Sesame Workshop created a new planetarium show and outreach activities for children ages 5 and 6 and their families, teachers and other caregivers. The Adler Planetarium & Astronomy Museum, the Beijing Planetarium and the Liberty Science Center also collaborated on the "sharing the sky" themed show to help Chinese and American children identify differences and similarities in their respective associations to astronomy.
National Geographic Television is requesting a planning grant to support the development of a 3D large-format film, "Sea Monsters," which will focus on current scientific and paleontological research into ancient ocean life. The film will provide audiences the chance to follow men and women working in diverse disciplines within the Earth Sciences including Paleontology, Oceanography and Marine Biology, and the film will illustrate the interplay between science and technology. Standards-based lesson plans for the classroom and informal activity guides for families will augment the impact of the film. During the planning phase the production team will conduct further research into the scientific themes and stories for the film, identify the scientists who will appear in the film, perform front-end topic testing and evaluation in order to assess the public's interest and current knowledge about the topic, write a full film treatment, develop a detailed budget and assess potential CGI studios.
This exhibit will integrate graphics, artifacts, highly interactive electro-mechanical demonstration devices together with state of the art interactive educational computer technology to demonstrate how probability shapes nature. It will draw its examples from a variety of scientific fields including physics, chemistry, earth sciences, and biology. It is planned as a permanent addition to the Museum's exhibition program, but will be designed to facilitate easy reproduction for individual copies or for circulation as a travelling exhibit. Millions of visitors--families, teachers, children form diverse communities--will gain a first hand aesthetic appreciation of the pattern finding process of scientific investigation as well as a better understanding of the usefulness of mathematics in explaining how the natural world works.
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TEAM MEMBERS:
H. Eugene StanleyDouglas SmithEdwin Taylor
Scholastic Productions is producing thirteen additional episodes for the third season of the fully animated, half-hour television series, "The Magic School Bus." The series, which is targeted at 6-9 year olds, is designed to motivate children's interest in science, to introduce science concepts and ideas, and to inspire positive attitudes towards science and education in students and teachers. The series is unique to science educational television because it breaks the science gender barrier, showcases both education and science, and, through the use of animation which enables the series to transport children to places they literally could not go, presents content in a unique way. Season III topics include: spiders, the Arctic, light, color, the moon, structures, and sound. Outreach activities will include and expand upon those offered for Seasons I and II. During Season III, special emphasis will be placed on reaching families. The project also will use America On-line to promote the series and to communicate the value in and the methods for encouraging children's interest in science. The same basic administrative, content, and production staff will continue with the project. Management and editorial control will be the responsibility of Jane Startz, Executive Vice President of Scholastic Productions. Cheryl Gotthelf, Executive Director of Special Projects for Scholastic Productions will oversee series distribution and utilization, print, research, public relations, promotion, and community and museum outreach. Science content will continue to be supervised by Michael Templeton with the assistance of an Associate Science Content Director, Fran Nankin. Kristin Martin will remain in charge of series production.
KCTS Television is producing 20 new programs for the third season of "Bill Nye the Science Guy." The series, which has received an enthusiastic public response, will continue to be on PBS stations during the week and syndicated to commercial stations on weekends. The twenty topics for Season range from earth science, to physical science, to life science, to technology and include programs on such diverse subjects as spiders, time, life cycles, inventions, flowers, architecture, computers, probability, invertebrates, and forensics. Outreach activities for the third season are designed an emphasis on reaching out to new audiences, especially girls and children of color. The Season III outreach components consist of: o "The Big News of Science" - a newsletter distributed through youth serving organizations as well as being mailed directly to viewers at home o An at-home science kit - an easy to use kit that enables children and their families to perform science experiments together at home. Two-thirds of the kits to be distributed directly to youth and one-third will be distributed to children participating in afterschool and community programs. o Teacher's Kit - to be distributed to fourth grade teachers nationwide. o Special appearances - As Bill Nye's schedule permits, he will present a live, traveling science demonstration show in selected urban communities. The programs will be based at science museums, community centers, or similar venues and will include an explanation about the science content of the series, and demonstrations of science experiments where children are invited to participate. o A PBS station outreach kit - This material will provide PBS outreach and education staff with programs, tips for developing local science outreach projects, and a list of informal science resources. The staffing for Season III will remain basically the same as it has been for Seasons I and II. Bill Nye will remain as Chief Writer and Host, Elizabeth Brock will continue as Executive Producer, and James McKenna and Erren Gottlieb will remain the series producers.
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TEAM MEMBERS:
Elizabeth BrockJames McKennaErren GottliebWilliam Nye
The Cranbrook Institute of Science will develop "Our Dynamic Earth," a 7000 sq. ft. exhibit that will provide visitors with insight and understanding of the interrelationships of plate tectonics and climate to prehistoric life. This will make up the earth sciences component in their renovated and expanded exhibit area. This section will include four related areas: 1) Plate Tectonics, 2) The Earth's Amazing Climate System, 3) The Earth Evolving Biosphere, and 4) An Ecological Whodunit. Each area will be anchored by an "icon" that will serve as a guiding image for that exhibit and will be supported by a layered interpretation using objects from the collection, workstations with selected databases, simulated scientific investigations, and hot-links to related Internet Sites. Numerous interactives will highlight the use of scientific research tools and methods. A broad menu of complementary educational activities will accompany the exhibit including take-home activities for families; teacher enhancement sessions and materials for students, and experiences for pre- service teachers. Cranbrook is working with the Detroit Public Schools in their science reform effort supported by an NSF Urban Systemic Initiative and with the Michigan Department of Education through its NSF Statewide Systemic Initiative. The exhibit elements will support and reinforce the systemic reform efforts and will be aligned with the science standards.
