The next Saturday Family Fun Day will take place on July 10.  During this event, the art/craft that will be constructed is a Nature Fan.  For more information and registration, see our SFFD page here.  To see what we did last time, check out the June SFFD report.

The morning of June 23 students and parents from the First Presbyterian Church of Greenville came out to the ATFS Learning Center to explore several features of “WATER”, one of the themes for their Vacation Bible School.  After a brief introduction to the Center and its facilities, participants, aided by internet programs estimated just how much water they typically used in a day’s time.  Guided by Nancy Bray they walked to the well near the ATFS Garden to pump a very small portion of their daily water usage.  They then had an opportunity to carry it back to the Center.  Thus they discovered the difficulty many people in the Developing World have in obtaining their daily water needs and the true value of the easy availability of clean water we have in our society.

Leah Connell guided the participants in exploring the near-shore environment around one of one of the ponds on the Bray Hollow Nature Conservancy for smaller forms of life that depend on the availability of habitable water.  These hand-on activities were able to make a deeper impression on the participants of the importance and value of water to all living creatures.

Finally, before leaving, everyone was able to get “up close and personal” with the nose-wheel tire that went into space and back on the Space Shuttle Endeavour, Mission STS-113.  This historic item is on loan from NASA and the Eastern NC Regional Science Center, Inc. (DBA Go-Science).

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First Presbyterian Vacation Bible School

A warm (really a hot) evening, a clear sky, newly-minted telescopes, and an artifact from NASA’s Space Shuttle Mission-113 brought interested individuals and families to the A Time for Science Learning  Center and the Bray Hollow Nature Conservancy for the first annual Summer Solstice Party.  Thanks to the assistance from student volunteers from DH Conley High School, St. Gabriel’s Youth Group and elsewhere, this Solstice Party offered some heavenly sights and interesting experiences for all.  Although a bright moon and a partly cloudy sky precluded the planned sky show, lunar and planetary viewings were excellent.  Many of Pitt Community College’s newly-minted (AST-251) astronomers were able to show off their creations to large group of interested audience.

One highlight of the evening was the nose wheel nose-wheel tire that went into space and back on the Space Shuttle Endeavour, Mission STS-113.  Visitors were able to touch, feel and explore many aspects of this tire which is on loan from NASA and the Eastern NC Regional Science Center, Inc. (DBA Go-Science).  Answers to questions about the tire, posed to our “Tire Hostess,” will, in time, be posted here at the website.

Two reminders for all: 1.) The Shuttle tire will remain for several more months at the ATFS Center for all visitors to see. And 2.) Be sure to mark your calendars and save the date for our Fall Equinox Party in three more months.

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Summer Solstice 2010

Last Saturday, June 19, another group of “inquiring minds,” spanning a 60 decade age range, assembled for another of the now “famous” AST-251 Astronomy Telescope Making Workshops at PCC.  The day was spent in fun building a Dobsonian mount, Newtonian reflector scope.  The evening was also spent in fun making all of the appropriate adjustments and viewing the heavens at “First Light” for these new creations.  Though the scopes were constructed from seemingly humble materials there was some very high-tech assistance afforded the night-time viewing.

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Telescope Making Workshop – June 19

Starting bright and early Saturday morning, June 12, eight students entered one of the physics classrooms at Pitt Community College and by 5:00 that afternoon walked away with a fully functional Dobsonian mount reflector telescope.  Under the direction of Charles Goodman, one of the volunteer advisors for A Time for Science, and assisted by Nancy and John Bray students assembled from ATFS style kits four 4 ½-in, three 6-in and one 8-in telescopes.  Later that evening most of these budding astronomers, some joined by family, gathered with the Carolina Skies Astronomy Club at the Bray Hollow Conservancy where, during their “First Light” activities, they learned to collimate their scopes, calibrate their finder scopes and search the heavens for the wonders of the night sky.

They will return to Bray Hollow on several more occasions during this semester to complete the work for their astronomy credit.  And this will all be repeated this coming Saturday, June 19 with another in the Telescope Making Workshops.

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Telescope Making Workshop – June 12

The first Saturday Family Fun Day (SFFD) at A Time for Science was a success! Our 20 participants enjoyed a nice walk through the woods and learned a little about the plants and animals. We saw some interesting insects, turtle egg shells, and a kingsnake crossed our path! The intrepid interpreter, Leah Connell, managed to capture the kingsnake and show him around to the guests. Our non-venomous visitor was a little nervous, but none the worse for wear and slithered off happily into the woods to the sounds of our goodbyes.  Our guests were very helpful in pointing out various interesting sights in the woods, and Leah was definitely appreciative of all the extra sets of eyes in finding the good stuff. Everyone had a good time on the walk; however all were grateful for the air conditioning in the craft room when we got back!

The activity for this SFFD was to make picture frames.  The frames we made from found sticks were really cool! The creativity flowed in the room and everyone’s frame came out a little different. We decorated them with twine, raffia, and bits of nature we found along the path. Some of them even had living leaves on them! The workmanship from such young (and slightly older) hands was very impressive. Thanks to all for making our first SFFD such a great time! We’re looking forward to next month!  See our other SFFD events.

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Saturday Family Fun Day – June 2010