
How do you get ten year olds excited about science?
Well, you empower them to create designs for a new skateboard, join SETI astronomers in the search for extraterrestrial intelligence, explore new ways to improve the quality of our drinking water, or invent a new flavor for candy.
THE KIDS' SCIENCE CHALLENGE is a nationwide competition for third to sixth graders to submit experiments and problems for REAL scientists and engineers to solve.
Using an innovative range of new and traditional media - podcasts, virtual communities, after-school activities, online games, a nationwide competition and prizes such as skateboards, telescopes, encyclopedias, science toys, and science activity kits - The Kids’ Science Challenge will inspire third to sixth graders to discover a well-kept secret : Science is cool!
The National Science Foundation has awarded a four-year grant to produce the Kids’ Science Challenge. The project, scheduled to launch in Fall 2008, will involve a nationwide competition encouraging third to sixth graders to submit experiments and problems for a group of scientists and engineers to solve. The first 1000 entries will receive free science activity kits.
Participating scientists and engineers in the first year of the competition include:
Paul Schmitt, Director, CreateAskate.org, Michael Bream, CEO, Gravity Skateboards: Skateboard Science
SETI Scientist Team: The Search for Extraterrestrial Intelligence
Doug Vakoch, Jill Tarter, Nathalie Cabrol, Seth ShostakAdina Paytan, Associate Research Scientist, Institute of Marine Sciences, University of California, Santa Cruz: Beach Ecology Project
Joan Harvey, Manager Candy and Flavor development at Cadbury
The Kids' Science Challenge is made possible by the National Science Foundation, with additional support provided by Celestron, CreateAskate.org, Element Skateboards, Gravity Skateboards, Jakks Pacific Toys, K2, Silver Lake Research Corporation Drinking Water Tests, Steve Spangler Science, Wham-O, World Book Encyclopedia, and Woodward Skatecamp.
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