All posts by newtonstem

Buy a Rubber Ducky for ‘e’ Inc.’s Duck Dash Fundraiser, Oct. 14

Events

e, Inc. will hold a rubber ducky race — the Duck Dash — on Saturday, October 14, 11AM-3PM, rain or shine on the Little Mystic Channel in the Charlestown Navy Yard at 114 16th Street, Boston. The race will start at 1:30PM and there will also be music, food, games, and science activities. This is a fundraiser for the Environment Science Discovery and Action Museum‘s upcoming exhibit, Our Home, featuring ideas for design homes in response to the challenges of climate change. Buy a rubber duck for $10 per duck (or more, with discounts!) and hope that you have one that wins a prize (top prize $350, with more to be announced soon).

Teens: Apply to Join MIT Museum’s Teen Programming Council

Opportunities

The MIT Museum seeks creative, dedicated, and inspired teens to join its new Teen Programming Council.  The Council will host quarterly Teen Science Cafe events at the Museum for teens to connect with MIT researchers.  Council members will also explore current advances in research, attend planning meetings twice a month, and attend teen program events at the Museum.

Ideal candidates will be high-school students who are motivated to create events for other teens, curious about advances in science and technology, willing to commit time for the 2017-18 school year, and desiring to work as a team.

To set up an interview or to request more information, contact Jennifer Novotney, Public Programs Coordinator, at novotney@mit.edu.

Project Learning Tree Workshop: Environmental Experiences for Early Childhood, Sept. 9

Events, Opportunities

Project Learning Tree will present a professional-development workshop for teachers of ages 3-6 — Environmental Experiences for Early Childhood (PreK-K) — at Great Brook Farm State Park in Carlisle on September 9, 10AM-1:30PM.  Cost is $16 per person.   For questions or to register (by September 2), contact Gini Traub at Gini.Traub@state.ma.us or 413-584-6788.  Project Learning Tree’s award-winning environmental-education program is sponsored by the Massachusetts Executive Office of Energy and Environmental Affairs.

Empow Studios Programs at Newton JCC and in Lexington

Opportunities

Empow Studios will offer the following programs at the Newton JCC:

…and the following weekend clubs at Empow Studios in Lexington, for Grades 2-8 except as indicated:

This Month and This Fall: STEM at Newton Community Education

Events, Opportunities

Registration is still available for these Newton Community Education STEM-related courses this month at Newton North HS:

  • Big Dig:  Budding paleontologists, geologists, and archaeologists in Grades K-3. 1-4PM daily. August 7-11.
  • Creative Computing:  Arduino and Raspberry Pi for new and returning students in Grades 6-8.  9AM-noon daily. August 7-11, August 14-18.
  • Mad Science Junior:  Activities to explore science and its impact on the world, for Grades 4-6. 9AM-noon daily. August 7-11, August 14-18.
  • Rocket Science 2017:  Design and use the Viking research rocket. Grades 1-4. 9AM-4PM daily. August 7-11, August 21-25.

And you can now register online for these Newton Community Education STEM-related courses this fall:

Classes meeting weekly for elementary school students:

  • 3-D Printing & Design: Grades 3-5; Wednesdays at Bowen; Thursdays at Mason-Rice
  • App Inventors: Grades 3-5; Mondays at Zervas, Tuesdays at Mason-Rice; Thursdays at Bowen; Fridays at Angier
  • Coding with Scratch: Grades 3-5; Mondays at Underwood; Wednesdays at Ward; Thursdays at Peirce; Fridays at Horace Mann
  • Earth, Space, Sea, & Chemistry: Grades 1-3; Mondays at Countryside; Wednesdays at Franklin, Lincoln Eliot, Underwood, and Williams; Thursdays at Horace Mann and Mason Rice; Fridays at Bowen, Burr, and Zervas
  • Girls STEAM Squad: Grades 1-3; Mondays at Bowen and Ward; Thursdays at Franklin and Underwood; Fridays at Cabot (Carr) and Countryside
  • Landscape Architecture: Grades 2-5; Mondays at Mason Rice
  • Learn with LEGOs: Grades K-1; Mondays at Angier; Tuesdays at Bowen and Williams; Wednesdays at Mason Rice; Thursdays at Cabot (Carr), Countryside, and Peirce; Fridays at Franklin, Horace Mann, and Underwood
  • LEGO Master Builders: Grades K-4; October 21 at NSHS
  • Math Mania: Grades 3-5; Mondays at Lincoln Eliot; Tuesdays at Underwood; Wednesdays at Cabot (Carr); Thursdays at Burr; Fridays at Williams
  • Next Gen LEGO Robotics: Grades 3-5; Thursdays at Cabot (Carr); Fridays at Burr and Countryside

Classes meeting weekly for middle-school students:

  • 3-D Print a Cell Phone Stand: Grades 6-8; Fridays at Brown
  • Java Coding with Minecraft Modding: Grades 6-8; Tuesdays at Brown
  • Learn to Code with Scratch: Grades 6-8; Tuesdays at Day

And classes meeting on a few specific dates:

  • Early-Release Science Days: Grades 1-4; September 27, November 2, and December 7 at Bowen, Horace Mann, Underwood, and Zervas
  • Family Night Under the Stars: Ages 7+ with adult; October 27
  • Early-Release Science Days: Grades 1-4; September 27, November 2, and December 7 at Bowen, Horace Mann, Underwood, and Zervas
  •  Volcano Makers: Grades K-4; November 18 at NSHS

Edge on Science: Space Available for Catapult Engineering, Ages 10-14 at Gann Academy, August 7-11

Opportunities

Edge on Science is offering a $100 discount on remaining spaces in this week’s Catapult Engineering course for ages 10-14, August 7-11 at Gann Academy. Learn how to build a trebuchet and how to use it to knock down a castle wall. Our favorite testimonial quotes:

“My son loved every single minute. This is such a hidden gem! We’re so happy we found it & will come again!” —Cindy C., parent

“I wish we had this when I was 10!” —King Richard I of England (1157-1199)

Register for Destination Imagination 2017-18

Opportunities

Registration is now open for Newton’s Destination Imagination program for the 2017-18 school year.  It’s a volunteer-run STEAM program for Grades K-12. Teams of 2-7 students form in September and address various design challenges (see preview) throughout the year in preparation for regional tournaments in the early spring and potentially state and global competitions in May. Over the years, over 350 Newton students have participated. Here are videos of this year’s Technical Challenge, Scientific Challenge, Engineering Challenge, Fine Arts Challenge, Improvisational Challenge, and Social Action Challenge. Details are in this webinar. The registration fee of $135 is reduced to $95 for adults volunteering to co-manage a team. For more information, contact Matthew Miller at matthew@newtondi.net.

NASA’s Advice on Viewing the August 21 Solar Eclipse

Recommendations

The August 21 solar eclipse will be visible in totality from within a 70-mile-wide band across the United States, from Oregon to South Carolina, for a couple of minutes in each location.  From elsewhere — and before and after those brief minutes of totality within that band — the eclipse will be partial and thus will present a danger to anyone viewing the sun without proper eye protection. NASA’s advice on viewing the eclipse safely includes a list of reputable vendors of solar filters and viewers. Avoid off-brand, sub-standard “eclipse glasses” that are reportedly being sold. Since retinas do not sense pain, it’s possible to incur severe damage to eyesight without being aware of it at the time. Watch safely, so you can see future solar eclipses, too — including the one over Newton on May 1, 2079 at 6:06AM!