Growing With Science Blog

Year: 2010 (Page 17 of 70)

Science Events: USA Science and Engineering Festival

October 2, 2010 / / 0 Comments

I seem to have a lot of information to pass on to you this weekend. Have you run across information about the USA Science and Engineering Festival? It will be held October 23 and 24, 2010 at the National Mall in Washington. Would you believe over 1500 free hands-on activities are scheduled?

There will also be quite a few free satellite events throughout the country. Check the calendar for events, too. For example, on October you can build a solar-powered car (from a kit) at DeVry University in Arlington, VA.

In the Kids Zone, there’s a link to Science Buddies, where they have compiled an extensive list of science activities you can do at home with simple ingredients. A couple involve M&M’s, how can you go wrong?.

Other events include the Austin Science and Engineering Festival running from October 2 – October 22, 2010, with an expo at the Austin Convention Center on October 23 and 24, 2010.

What a great month for science!

Be sure to let me know if you participate in any of these events.

Great Migrations at National Geographic

October 1, 2010 / / 2 Comments

In case you haven’t “heard,” National Geographic Channel has a seven-part series coming in November called Great Migrations (links are no longer available). Affiliated with the television event are a number of educational opportunities you might want to investigate.

Accompanying the series is a children’s book, Great Migrations:  Whales, Wildebeests, Butterflies, Elephants, and Other Amazing Animals on the Move by Elizabeth Carney.

Great Migrations contains the dramatic, stunning photographs you have come to expect from National Geographic. Each animal is given a four page spread. The first two pages are amazing scenes in vibrant color. The second two pages are facts about the migrations those animals take that includes a map of the region where the animals occur (geography lesson).

I do have one caveat. The font on these informational pages jumps around drastically in color and size, even within a paragraph. While this is eye-catching from a design point of view, on the other hand it is a real challenge for beginning and struggling readers to follow.

If you are going to watch the series and want to have a reference on hand to emphasize points or delve a bit further into details, then this book could be a useful tool. It will be sure to get children interested in learning more.

There is also an adult book, Great Migrations by K. M. Kostyal, which I haven’t seen yet.

This trailer to give you an idea what the series is like (may not be suitable for sensitive children):

Isn’t that stunning?

Note:  I’m sure there will be some scenes of predators capturing prey in the actual show, so it may not be suitable for young or highly-sensitive children.

More information:

Great Migrations: Whales, Wildebeests, Butterflies, Elephants, and Other Amazing Animals on the Move

Reading level: Ages 9-12
Hardcover: 48 pages
Publisher: National Geographic Children’s Books (October 12, 2010)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 1426307004
ISBN-13: 978-1426307003

and

Great Migrations by K. M. Kostyal

Bug of the Week: Budworm

September 29, 2010 / / 2 Comments

Isn’t it interesting how plants and insects go together? We have the queen butterflies (from last week) in our yard because we have desert milkweed plants. This year we planted a birdhouse gourd,

and this year we have…

budworms. Budworms are the caterpillar of a moth. They specialize in eating flower buds, although they will also nibble leaves. This one is feeding upside down, with its head in the bud.

Here I opened the bud.Can you see the tiny brown dots in a row along its sides? Those are the openings called spiracles. Insects get their oxygen through those openings.

Budworms come in a variety of colors, including bright pink. The moths are drab with a faint olive green cast.

I wonder what we should plant next.

Do you have plants that attract a particular insect in your yard?

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