FREE EVENT for any school in the SCFD area……call soon before funding runs out!

Grades 4-8

Thursday – October 4, 2007

10:00 a.m.  or  11:15 a.m.

The Science in Action distance learning program connects students directly with active Denver Museum of Nature & Science scientists and their research.  This is a  unique opportunity via an interactive live broadcast between students and scientists that offers students a window into the world of fieldwork and a behind-the-scenes look into research laboratories. 

 During the 30-minute broadcast, scientists talk about the importance of field research in making new discoveries, demonstrate some of the field techniques they use in that research, and answer questions from the students. The goal of this live exchange is to encourage critical thinking by the students about the process of science and how scientific discoveries are made.  Teachers and students receive resource prep materials to become familiar with the scientists research and to help students develop questions to ask the scientists.    

October 4th:  choose one session10:00 am Dr John Demboski – biologist with a research focus on the genetic variation of small mammals, such as chipmunks.  Ask him anything related. 11:15 am Dr Paula Cushing – biologist with a research focus on the diversity of arachnids (spiders and their relatives). Ask her anything related. The FREE scholarships are for schools in Adams, Arapahoe, Boulder, Broomfield, Denver and Jefferson counties. This does not get you into the Titanic exhibit, but in addition to this 30 minute broadcast it will allow your students to enjoy all the permanent exhibit halls that we have.  Contact me for more information:

Gianna Sullivan
Distance Learning Coordinator
Denver Museum of Nature & Science
2001 Colorado Blvd
Denver, CO 80205
303.370.6097
www.dmns.org

Tuesday evening, 7-9 p.m., 30 October 2007

Colorado Convention Center, Room 605/607

In conjunction with its Annual Meeting and Exposition, The Geological Society of America is hosting a Public Forum entitled “CSI:  Forensic Geology Gets the Dirt on Crime.”  The program is free and open to the public!

Attendees will hear first-hand from the experts how scientific evidence is revolutionizing crime scene investigations. An audience Q&A will follow. Content will be appropriate for high school and middle school students.  Teachers who attend will receive a free copy of GSA’s soon-to-be-released educational CD–Rom from GSA’s “Explore Geoscience” series. The CD, written for geoscience teachers by geoscience teachers, contains information, activities, and images for classroom use on the subject of Forensic Geology.

Complete information, including speaker bios, can be found on the GSA Web site at http://www.geosociety.org/meetings/2007/publicForum.htm). Contact Christa Stratton (cstratton@geosociety.org) with questions.  This program is sponsored by Subaru of America, Inc.

As NASA plans to return to the moon, plant growth will be an important part of space exploration. NASA scientists anticipate that astronauts may be able to grow plants on the moon in specialized plant growth chambers.  Come participate and build your own lunar growth chamber in the NASA Engineering Design Challenge!

Through the NASA Engineering Design Challenge, elementary, middle and high school students will:

* Design, build, and evaluate lunar plant growth chambers

* Receive cinnamon basils seeds flown on STS-118

* Test lunar growth chambers by growing and comparing both space-flown and earth-based control seeds

Visit http://www.nasa.gov/education/plantchallenge to register and to receive more information about the NASA Engineering Design Challenge. On this site you can also sign up for the NASA Express listserv to receive e-mail updates about the challenge and other NASA education activities.

Join the NASA Engineering Design Challenge and be part of space exploration by growing seeds flown in space!

The 2007 Earth Science Week Toolkit is now available at The US Geological Survey Map Sales offices at The Denver Federal Center, Building 810, 6^th Ave. and Kipling in Lakewood. 

