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The CDO STEM Leadership Council has announced a Summer 2011 GO Green Institute for current 6th grade students in our area. The institute is held at SUNY Oneonta and offers a week-long exploration of “green” topics and how scientists think and work.
The dates are July 18 through 23, 2011 from 9 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. each day.
Applications must be subitted to the Catskill Regional Teacher Center by May 20, 2011, and space is limited.
Please visit their website for more information: CDO Workforce - STEM.
About 100 children with their grown ups came out to SUNY Oneonta last Saturday to celebrate nano-science, that is, the science of really, really small particles.
Kids investigated super thin materials like those used in solar cell technology. They also learned about forces stronger than gravity, and experimented with sand that doesn’t get wet—even under water. Children also viewed "Riding Snowflakes", a planetarium show about molecules.
OWL would like to thank the SUNY Oneonta science department and students, and especially the Science Discovery Center for bringing the world of nanotechnology alive for the afternoon. OWL and the Science Discovery Center have been partnering together to present Science Saturday events since 2009.
The event was a great success. As one grown up put it, "Who said this is supposed to be for kids? This stuff is FASCINATING!"
NanoDays at the Science Discovery Center of Oneonta has been part of a nationwide festival of educational programs about nanoscale science and engineering. NanoDays is organized by the Nanoscale Informal Science Education Network (NISE Net), and takes place nationally from March 26 through April 3, 2011. This community-based event is the largest public outreach effort in nanoscale informal science education and involves science museums, research centers, and universities from Puerto Rico to Alaska.
Oneonta World of Learning (OWL) has been awarded a grant through the Broome, Chenango & Otsego Decentralization (DEC) Grant Program. The $2,000 award will help to present Patterns in Nature at Hartwick College's Pine Lake On July 17th. Read more about the grant at at http://www.chenangoarts.org/index.cfm/fuseaction/content.display/page/decntrlgrant.cfm. And stay tuned for full details as this fun event nears!
NanoDays will probably be our best Science Saturday yet. Young scientists will investigate super-thin materials, forces stronger than gravity and sand that doesn't get wet, even under water! Measure yourself in nanometers, use your nose as a nano detector and much more! Get your Passport to Nano stamped at all the activity stations and take home a Nanoscience Prize Bag!
The event will be on Saturday April 2nd from noon to 4pm. It is recommended for children aged 2 through 13 with their grownups. $5 suggested donation per child.
Be sure to register for the planetarium show on Molecules online at http://www.oneonta.edu/academics/sdc/ or by calling the Science Discovery Center at 607-436-3192 (that is the only part of the event which requires registration). Shows will be at 1:30, 2:30 and 3:30 and there is no additional cost.
Unlike previous Science Saturdays, there are no separate workshops to sign up for. Instead, participants will visit multiple discovery stations.
The location for this event will be in Science Building #1, SUNY Oneonta campus (which also differs from previous Science Saturday events).
Enter the campus from Ravine Parkway. Science Buidling 1 is on the left, past the Morris Conference Center.
This Science Saturday is brought to you by OWL and The Science Discovery Center.
Dinosaur Train tickets are really starting to sell! Oneonta World of Learning (OWL) is incredibly excited to partner with WSKG and the Leatherstocking Railroad Historical Society to bring this event to life. 
The one hour train ride will feature games and activities presented by PBS Kids and OWL. There will also be a meet and greet with Buddy the dinosaur, the main character of the Dinosaur Train show.
There will be two trains on Wednesday, April 13th, one at 10am and another at 1pm. If you don't have your tickets yet, call the railroad at 607-432-2429 to reserve your tickets right away. Tickets are $7.50 each. Children under 2 years old ride for free.
Teachers can prepare their students for the event with one or more of the great lesson plans available at: http://www.pbs.org/teachers/dinosaurtrain/.
The flyer can also be downloaded: Dinosaur Train Flyer.
Look for Oneonta World of Learning on Facebook: Oneonta World of Learning (OWL).
If anyone in the family or the classroom is a fan of the new PBS show Dinosaur Train, then this is an event you won't want to miss!
Dinosaur Train is a relatively new great show from PBS. Oneonta World of Learning (OWL) has received a grant to partner with PBS Kids, WSKG, and Leatherstocking Railroad Historical Society to present a Dinosaur Train event.
