's playgroup or ask the kids' teachers if you can read it to the class. It can then become something to keep and remember for the whole year. You can also do a slideshow on your home computer and use it as a screensaver, or save the slides as jpegs and use them as slideshows on digital sliding photo frames.
  3. Earth DayHold a recycled art show:  Most schools and kids' classes are now into using recycled items for art work. Invite a few friends over, and ask them to bring their favorite recycled art work. Arrange them in nice individual display stations with artist and material labels for all to admire. Serve up some healthy kids' hors d'oeuvers, a few kid friendly drinks in nice reusable cups for a quick, environmentally friendly party.  You can finish it up with a quick recycled art booklet for the artists to keep.
  4. Set up Kid Earth Patrol: Decide as a family on 5 changes you are going to make as a family to be environmentally friendly (say, switch off lights or turn off the water while brushing). Enlist the kids for a kid Earth patrol all month to find 'offenders'. Let them give 'warnings' and then 'tickets'. The tickets may or may not carry a consequence depending on what your family decides.
  5. Plant: A garden of flowers or vegetables if you have a green thumb, a couple of herbs in a little kitchen pot, a small shrub. The point here is to get the kids to tend the garden, and become proud of their work, the wonders of our earth and how much care and time it actually takes to make a garden work well vs. how easy it is to destroy. Of course, the more you talk through each of the concept, the more relevant it becomes to earth month.
  6. Take a Hike: Explore trails near you and admire all the gifts Earth has to offer, especially in spring. As a spring activity with kids, make a 'Flower Petal Treasure Trail' for your neighborhood or a favorite trail by collecting petals, drying them in a dictionary and plotting them in a neighborhood map. Or do the same it with new leaves. Then use the map to compare notes all month and even all year on how the trail changes in terms of new flowere, plants or leaves.
  7. Eat local one meal a week: See what's seasonal and local around you, and maybe eat one meal a week that's completely local and seasonal. The point here is to make the kids aware of what grows in what season and where. While this came naturally to us growing up, kids now are so used to seeing everything in the grocery store all the time a simple exercise like this can be both interesting and educational.
  8. Celebrate different cultures from around the world: Talk about different cultures, maybe try different cuisines pack multicultural lunches for the kids, maybe celebrate a spring festival of a different culture. Talk about how different regions have different foods and why. It is all part of appreciating the amazing diversity earth has.
  9. Play 'Package Hunt': Many companies have switched to eco-friendly packaging. Hunt the grocery stores for different kinds of packaging, and discuss which is better with your kids. Write down the different options available for the same products. You don't really have to buy a new eco-friendly packaged product if it's too expensive; the intention of this game is to find out what's available in the market and talk about what's better.
  10. Make a family green scorecard: Numbers motivate - adults and kids alike. List out all that you are doing as a family in categories such as - number of boxes recycled, number of bottles recycled, number of days (or hours) without paper towels etc. At the end of the month, you may be surprised by the impact you have had.
Source: http://www.bloggermoms.com
     
The Children's Science Center is a  nonprofit museum dedicated to sparking children's interest in science through interactive exhibits and engaging programs that encourage exploration of math and science, stimulate creativity, and inspire through active learning. For more information, visit www.TheChildrensScienceCenter.org. Please direct all inquiries to The Children's Science Center, 485 Spring Park Place Suite 500, Herndon VA 20170.
 
The Children's Science Center is a signature project of the Junior League of Northern Virginia.   
 
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