The 2007 theme is “The Pulse of Earth Science.”  This is a great resource for you Earth science studies throughout the year.  The toolkit includes:  -         A 12-month school-year activity calendar, suitable for hanging

GEO Supports “Change a Light” School Contest In cooperation with the ENERGY STAR “Change a Light” Campaign, GEO, Colorado State Forest Service, the Colorado Alliance for Environmental Education, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and Project Learning Tree are partnering to sponsor the Colorado Change a Light School Contest.
Colorado school children are encouraged to participate in the contest and to learn about energy efficiency at school and at home.  Students and faculty can show their commitment by pledging to change out lights at home with ENERGY STAR qualified compact fluorescent bulbs (CFLs). These bulbs use 75% less energy than incandescent bulbs and last 6-10 times longer.The schools with the most individual bulbs pledged will win and may qualify to receive CFLs equal to the number of pledges as well as energy efficient services or money for their school. The winning schools will be announced at the Colorado Film Festival and receive free consultation by the U.S. EPA to benchmark the energy performance of their school facility. The Campaign runs from September 15-October 15. The national challenge is to encourage every American to change one light and take one energy-saving step at a time. For more information on this contest, contact Jeff Ackermann at Jeff.Ackermann@state.co.us or 303-866-2386.

St Vrain District Media Services now has the entire school version of the Discovery Channel’s new Planet Earth series available in Web/Max, our online resource catalog: Planet Earth Series:Discovery Education/BBC, 2007. INTRO:  Journey from the rain forests of Borneo to the peaks of the
Himalayas to uncover the beauty and mystery of life on our planet. More than five years in the making, this series presents never-before-seen animal behaviors, startling views of locations captured by cameras for the first time, and an unprecedented look at Earth’s creatures from biological and ecological perspectives. The supplementary programs “Saving Species”, “Into The Wilderness”, and “Living Together” interweave key arguments from leading environmental commentators about what the future may hold for the world’s most threatened plants, animals, and ecosystems.  WebMax Tutorial

NSDL Web Seminar Series Begins September 20^th!

Find new resources, meet teachers across the country virtually, and learn from experts through the convenience of your desktop!  NSDL joins the NSTA Web Seminar Series once again for the 2007-2008 school year with a full lineup of fascinating speakers and topics.    From subjects including careers in science to evolutionary biology, these free, 90-minute live seminars straight from your computer connect you live to NSDL’s experts in education and research.  They’ll also show you featured digital resources for the classroom from the NSDL Collection. 

The series begins on September 20^th with Sarita Nair-Pillai, Project Director at the Education Development Center, and will feature resources from The Fun Works  http://thefunworks.org , a digital resource library designed to encourage middle school students to explore math and science careers.  The site explores careers that have real-world connections to art, games, music, sports, and other things that interest kids. What does physics have to do with how Venus Williams holds her tennis racket? What does designing video games have to do with ratios and proportions in algebra?  

The Funworks was designed by, for, and with youth. Over 400 young people around the country participated in the design and development of the site, including an 8 member youth co-design team.

This seminar is designed for teachers of grades 6-9.  Seats are limited. Register for this free seminar or other seminars in this Fall’s series:

http://learningcenter.nsta.org/products/SeminarRegistration.aspx

Dear Supporters of Science Education:

NSTA is coming to Denver this November! The fall regional conference for NSTA will be held at the Denver Convention Center November 8-10, 2007 and we are in need of many volunteers to make this conference a success! Volunteers assist with registration and coordination of services for conference attendees. Anyone who volunteers is eligible to receive either a 50% or 100% registration discount for the conference. If you would like to help as a volunteer please complete the attached form and return it to teresa.higgins@unco.edu by September 20, 2007. Thank you in advance for your consideration of this request and we hope to see you in November!  NSTA Volunteer Form

Teachers,  Please look over the list below of news and events for science.  If anything interests you a longer description is below or attached.

