Create a reusable shopping bag!

The museum has been giving away Reusable Bags, as our member giveaways, for a few years now...which everyone loves! I just found a contest though Kroger to design your very own bag. If your bag gets the most votes, then it becomes the design for Kroger's reusable bag and you win $1000.00 dollar Kroger card! Whoop Whoop, that is music to anyones ear now-a-days!

Here is my design, vote for it! If you create a bag, let me know and I will vote for yours! Good luck and let mother earth serve as your artistic inspiration!

-Kristen!

Cheers to Jimmy!

This is just a quick shout out to Jimmy, my manager! He has officially been working at the museum for 10 years! He has transfered from a few different departments- but he now calls the Science Education Resource Center home, and we are lucky to have him.

Congratulations!!!!!

Now Introducing....Lacy!

We have gone through many changes in the SERC lately...but the most exciting is gaining a new colleague...Lacy! She has been volunteering with us for about 6 months; refurbishing DPS science kits, SIAS kits and helping clean up our building. She was in need of a career change and we were in need of a new addition to our team.

Welcome to the museum Lacy!

Cool Tools: Science News for Kids

I am always looking for new science resources for our little people and students alike...and I think I have found one of the best websites yet. It is called Science News for Kids. It has games, articles, science fair help AND EVEN A TEACHER SECTION!!!

I can definitely see myself using this site to develop new curriculum! Does anyone else know of any really child friendly science sites?

Cool Tools: Free Posters!

Hi everyone, Nancy here.

We here in the SERC are always looking for ways to save educators and families money on resources so we have a hot tip for you:

Our friends at Year of Science and Cal Berkley have put together this great resource for science educators that we wanted to pass on to you.

Here is a link to an electronic version of the "Understanding Science" poster that they developed. You can print this out in color to give to your students or have a local copy shop enlarge the file poster-size and laminate to post in your classroom.

Speaking of posters, did you know the SERC has a closet full of posters that you can use in your classroom? Many of you know we have books, artifacts and equipment you can sign out like a library book to help support your science explorations, but we also have posters about mammals, reptiles, astronomy, ecology and several other topics that you can sign out as well. It is a favorite resource of many of our Duke University Student U and their Elementary Pre-service program students to use during their field experience in Durham Public Schools.

One of our members organized a "Bug Week" in her neighborhood for all the neighborhood kids for Summer enrichment and our collection of bee posters were a huge hit!

Drop us a line and let us know how we can provide materials support or if you know of a cool resource to share, pass it along!

Stay tuned and stay curious,
-Nancy

Cool Tools:Shark!!!!!!!!!!

Hi everyone, Nancy here.

I hope you all have been having a great summer. We have been very busy in the SERC. We've already sent out our first round of Durham Public Schools Science Kits to the Year Round Schools. The students are starting their year off studying life cycles of plants, animals and invertebrates.

An animal that they won't be caring for in their classrooms however is getting a lot of attention this week.

Each summer, the Discovery Channel hosts Shark Week, the longest running week of television programming focused on a particular animal. Shark Week has been a fixture of the Discovery Channel for over twenty years.

If you've been out to the Museum lately and tried your hand at digging for marine fossils out at the dig site on the Dinosaur Trail, you may have found some shark's teeth. The mix of fossil "dirt" that you can explore was excavated from a phosphate mine in Aurora, NC. North Carolina was once part of an embayment that had lots of diverse sea life. Some of the shark's teeth found in the dig site at the Museum are from Sand Tiger Sharks, Whitetip Sharks and White Sharks. Some explorers to the quarry in Aurora have been lucky enough to find Megaladon teeth.

Discovery Channel's website has a lot of great shark resources including games, videos and an identification guide. Check out the link from our friends at How Stuff Works to learn more about how sharks' teeth work. Did you know that sharks can have up to 300 teeth? They can also have anywhere between 5-15 rows of teeth.

For more information on Shark Week, you can check out Discovery Channel's website.

Stay tuned, stay curious and if you live in Amity, stay out of the water...

-Nancy

Citizen Science: Cheers to the Bald Eagle!

As many of you know, the Bald Eagle is our national symbol. It stands for freedom, strength and power. The eagle, as well we several other species of birds, suffered an unfortunate decline with the use of an insecticide named DDT. DDT was first used in WWII to stop the spread of malaria and to kill mosquitoes. As DDT was killing the mosquitoes it was also damaging the environment.

In 1962 Silent Spring by Rachel Carson was published. This book drew lots of attention to the rise of DDT and decline of bird populations. Silent Spring was one of the main reasons for the environmental movement, which gave rise to the Endangered Species Act of 1973. DDT was banned on a world wide level in 1972, just 10 years after Rachel Carson's book was released.

The main effect of DDT on bald eagles was a thinner egg shell. This caused the egg's to break under the weight of the parent eagles, causing a rapid decline in the species. The eagle has come a long way since 1962 (and before) and is now removed from the endangered species list. The bird will be continue to be monitored for the next 5 years, to ensure that the species is on the rise!

The Guest List: Making Paper

Papermaking is for everyone!

 

So, I am part of a group of moms who get together one night a month to craft and socialize.  During April, it was my turn to organize the activity.  But what to do?  I remembered loving the Science in a Suitcase Papermaking Kit from my years as a Kindergarten teacher, so I decided to give it a try again, but this time with adults.  It was a success!  I also made several batches of paper with my two little boys, ages 5 and 2, and they loved it as well.