The National Museum of Natural History is producing 3-D and 2-D versions of a large format film on natural history. With a working title of Wonders of Life, the film will explore the diversity of life on Earth and how this diversity came to be. It will examine the biological, geological, and cultural entities that interact in myriad ways to generate, shape, and sustain the enormous biological and cultural diversity of our planet. The film will be supported by outreach material designed to support further exploration of the topic of diversity in both informal and formal settings. An inexpensive family activity guide to be available at venues that show the film will feature engaging and challenging activities for families with children ages ten through 15. A teacher resource guide, distributed free to teachers attending the film with groups of students, will be developed for use in grades 5 through 8. A classroom activity poster will be developed to serve grades 2 through 5. A Wonders of Life home page will support in-depth study of the film's topics. Larry O'Reilly, Director of The Discovery Center Project at the NMNH, will be PI and Executive Producer for the film. The Senior Scientific Advisory Board will be chaired by Dr. Robert S. Hoffman, Senior Scientist and former Assistant Secretary for Science at the Smithsonian Institution. The board also includes Sir David Attenborough, Dr. Sylvia Earle, Dr. Margaret Geller, Ivan Hattingh, and Dr. Thomas Lovejoy. Dr. Kay Behrensmeyer, Curator of Paleobiology and former Associate Director for Science at the NMNH, will lead a core team of scientists who will be directly involved in production. The film will be produced by Christopher Parsons and David Douglas will be Director of Photography.
The Astronomical Society of the Pacific requests $1,348,428 to enhance the dissemination of Project ASTRO in communities by building new capability into an existing network to serve the "whole family". Family ASTRO will consist of the following components: Six Family Astronomy Kits, in English and Spanish, each consisting of a suite of hands-on activities that can be done with simple materials that are available to a wide range of families. All families will have the capability to perform these activities. A Family Astronomy Events Manual to help partners and site leaders use star parties, Sun, Moon, and Shadows sessions, and other larger group astronomy events into the project. Training protocols and materials at three levels: to train the families in doing astronomy activities directly, to train the astronomy/teachers partners to work with families and to train regional site leaders on the best ways to work with their local partners to start their own Family ASTRO program. The project will have a strong focus on families of underserved populations in science by continuing the work of Project ASTRO sites in urban areas such as Chicago and San Francisco, and in rural areas like southern New Mexico.
The Smithsonian Astrophysical Observatory will develop "Cosmic Horizons: Our Place in Space and Time." This will be a 5,000-square-foot traveling exhibition to help visitors explore the extraordinary recent breakthroughs and current mysteries in our scientific understanding of the structure and evolution of the universe. Cosmic Horizons will reach over 3 million people on its tour of nine to twelve science museums. A coordinated set of programmatic activities and resources for adult and family audiences, materials for teachers and students, and on-site workshops for host venues will be developed in partnership with Boston's Museum of Science to maximize the impact of this space-science education endeavor.
The Great World Wide Starcount is a Windows to the Universe international citizen-science event that encourages everyone, astronomers and non-astronomers alike, to measure their local light pollution and report their observations online. The Great World Wide Star Count, part of the Dark Skies Awareness cornerstone project for the 2009 International Year of Astronomy, raises awareness about light pollution as well as encourages learning in astronomy. No prior experience is necessary and the downloadable activity guide is available in eight different languages on the Web site.
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University Corporation for Atmospheric ResearchSandra Henderson
This planning grant is designed to engage urban and rural families in science learning while piloting curriculum development and implementation that incorporates both Native and Western epistemologies. Physical, earth, and space science content is juxtaposed with indigenous culture, stories, language and epistemology in after-school programs and teacher training. Project partners include the Dakota Science Center, Fort Berthold Community College, and Sitting Bull College. The Native American tribes represented in this initiative involve partnerships between the Dakota, Lakota, Nakota, Hidatsa, Mandan, and Arikara. The primary project deliverables include a culturally responsive Beyond Earth Moon Module, teacher training workshops, and a project website. The curriculum module introduces students to the moon's appearance, phases, and positions in the sky using the Night Sky Planetarium Experience Station during programs at the Boys and Girls Club (Ft. Berthold Community College), Night Lights Afterschool program (Sitting Bull Community College), and Valley Middle School (UND and Dakota Science Center). Students also explore core concepts underlying the moon's phases and eclipses using the interactive Nature Experience Station before engaging in the culminating Mission Challenge activity in which they apply their knowledge to problem solving situations and projects. Fifteen pre-service and in-service teachers participate in professional development workshops, while approximately 300 urban and rural Native youth and family members participate in community programs. A mixed-methods evaluation examines the impact of Western and Native science on the learning of youth and families and their understanding of core concepts of science in a culturally responsive environment. The formative evaluation addresses collaboration, development, and implementation of the project using surveys and interviews to document participant progress and obtain input. The summative evaluation examines learning outcomes and partnerships through interviews and observations. Presentations at national conferences, journal publications, and outreach to teachers in the North Dakota Public School System are elements of the project's comprehensive dissemination plan. The project findings may reveal impacts on participants' interest and understanding of connections between Native and Western science, while also assessing the potential for model replication in similar locales around the country.
Planet Earth Television (PET) created Scientistic!, a television series that focuses on a young girl's scientific investigations of the world around her. The pilot episode, Sticks and Stones, explored bones and how they heal. A website and iPad app were also developed to supplement the program. REA evaluated the impact of the television program, website, and app on youth's knowledge about and interest in science and specific topics related to bone health and healing. REA recruited youth (grades 1-7) to participate either at home with their families or in a classroom with their teachers. REA