Monthly Archives: January 2016

Information about Summer STEM Programs

Events, Opportunities, Resources, Summer

Registration for some summer STEM programs will open soon, and early-bird discounts for others will end soon.  Here are several sources of information:

  • The NewtonSTEM Family Resources page has a list of summer STEM programs in the Greater Boston area.  We’ve recently updated it with several additional programs.  (Please email info@newtonstem.org to nominate additional entries or to send in corrections.)
  • BostonTechMom has a Parents’ Guide to 40+ Summer STEM Camps in Massachusetts.
  • The Massachusetts Technology Leadership Council maintains this list of after-school and summer STEM programs.
  • A Camp Fair will be held 12-4PM on January 31 (snow date, February 7) at Newton North HS to showcase offerings in Newton from Newton Parks & Recreation, Newton Community Education, and more:  Mad Science, Brain Builders, Innovations, and LEGO Engineering.
  • The Underwood PTO is sponsoring the New England Camp Fair. The Camp Fair is open to all local families and will be held 5:30-8PM on Wednesday, February 3 at Bigelow Middle School, with a selection of day and overnight camps for ages 6-14, some of which have STEM programs.

Science Club for Girls: Internship Presentations at MIT Museum, Jan. 20

Events

On January 20, 6-8PM at the MIT Museum (265 Massachusetts Avenue, Cambridge), this year’s Science Club for Girls high-school internship students will present the results of their research internships at Harvard, MIT, Rethink Robotics, Emerson, Boston University, and Children’s Hospital.  The public is invited to listen, ask questions, provide feedback, and learn more about SCfG’s programs.  Tickets are free, and donations are appreciated.

Harvard-Smithsonian Astrophysics Observatory Event, Jan. 21

Events

The Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics (60 Garden Street in Cambridge) will host its monthly Observatory Night on January 21 at 7:30PM on the topic of Sweating the Small Stuff: The Fun and Fear of Near-Earth Asteroids.  The lecture is intended for high-school and older audiences but children are welcome.  Admission is free, no reservations are necessary, and seating is limited.  For more information, call 617-495-7461 or email  pubaffairs@cfa.harvard.edu.  Future Observatory events:

  • February 18:  Monthly Observatory Night — Big Data to Big Art
  • March 3:  Sci-fi Movie Night – “Gravity”
  • March 17:  Monthly Observatory Night — Where Do Planets Come From?
  • April 7:  Sci-fi Movie Night – “Fantastic Voyage”
  • April 21:  Monthly Observatory Night — The Wild West of Star Formation
  • May 19:  Author’s Night –The New Cosmos: Answering Astronomy’s Big Questions

MIT Seeks Children Ages 3-7 for Developmental Neuroscience Research

Opportunities

MIT’s Department of Brain and Cognitive Sciences is recruiting children (ages 3-7) as subjects for safe, non-invasive brain-imaging techniques to explore how the social brain functions and develops over time.  Children will play games inside MIT’s functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) scanner and will receive Amazon gift cards, small prizes, and pictures of their brains to take home.  For more information, see this introduction and contact Grace Lisandrelli at mit.kids.brains@gmail.com or 617-286-6476.

Newton Free Library Wins Federal Robotics Grant

Opportunities

The Newton Free Library has received a one-year, $16,700 grant to expand its STEAM and coding programs to include robotics for children, teens, and adults.  The funds will be used to acquire HexBugs, littleBits, Kibo, Finch Robots, Lego WeDo, Arduino Learning Kits, and related furnishings and equipment.  The grant is from the Federal Institute of Museum and Library Services through the Library Services and Technology Act, administered by the Massachusetts Board of Library Commissioners.  The grant will enable the Library to offer ten free, hands-on programs this year — including last week’s What Me, Code? session and upcoming Arduino instruction.

BSCE Online Bridge Design Contest has Started, Ends Apr. 22

Opportunities

The Boston Society for Civil Engineers sponsors its annual Ralph Salvucci Online Bridge Competition — the Massachusetts sub-contest of the national Engineering Encounters Bridge Design Contest.  Massachusetts students in Grades 6-12, in teams of 1 or 2, use free software provided by the contest to design the cheapest bridge that can carry the specified truck.  Design your bridge, click on the truck, and see if it holds up or crashes.  The top 20 teams will be invited to the Awards Banquet as free guests.  All local contestants are automatically entered in the national contest.  Check out the flyer (PDF), see the rules, then register (using local code RSOB) and download the software, and submit your design by 1PM on April 22.  For more information, to get help, to find a mentor, or to offer to help sponsor the contest, email the Contest Coordinator, Alex Bonnar, at alex.bonnar@gmail.com.

Technovation: Sign Up Now for Mentor/Coach Training This Week

Opportunities

The Technovation Challenge is a worldwide, technology entrepreneurship competition — featured in the movie, CodeGirl — in which each teams of five middle- or high-school girls identify problems in their local communities, build prototype mobile apps for them, develop business plans, and pitch the plans to potential investors.  Teams meet for 3-4 hours weekly with female mentors from the tech/business community, January-April, in preparation for regional and worldwide events in May and June.  Sign up to be a mentor/coach and participate in mentor/coach training webinars January 12, 13, and 14. (either 11AM or 8PM, each for an hour all three days).  The Technovation Regional Ambassador for Massachusetts is Rachel Nicoll of the MassTLC Education Foundation.  Register online to become a student participant.  For more information, email info@technovationchallenge.org.

Newton Library: What Me, Code?: Coding and Robotics and Why Everyone Should Learn, Jan. 14

Events

Through a federal grant, the Newton Free Library is sponsoring a series of workshops and classes to teach adults basic coding skills and robotics. On January 14 at 7PM, engineer and maker Kevin Osborn will explain why it’s important for everyone to have these new basic skills as computers and robots play an ever-increasing role in work and home. In the 21st century, coding is the new literacy.  Free, and no registration required.

At JCC: Doktor Kaboom! LIVE WIRE! The Electricity Tour, Jan. 18

Events

On Monday, January 18, the Leventhal-Sidman JCC (333 Nahanton Street) will present a science/comedy show for ages 4+ (with a parent):  Doktor Kaboom! LIVE WIRE! The Electricity Tour.   Commissioned by the Kennedy Center, the show explores electricity via Tesla coils, Van de Graaf generators, etc., explaining voltage and current, charges, conservation of energy, and plasma.  Shows are at 11AM and 1PM, and tickets are $15, available either online by calling the 617-965-5226.