great science resource website for kids!

Yesterday I was reading a book about wetlands for possible inclusion in our new SIAS wetlands kit. It was a really good book, and on the last page there was a website - facthound.com. I checked it out, and it was a really neat idea!

When you go there, you can type in anything you're interested in learning about, from wetlands to animals to ghosts, and they'll give you three age-appropriate book recommendations! The site is very parent and child friendly, and doesn't have any annoying pop-ups or inappropriate material.

Check it out and let me know what you think!

Kit Tidbit: Building a Science In A Suitcase kit from start to finish!! (part 1)

These next few blog posts are going to be about our most recent project in the SERC, creating a new Science In A Suitcase (SIAS) kit from the very beginning to the end. The topic for this kit is going to be Wetlands, and will be targeting grades 6-8. So...here we go!!

The first step to this process is figuring out the topic and budget for our new baby. We decided that a Wetlands kit concentrating on middle school science is going to be great for many reasons. The main thought is because we have an awesome Wetland at the Museum, and we really want educators to take note and use the resource around us! Another reason we chose this topic is because we can incorporate lots of field study activities...and get ready - an ENVIROSCAPE!

For those of you who do not know what an EnviroScape is, its a table top model of an Environment in which you can manipulate different aspects of it. The model we chose is titled "Wetlands" and it shows all the different industrial reasons a Wetland can become polluted. Because we're all about interactive science and work with lots of inner-city schools, this quote really sold me on including this resource.

"We go out in pairs with the EnviroScape to inner-city after school programs and Native American resource centers. Many people are unaware of the importance of wetlands. With EnviroScape we can dramatically show the points we are trying to make and the kids love it. Everybody gets a chance to interact and they get excited about learning something new."

JANE SCHMITT, League of Women Voters, Henrietta, NY.

The next step is to create great hands on activities for the kit! This is where we are now. Soon to come I will explain the process is this too! For me, it is all a trial and error because this is my first time creating a SIAS kit!!! Until next time:)