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News from the Chair
On August 23 many of us felt something atypical for Virginia: an earthquake. Although the quake was minor compared to others, I had some moments of fear as did my children. Coincidentally, one of the Children's Science Center's newest mobile exhibits is called "Great Shakes" -- all about earthquakes and plate tectonics, launched not long after the devastating quake in Japan. Kids love the hands on learning when we invite them to "be an earthquake" at this exhibit. They are naturally curious yet sometimes fearful about the mysterious ways of our earth.
Children's museums and science centers are at the heart of educating children and families about the science behind the mysteries in our world, with programs and exhibits about natural phenomena like earthquakes and hurricanes, as well as exhibits about caring for our earth, animals and own bodies. Such hands-on learning replaces fear with knowledge; whether creating a vortex like a tornado or a taking a pretend visit to the doctor's office, children gain knowledge, confidence, and have lots of fun in the process. Imagine local children having rich learning experiences like this every day with a children's museum here in Northern Virginia!
Yours,
Nene Spivy
Chair, Board of Directors |
 Summertime SparklersOperation Firefly Concludes
How does counting fireflies teach us about the environment? It turns out that firefly populations may be the key to better understanding how artificial light, lawn treatments and other factors influence the environment. These intriguing insects are exquisitely sensitive to changes in the environment. By monitoring the number of nature's natural sparklers in a particular location, scientists can deduce information about the health of the lightening bug's surrounding habitat.
In collaboration with the Museum of Science, Boston, the Children's Science Center launched Operation Firefly in July 2011 to "spark" participants' interest in science. This month-long, hands-on activity brought together nearly 100 contributors to learn about the fascinating firefly. Citizen Scientists gathered weekly data about the fireflies observed (or not observed) and shared their data with professional scientists at Tufts University and Fitchburg State College. The Children's Science Center participants contributed valuable data on approximately 803 firefly sightings that will be used in a long-term study to learn about fireflies and the environment!
To celebrate the successf ul completion of Operation Firefly, participants and guests gathered at Frying Pan Farm Park in Herndon, Virginia, for the "Operation Firefly" Grand Finale Family Event on August 13. Attendees were able to view their collective contributions and hear from the Museum of Science, Boston's Science Educator Don Salvatore about environmental stewardship. Along with learning how to care for our natural environment, visitors had fun learning about alternative energy with the popular Museum Without Walls exhibit-"Power Up! Energy for Today: Alternative Wind Power"-sang along with Ryan Buckle & Friends ("Science You Can Sing Along To!), and munched on finger foods from our friends at Whole Foods Market, Reston. The Children's Science Center hopes this activity "sparked" your interest in creatively exploring science in the outdoors!
With the culmination of "Operation Firefly," the Children's Science Center looks forward to seeing you at another upcoming learning opportunity - either as a visitor or volunteer! |
Are We Ready?
Provocative Video from the National Association of Children's Museums
 | | Are we ready? |
View this provocative video from the recent annual confernce of the National Associatoin of Children's Museums. The video makes the case for the importance of children's museums especially in light of the challenges that our children will face as they grow up and enter the workforce. |
Upcoming Museum Without Walls Events
Attend or Volunteer!
Saturday, September 17: The Big Build at the National Building Museum -
 This is a Hands-on Family Festival of Tools, Trucks, and Building Arts at the National Building Museum where visitors can learn about construction, architecture, and engineering. For the Children's Science Center, volunteers will help visitors learn about the basic forces at work when earthquakes occur! Specifically, you will use Slinkies to demonstrate the motion of different energy waves incurred during an earthquake. Visitors will also build "houses" and test the solidarity of their structures on shake tables. They will be able to see what happens to their structures on bedrock, gravel, and sand soil models. Help visitors explore, discover, and learn while having fun!
Volunteer Shifts:
9:30 a.m. -- 1:30 p.m., or
1:00 p.m. -- 5:30 p.m.
Saturday, October 15: Girl Scouts Adventure Day at the Prince William County Fairgrounds from 10:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. -
The Girl Scouts have invited the Children's Science Center to participate in a day of hands-on science learning and adventure! Held annually at the Prince William County Fairgrounds in Manassas, Virginia, Adventure Day provides girls with the opportunity to engage in activities related to robotics, programming, physics, math, meteorology, and health science. The Children's Science Center will be debuting a new Museum Without Walls experiment called "Does Matter Matter?" Through a series of interactive demonstrations, visitors have the opportunity to learn about the nature of solids, liquids, and gases, and what happens when these elements interact! Join us in delighting a child with the scientific wonders of our physical world.