 1)      Upcoming Citizen Science Astronomy Project

2)      NSTA has fellowships for mentees that are in their 2nd or 3rd year of teaching science

3)      Programs at Denver Botanic Gardens  Link:   Denver Botanic Gardens School Programs

4)      St. Vrain Science Shared Bookmarking Site

5)      Pete Conrad Spirit of Innovation Award (HS students)

6)      River Watch 

1)  Upcoming Citizen Science Astronomy Project,   The Great World Wide Star Count Join us this coming October for an exciting new citizen science campaign – the Great World Wide Star Count .  This international event encourages everyone to go outside, look skywards after dark, count the stars they see in certain constellations, and report what they see online.  This inaugural Windows After Dark event is designed to raise awareness about light pollution and the night sky as well as encourage learning in astronomy.  All the information needed to participate is available on the Star Count Web site.  The Star Count uses a simple protocol and an easy data entry form.  At the conclusion of the event, the submitted data will be analyzed and a map will be generated highlighting the results of this new citizen science campaign.   Mark your calendars and plan on joining thousands of other students, families, and citizen scientists counting stars this October! The Great World Wide Star Count will be held from October 1st through October 15, 2007.  For more information visit www.starcount.org or contact starcount_info@ucar.edu 

2) NSTA has fellowships for mentees that are in their 2nd or 3rd year of teaching science. Amgen is providing funding for these fellowships.  This fellowship provides the funds for the new teacher to participate in eMSS as a mentee – $1000, NSTA membership and benefits, access to great NSTA recourses, AND a paid trip to the National NSTA conference in
Boston.Colorado has 9 NSTA Fellowship slots to fill.  We need more new teachers to apply to eMSS and to the NSTA Fellowship.    Apply for eMSS at http://www.emss.nsta.org  Also they need to read the NSTA Fellow information at http://www.nsta.org/academy  and apply with the appropriate link. 

3)       Programs at Denver Botanic Gardens.  Dear Teachers, With a new school year upon you, we know that you are busy making plans for your student’s learning.  We do hope that you will consider including Denver Botanic Gardens as part of your plant, soil, ecosystem or nature studies.  We have many programs that are sure to be an exciting and meaningful part of your curriculum.  In the attached “School Program Brochure,” you will find a description of our guided and self-guided programs at Denver Botanic Gardens and Denver Botanic Gardens at Chatfield (located at C-470 and Wadsworth Blvd.), as well as our Cultivation Cruiser outreach program.  Please look over this brochure and let us know if we can help in any way. In addition to the programs listed in the attached School Programs Brochure, we have some new programs for the 2007-2008 school year.  These are:-          Celebrating Wildflowers Week – May 19-23, 2008:  A variety of stations set up throughout the Gardens will allow students in grades K-3 to explore native
Colorado plants and the basics of plant science.-          Chapungu Tours for Children – now through February 2008: Provide your students with the opportunity to hear the amazing stories of African life and culture on a guided tour of the Chapungu African stone sculptures on display at the Gardens.  Chapungu tours are open to all ages.-          Plant Discovery Day: Expand your first and second grade students’ understanding of basic plant science as they participate in 11 activities spread throughout the Gardens.  New in 2007-2008 is the opportunity to sign up for any Plant Discovery Date, regardless of your school district.  Dates: Sept. 14, Sept. 21, Sept. 28; Oct. 1; April 11, April 18, April 25; May 2 and May 16. If you’re interested in learning more about the programs or in scheduling a visit, please feel free to contact us at 720-865-3580.  Many programs fill quickly, so take action and call today! In our commitment to sustainability, we are limiting the number of actual brochures mailed out to teachers.  Therefore we would love your help in spreading the word about our programs by forwarding this email to your colleagues.   From all of us here at Denver Botanic Gardens, we hope you have a great school year! Sincerely,Lisa DavisChildren’s Program Manager,Denver
Botanic Gardens720-865-3613, davisl@botanicgardens.org  

4)      St. Vrain Science Shared Bookmarking Site, As a reminder I created a bookmarking site of worthwhile science websites, teacher resources and professional development opportunities.  Please click on the following site and save it as a favorite.  This site is a work in progress and anytime I come across a worthwhile science resource or another teacher shares one with me I will add it to this site.  Enjoy!  Jeremyhttp://del.icio.us/stvrainscience 