 The procedure for making recycled paper is fairly simple:

1. Tear paper into small pieces.  (You can use copy paper, construction paper, paper towels, etc.)
2. Blend the paper pieces into a “slurry” with water and starch.
3. Add in decorative items (glitter, wildflower seeds, bits of thread, etc.) as desired.
4. Pour the “slurry” through a screened frame and press out the water.

The moms enjoyed experimenting with colors, textures, and shapes.  (Fresh rosemary was a beautiful addition.)  Tearing the paper (a great fine motor activity for young children) was a bit difficult for my 2-year-old, but the rest of the process was very kid-friendly.  My boys especially enjoyed watching the slurry change color as the papers mixed together in the blender.  (This is a good opportunity for a color wheel lesson, such as “What happens when we mix blue and red paper?”)  I found that making individual batches of paper (one full blender equaled one sheet of paper) worked best, because each person could then really customize the paper.  (The kit calls for making large batches of paper – several sheets of the same color- at a time.  This is ideal for large groups.)

 The Science in a Suitcase Kits are great because all of the materials and supplies are provided for you.  How easy is that?  The Papermaking Kit in particular lends itself to lots of experimentation and variation.  (I think next time we are going to use cookie cutters to shape the paper!)  This is a super home schooling, birthday party, or rainy day activity -- It’s the perfect mix of science and art.   

          -Heather Nottingham, Member of the Museum of Life and Science

Thanks Heather for being part of our Guest List and for being a member!  If you would like to rent this kit or another one, please contact me at kristenw@ncmls.org or 919.220.5429 X 356.

Cool Tools: Guess What I got!!!!!!!!!

Hi everyone, Nancy here.

We've been busy getting science kits together for the third quarter rotation for Durham Public Schools. Third quarter is often an exciting time for the students to do their hands on science as many schools are preparing for their Spring Science Fairs and the kits provide a lot of inspiration for topics for experiments. The SERC is always here to help. We have lots of curriculum ideas and equipment that is available for loan to help families save money when preparing these projects. Hit us up on the Museum's website and let us know how we can help.

Now, on to less serious business...

I got a puppy!!! My family and I are already proud pet parents of a rescued cat and dog but there is always room for more. We opened our home to an adorable puggle in December. Now, it would have been helpful as a museum professional who regularly researches and handles animals to learn a little more about the breed other than "ain't it cute". When we met her "parents" and her human caregivers, we saw how demure and well-behaved she was. When we said goodbyes to her humans, the last thing her "paw-paw" said to me was, "Y'all enjoy her now. She's cute but she's a mess." Huh?

The first night was glorious. She was so sweet and cuddly. She went to bed in her crate without issue and slept the whole night through and stayed dry! The next day, she was a little bit more curious about the house and was showing a more playful side. Bedtime came again and it took her a while to settle down but she slept again through the night. The next morning, I was awoken to an ear-shattering howl that matched pitch and volume of out lovely red wolves on campus. The honeymoon was over. Now girlfriend has made herself to home and helped herself to many of my shoes. Research ahead of time would have alerted me to the fact that these dogs are playful (understatement) and biters and chewers.

She loves toys but had a particular affinity for a homemade one. Here's where your cool tool comes in: there are lots of great posts on our Department Blog about Enrichment and this is an activity that Kristen and another staff member put together for our animal event two years ago. Best of all, it works!!!

Dog Toy (tested by my dogs)
-Take a clean long tube style athletic sock and stretch it out a few times. (My son is constantly losing mates to his socks so we have a ready supply to keep making these at home.)
-Stuff a handful of unwashed sheep's wool into the bottom of the sock. (This ingredient is a little unique but the SERC has plenty from the last shearing in our farmyard so give us a call) The scent is pungent and very interesting to the dogs.
-Next, take an old tennis ball and stuff that into the sock as well. This provides something for them to sink their teeth into.
-Finally, tie the end of the sock off into a knot just above the tennis ball, leaving enough slack for you to hold on! They love playing tug of war with one of us or each other and they never seem to get bored. (unless it's time to eat) This has saved the rest of my shoes from oblivion.

Try this out! Let us know how your pups like it! We have lots of other enrichment ideas and crafts for other pets too.

Stay tuned and stay curious and enjoy your pets,
-Nancy

Citizen Science: 2009 Year of Science (YoS)

YAY! YoS, finally a whole year dedicated to learning, teaching, communicating and discovering more about science!  I am very excited about 2009:)

To many teachers and parents science can be a little bit over whelming and understandably so...but if you break it down to the fundamentals, it is pretty easy to develop a child's curiosity and desire to investigate and learn more about science.  

The scienctists behind YoS have set out to make science easy and fun to communicate to one another. They have broken science down into 12 topics, one per month, then into grade groups, giving examples of activites, images, teacher resources and assesment tools...these folks have really covered their bases!  

January's topic is : Process and Nature of Science; Communicating Science.  The title sounds a bit long and once again over whelming....but use this flow chart to help you discuss science with your kids.  Start by asking them what they want to learn about (science related), read them stories about that topic and about the scientists involved.  Ask them questions to get their wheels spining, try to re-create the experiment or do an activity that goes along with their topic.  

You can rent a Science in a Suitcase kit that includes activities and materials already prepped and gathered, our Schoolyard Science kit  would be GREAT for understanding the nature of science & communicating science!!  If you would like to set up an appointment to come in and see the resource center, email me at kristenw@ncmls.org.  

I will be back to talk about Febuary's topic:  Evolution.  If you have any Evolution activities that you would like to share, please do so!