The Dinosaur Train event will take place on Wednesday, April 13th, featuring a one hour train ride filled with games and activities presented by PBS Kids and OWL. There will also be a meet and greet with Buddy the dinosaur, the main character of the Dinosaur Train show.
There are two opportunities on April 13th to ride the Dinosaur Train. The first train departs at 10am and the other at 1pm, from the Milford, NY depot.
This will also be a fabulous field trip opportunity for children up through first or second grade. Teachers can prepare their students for the event with one or more of the great lesson plans available at: http://www.pbs.org/teachers/dinosaurtrain/.
Reserve your tickets directly through the railroad by calling 607-432-2429.
Please download the Dinosaur Train Flier freely: Dinosaur Train Flier.
OWL would also like to thank our first new sponsor for the 2011-2012 sponsorship season! The Insurance Professinals of Chenango Valley (IPVC) have generously sponsored OWL for the entire year.
Check out our e-newsletter: February Newsletter. You can sign up for our newsletter on the front page of our website: OWL home page.
Join OWL for first night from 3-4pm at the former McLaughlin storefront, Clinton Plaza, Main Street, Oneonta! Stay after to hear Skip West and then see the parade. Activities are free for children under 12. Download the activities schedule here: Complete Schedule. Find out more about first night here: imagineoneonta.com.
Happy New Year!
OWL is providing children's activities as First Night returns to Oneonta! Join the Oneonta World of Learning as we join Mauritius in toasting to the New Year, Friday December 31st from 3 to 4pm. We will celebrate the culture of this island nation with a story teller, art projects and games. A great time for the whole family. OWL activities will be held at Clinton Plaza, in the former McLaughlin storefront on Main St, Oneonta. First Night is free for children under 12! For more information about first night, go to imagineoneonta.com.
Looking for a new holiday tradition this season? How about a Christmas Lights scavenger hunt? Here is a list of holiday lights and decorations you and your family can find right here in Oneonta: Holiday Lights Scavenger Hunt.pdf.
Not signed up for our electronic newsletter? Read it here: December 2010 Newsletter.
Are you planning to travel this holiday season? Have you been hearing about the new security measures? Are you wondering how to explain this to your child? Try speaking to your child about surprises and secrets.
Surprises are made better by keeping secrets. Surprise birthdays are extra special when you believe everyone has forgotten your birthday, only to find out your closest friends and relatives have been planning and plotting behind your back. These secrets that people keep can make ordinary events extra special.
Those of you who came to Science Saturday last month, learned about keeping secrets using disappearing ink. Magic is based on keeping a secret. Have you tried card tricks with your children? Fan out a deck of cards and ask your child to pick a card. Tell them to remember their card. Remind them to think about what color, shape and number a card is. Ask your child to put the card back into the deck.
Shuffle or have your child “cut” the deck. Please note that this might be a time to familiarize your child with the different meanings of words. I am sure you don’t want your child taking a pair of scissors to your playing cards.
You will magically go through the deck to find their card. Stop reading aloud if you are reading with your child. Here is the secret. At this point if your child is around the age of 4-7, they will not pay attention to where the card goes. You can know where the card is in one of two ways, when your child puts the card in the middle of the deck, immediately cut the deck so that the card that your child has selected is immediately on top OR take a quick peek at the selected card as you are cutting the deck to shuffle. Getting the card to the top allows for more advanced tricks. Now you can remove the card –I like to throw the card on the floor - it is easy to do quickly and it adds to the shock. I have been able to get the card on the chair where one of my boys is sitting. It is great to see their faces when they find out they have been sitting on their card.
Sometimes surprises and secrets are not good. This is when secrets and surprises are meant to hurt others. These types of secrets have to be stopped. That is why they have “secret stoppers” in airports. Some people keep secrets inside their bodies or clothes. Explaining to children how you can hide a secret in your clothes is easy. It can be fun to make a game of “Guess what’s in my pocket”. To get children to understand how we can find out what is inside your body is a little more difficult. Try this activity.
You will need:
A balloon that is light in color but not too light works best. Take a balloon and insert a small object. A marble, lego, or even a crayon can work well. Be careful around toddlers and infants and be sure to clean up any rubber balloon pieces as well. Blow up the balloon and show the balloon to your child. The balloon should look opaque when held down, but when held up to the light we can see the shapes of what is inside the balloon. Explain to your child that this is what the “secret stoppers” at the airports are doing.
Be sure to let us know what worked well in your balloons. Share with us your story of surprises. Good Luck and Happy Holidays.