5)  Pete Conrad Spirit of Innovation Award            > Dear Colleagues - I wish to draw your attention to the Pete Conrad Spirit of Innovation Award  http://space.xprize.org/x-prize-cup/conrad_award/index.html Initial deadlines are rapidly approaching – September 7 is the final registration deadline for teams of 1- 5 students (US citizens, ages 13 – 18, plus an adult advisor) who want to compete for this prize. More information on the deadlines can be found here: http://space.xprize.org/x-prize-cup/conrad_award/deadlines.html The prizes themselves are described here: http://space.xprize.org/x-prize-cup/conrad_award/prizes.html First place prizes include an education grant of $5000, trophies and  travel stipends to attend the prize award ceremony. Pete Conrad was one of only 12 men to walk on the moon. His visionary footsteps have led us on a path of exploration that continues to this day. After the Apollo program, Pete became interested in opening the space frontier to the public and knew that this could only happen through  new   innovative projects. In 1999, Pete Conrad passed away; however his legacy of innovation and education lives on through the X PRIZE Foundation’s spirit of competition.  This Award charges high school aged students to:  ”Develop a new, innovative concept to benefit the personal spaceflight industry within the next 50 years.” Teams must submit three documents describing their concept: a technical paper, a business/marketing paper, and a graphical representation. Acceptable concepts can vary greatly in their focus. Anything from a new design for a spacesuit or a new passenger cabin  for a launch vehicle, to a new entertainment experience in zero  gravity or a new space sport, could be winning concepts. The only limitations are that the concepts must provide a benefit to the personal spaceflight industry (commercial human spaceflight). So no robotic probes to Mars or space weapon systems.             I hope you will encourage your students to take part in this exciting competition.  Lynn Cominsky Professor and Chair, Department of Physics and Astronomy Director,  NASA Education and Public Outreach Programs Sonoma State University            1801 East Cotati Avenue            Rohnert Park, CA 94928  Voice: 707-664-2655             FAX: 800-848-6369  

 6) River Watch is a statewide volunteer water quality-monitoring program operated by the non profit 501©3 Colorado Watershed Network in cooperation with the Colorado Division of Wildlife. Our mission is to work with voluntary stewards to monitor water quality and other indicators of watershed health, and utilize this high quality data to educate citizens and inform decision makers about the condition of Colorado’s waters. This program is unique in its statewide focus and frequency of data collection.  River Watch volunteers come in all shapes in sizes: Middle, Elementary and High School groups participate in our program to provide in-depth education and experience in real life science that extends beyond the classroom.  Conservation groups and community organizations concerned with water quality issues in their areas participate to learn more about watershed health in their region.  Interested volunteers must participate in a training before becoming part of our program.  After the training, groups argree to sample at a designated station monthly for metals, nutrients and other parameters.  Ours is a partnership that works best over multiple years as water quality data must be recorded over time to understand the baseline conditions and any changes that occur in the system.The fee for new groups to become part of the River Watch program is a one time cost of $300.  With this fee, groups will obtain over $1200 worth of water quality equipment and covers one person’s attendance to training.River Watch will be holding two trainings this fall.  The first will be held in Pueblo.  A second will be held at Pingree Park, a Colorado State University field station in the Poudre River Valley, 45 min north of Fort Collins.  Students are welcome to attend either training if accompanied by an adult.  Continuing education credits (up to 4) will be available from the Colorado School of Mines at an additional cost.  Here is the breakdown for the Pingree Park training: 

• September 23-26 we will be meeting at Pingree Park, a research education center owned by Colorado State University in the Poudre River Valley, located approx 15 miles west of Fort Collins.  This overnight event will allow participants the ability to broaden their knowledge on River Watch as we will be having sessions on data management and advanced stream ecology.  Introduction to River Watch for new participants will focus on water quality sampling and analysis and the nuts and bolts of our program.  Sessions in bringing River Watch home to your organization and exploring non traditional teaching methods to implement River Watch will also be covered.  There will be a cost of $90 per person to attend, all meals and lodging are included in the fee.  The deadline to register for this event is August 31.

 If you are interested in attending these trainings or learning more about our program, please contact River Watch Program Coordinator Curtis Hartenstine at curtis.hartenstine@state.co.us or at (303) 291-7412.