Volunteer Shifts:
9:00 a.m. - 1:00 p.m.
12:30 p.m. - 4:30 p.m.
Volunteers Needed! Contact us for more information about any of these events. We hope to see you. |
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What Did You Do Over Summer Vacation?
What Did You See?
In our July-August newsletter we suggested some great children's museums and science centers to visit in your travels this summer.
If you did visit one, we would love to hear about your experience. Were there any exhibits that were especially amazing and engaging? We'd love your thoughts and any photos you can share as we look to create the best possible Children's Science Center for northern Virginia.
Email us your favorite things about your visit as well as pictures! |
STAR
STEM Activities Around the Region
 Did you have a favorite science experiment as a kid that got you excited about learning? The National Institutes of Health (NIH) in Bethesda, MD wants you to share it! The NIH announced the "NIH K-12 Lessons About Bioscience (LAB)" Challenge earlier this summer - a call to teachers, parents, kids (anyone!) who has a fun, exciting science experiment to share.
The goal of the NIH K-12 LAB Challenge is to develop creative, hands-on, educational lessons about topics in the biological sciences. They want to produce a series of excellent, fun experiments that will be published as the "best experiment procedures" to be used in schools and at home to stimulate STEM education in an interactive way. The compilation of winning submissions will be publicly-accessible and free!
Submit an experiment today at http://LAB.challenge.gov or stay tuned in early 2012 for the published set!
Editor's Note: The Children's Science Center would like to highlight local activities and news related to science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) in each issue of our newsletter. We are calling this new section STAR (STEM Around the Region). Send your news and pictures to us and we will select a STAR to highlight each month. |
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"Fall Back" to Volunteering
Volunteers Needed for 2011-12 School Year
When you think of a quintessential scientist or engineer, what do you see?  We certainly hope this question evokes the image of an inspirational man or woman who is having fun while solving puzzling questions about biology (e.g., sampling lake water to look at the microbes and fish) or learning about basic physics (someone needs to know how to put roller coasters together!). Let's do away with the old image of a man in a dingy white lab coat and crazy hair stirring a bubbling concoction of goo! Science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) are cool and the Children's Science Center wants to emphasize that through our community-based educational programs.
The Children's Science Center is committed to engaging children and families in learning, exploration, and discovery. We want to bring hands-on, interactive activities about STEM subjects to the children throughout northern Virginia at community events. Our Museum Without Wall activities and exhibits invigorate children's creativity and stimulate their interest to explore STEM topics ranging from the basics of earthquakes to chemical reactions. We want to inspire children to become lifelong learners and we're so excited that since the beginning of 2011, we have held 10 events and served nearly 5,000 children!
If YOU think STEM subjects are exciting and want to share your love of learning, we need your help! The success of our Museum Without Walls programming relies on volunteers to staff our events. You don't need a math or science background; just lots of enthusiasm and a little bit of time.
We have a busy autumn programming schedule and we hope you'll join us to educate and inspire! Beyond Museum Without Walls volunteers, we are also in need of specialized professionals to bolster our volunteer corps with their skills. To find out how to volunteer, visit our Volunteer Page or email us for more information. |
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Challenge: Can You Prevent an Apple From Browning?
Science and the Kitchen Come Together 
What You Need:
- An apple
- A lemon
- Paper plates
- A notebook or piece of paper to record results
What You Do:
- Cut the apple into four quarters.
- Place one quarter on a plate on the kitchen counter.
- Place another quarter on a paper plate in the refrigerator.
- Rub the remaining two quarters with lemon juice.
- Place one of those quarters on a paper plate on the counter. Be sure to label it, "Lemon Juice".
- Place the final quarter on a paper plate in the refrigerator. Label that one as well.
- Check all four apples every two minutes for 10 minutes or so.
- Which quarter turned brown first? Which quarter turned brown last?
- Record your observations
Why this Works:
When you cut into an apple, you tear its cells, releasing an enzyme called Polyphenoloxidase. The enzyme speeds up the process by which compounds in the apple (phenols) combine with oxygen from the air. This is what produces the brownish pigment that darkens the fruit and makes it taste bad.
The enzyme that turns the apple brown works more slowly at cold temperatures than at room temperature. It works even more slowly in an acid like lemon juice, which completely inactivates it.
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The Children's Science Center is an interactive hands-on museum being planned for Northern Virginia. Our mission is to excite children about science, technology, engineering, and math by making these subjects fun and enabling children to learn through play. 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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