National Lab Day

National Lab Day, NSF
“National Lab Day is a volunteer initiative to form local communities of support around science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) teachers and to connect them with STEM professionals who will share their expertise as well as their excitement and passion for their disciplines.”
National Lab Day Teams With the White House for National Launch
“Today, National Lab Day (NLD) joined with Obama Administration officials to participate in hands-on discovery activities at schools throughout the Washington Metropolitan area. As a part of National Lab Day’s official launch, today’s events highlight the wide range of projects and matches between K-12 classes and experts achieved through the NLD website.”
Holdren Makes Impact (Craters) on National Lab Day, OSTP
Photo: “Following the Q&A, Dr. Holdren joined the students in literally getting their hands dirty in an educational activity set up by NASA. Students created a simulated asteroid surface using a mixture of soil, flour, and other ingredients. Then, using golf balls and a protractor, they observed how changes in the angle of a projectile’s impact affected the area and volume of the resulting craters.”
NASA Targeting Educators in National Lab Day Webcasts
“Though slated for May 12, 2010, National Lab Day is more than just a day. It’s a nationwide initiative that gets volunteers, university students, scientists and engineers to work together with educators to bring discovery-based science experiments to students in grades K-12.”
Keith’s note: Oddly enough, when I go to NASA’s main education webpage I see absolutely no mention of this event. One would think that with all the serious media exposure given to this event by the White House that this would prompt NASA to pay a little more attention to it. Guess not.