The Research Science Institute hosts 80 accomplished high-school students in a rigorous summer STEM research program at MIT, June 21-August 1. Students first participate in a week of intensive STEM classes, then conduct five-week individual research projects with mentors, and finally prepare written and oral presentations of their results. Applications are due January 16. For more information, email RSI.
Monthly Archives: December 2014
Children’s Hospital Summer Internships
Boston Children’s Hospital offers SCOOP — Student Career Opportunities Outreach Program — a six-week summer internship for rising Sophomore, Junior, and Senior high-school students to explore careers in patient care. Students work 22 hours a week alongside mentors in patient services and develop a project to be presented at the end of the program. Applicants must submit this Excel spreadsheet application and a 500-word essay — and arrange to have two letters of recommendation submitted — to staffdevelopment@childrens.harvard.edu no earlier than December 31 and no later than March 6. For more information, contact the SCOOP Program Coordinator, Eva Gómez at the same email address.
Volunteers Sought for Needham STEAM Night, Mar. 19
The Needham Science Center seeks volunteers for its STEAM Night on March 19, 6-8PM at Newman Elementary School. Volunteers may lead activities, make presentations, host a table for their organization, etc. For more information or to participate, contact Elise Morgan, Needham Science Center Director, at elise_morgan@needham.k12.ma.us.
‘DNA: A Detective Story’ Harvard Holiday Lecture for Ages 7+, Dec. 6
On Saturday, December 6, Harvard’s School of Engineering and Applied Sciences will offer its free holiday lecture, DNA: A Detective Story, in two sessions: 10-11AM and 1-2PM. Professor Howard Stone of Princeton will speak about how scientists cracked the code of DNA, and kids will demonstrate the chemistry of DNA and how it replicates itself. Audience participation is a big part of the show, and every kid gets a T-shirt. It’s free and open to the public. Register online to guarantee seating. Location: Harvard Science Center’s Lecture Hall B, 1 Oxford Street in Cambridge.
Newton South HS PTSO Seeks Funding for STEAM Learning Lab
| Following the success of its Global Communities program, Newton South HS will initiate next year the STEAM Learning Lab, a small learning community focused on project-based collaboration in all STEM fields and the Arts. The program will begin with a pilot for 10th graders next year. Students will “build skills in experimentation, analytical problem solving, collaboration, presentation, communication, and artistic representation through authentic and student-driven learning.” |  |
The Newton South PTSO’s Success@South fundraising campaign aims to raise $20,000 to equip the STEAM Learning Lab, augmenting funding from Newton Public Schools and other sources. Donations are tax-deductible. Potential purchases include:
- 3-D Printer and modeling software for visualization and realization of student designs and mathematical concepts
- Interactive smart glass projection board allowing real-time collaboration among students
- DNA Fingerprinting kit to launch studies in forensic science
- Biodiesel processing equipment to enhance students’ understanding of green technologies
- Green solar plate etching equipment enabling chemistry explorations through Intaglio print making
- Drafting tables for student conceptualization, design, and illustration of ideas
Ligerbots Seek a Trailer for Their Robot
Each year, the Ligerbots build a robot and take it to competitions and often win awards. In past years, they could make it small enough to fit in a minivan, but they might need a bigger robot to meet the challenges of this year’s competition, and they don’t want to impose any unnecessary size constraints on their design. The team seeks to borrow an enclosed trailer with enough room to hold a 5′ tall robot. If you can help, please email contact@ligerbots.com.
Information Session for Potential ‘Einstein in the Classroom’ Volunteers, Dec. 9
The Cambridge Science Festival will offer Einstein in the Classroom to mark the 100th anniversary of the publication of the Theory of General Relativity. The program will bring college physics students and professors into Grade 7-12 classrooms for engaging activities about Einstein’s work, in two sessions in February and March. Topics to be to covered include relativity, spacetime curvature, the life cycles of stars, the relative sizes of the objects that occupy the observable universe. There will be an information session — for anyone interested in volunteering or learning more about the program — on Tuesday, December 9 at 5:30 at the MIT Museum, 265 Massachusetts Avenue in Cambridge. For information, contact Peg Legendre, K-12 coordinator for Cambridge Science Festival and Science on the Street, at plegendre@gmail.com.
Innovation Institute’s New Classes Start Dec. 8
The Innovation Institute in Newtonville offers two new classes starting December 8 (Register online or call 617-340-9907):
- Introduction to Neuroengineering: Information Processing, Neural and Engineered Systems (Grades 7-10), Mondays, 5-7PM
- Investigate, Discover, and Design (Grades 1-2), Mondays, 4:15-5:45PM
Jennifer Montana, founder of The Innovation Institute, was featured in an interview in Harvard’s Colloquy magazine for her work in technology innovation and improving science and engineering education opportunities for children.
Kids Can Use Code to Light Up the National Holiday Tree
Google and the National Park Foundation invite girls (and boys) to code holiday lights for the annual tree lighting ceremony. They can go to madewithcode.com and use blockley, an introductory programming language, to code Christmas lights, a snowflake, or even a yeti. If they choose to code lights, their work will be displayed on their state or territory’s tree throughout the month of December. Made with Code is an initiative with resources to show girls the fun and creative things they can do with computer science.
Registration Open for Northern New England Middle School Science Bowl, Mar. 7
The Northern New England Middle School Science Bowl is a fast-paced, Jeopardy-style tournament in which school-based teams of 4 or 5 middle-school students answer questions in all areas of science and math. This year it will be held March 7 at the Derryfield School in Manchester, NH. The winning team qualifies for an all-expenses-paid trip to compete in the National Science Bowl in Washington, DC, April 30-May 4. Registration for the regional competition is open, first-come/first-served, and limited to 16 teams. Coaches should consult rules, sample questions, etc. The competition is sponsored by the U.S. Dept. of Energy’s Office of Science. For more information, contact Jennifer Betournay, Regional Coordinator, at jennifer.betournay@asdnh.org.