Note: This is still in the proposal stage so no idea yet if HCLS will implement.

Press Release Press contact: Christie Lassen (410.313.7786 or 443.474.0740) Andrea Misner (410.313.7781)

HOWARD COUNTY LIBRARY SYSTEM PRESENTS STEMaPalooza! A FESTIVAL OF STEM-RELATED ACTIVITIES FOR CHILDREN 7 12 YEARS OLD

(Columbia, MD) -- The community is invited to STEMaPalooza! A Festival of STEM-related Activities for Children 7- 12 Years Old on {enter day & date} from 10:00 am 3:00 pm at the Howard County Library System East Columbia Branch located at 6600 Cradlerock Way, Columbia, MD. STEM stands for Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics. Stop by for a series of interactive host of activities related to STEM readiness. Admission is free and no registration required. Children can participate in any or all of the activities. Prizes are awarded in some of the activities. Come, enjoy and have fun participating in the following activities: Polar vs Nonpolar & Food Color Explosion Why don't oil and water mix? Learn about chemical polarity of substances and how molecules interact with ingredients found in your kitchen. Kids will perform the food color experiment and gets to make their own non-toxic lava lamp. The Domino Effect Challenge Kids may participate as individuals or teams. Each will be given 10 minutes to test their engineering skills by building the biggest and best structure from dominoes and then creating a domino effect by knocking down the dominoes without breaking the pattern. Prizes will be awarded for the most creative structure and best domino effect. Plankmania Design and build your own structures using high precision wood KEVA planks. Build towers, buildings, abstract structures and more. No glue, just gravity. Experience the fusion of Art and Engineering. Puzzle Bonanza Choose from a wide spread of puzzles, mostly 3-D ones, ranging in difficulty from easy to extremely challenging. Kids are introduced to problem-solving strategies, stimulating their minds and increasing their concentration. Float, Sink or Flink How do large ships stay afloat when they weigh hundreds of thousands of tons? Investigate floatation by building boats out of tin foil and loading them with pennies until they sink. Learn how water 'pushes up' and an object 'pushes down' to help you predict if an object will sink, float, or "flink!" iPod Autopsy Come tear apart an iPod and see what makes it tick! Electronics is all about investigation and discovery. What better way to discover how your favorite music device works than to take one apart? Really! Innovation Generation will have a pile of iPods and a bunch of seasoned

electronics buffs to help you tear one apart so you can learn what the parts are and how they work together to bring music to your ears. Puff Mobil: Engineer with the Power or Air Make a fast car out of 3 straws, 4 Lifesavers, 1 piece of paper, 2 paper clips and masking tape. Race them on our track with only the power of your breath! Prize will be awarded to the winning fast car. For more information, please visit our website, www.hclibrary.org.

Proposed Event: STEMaPalooza! A Festival of STEM-related activities for Children 7-12 years
I. Need for the program/event School systems across the nation have been enhancing their K-12 STEM curriculum. STEM stands for Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics. Howard County Public School System pushes for a more focused effort in enhancing the education in Howard County to better prepare students for the future STEM workforce. As partners with the Howard County Public School System in many initiatives, Howard County Library System support the school's effort in inspiring, educating, engaging and preparing students for higher education and/or careers in STEM-related fields. StemaPalooza event is among the many impressive line-up of STEM-related classes by HCLS for students that increases science literacy and develop critical thinking. Students age 7-12 years are invited to participate in the following activities to stimulate their interest in science, technology, engineering and math: 1. Polar vs Nonpolar & Food Color Explosion 2. The Domino Effect Challenge 3. Plankmania 4. Puzzle Bonanza 5. Float, Sink or Flink 6. Puff Mobil: Engineer with the Power or Air 7. iPod Autopsy II. Potential community partners Howard County Public School System John Hopkins Applied Physics Lab Keva Planks III. Steps necessary for setting up the event 1. Contact Keva Planks for partnership and loan/donation of planks. Invite their staff to show some structures that may be built. 2. Contact JH Applied Physics Lab for volunteer effort in the iPod Autopsy activity. 3. Contact HCPSS for judge volunteers 4. Schedule date, time and location for the event 5. Determine logistics of each station (i.e. how many tables, how much space is allocated for each activity, where materials may be placed, how many staff to assign) 6. Coordinate with Children's Department Head for materials needed for each activity and prizes to be awarded. 7. Invite volunteers from HCLS to lead and assist in activity stations 8. Confirm date, time and location with partner volunteers 9. Write a press release

10. 11. 12.

Prepare flyers and distribute at appropriate sites Meet with volunteers for assigned activity and responsibilities. Collect appropriate books to be displayed

Day of the event: 1. Set up the room/s where activities will be held 2. Smile and welcome participants as they arrive. 3. Have the kids sign in the sign up sheet for each activity. IV. How you will evaluate it Event will be evaluated by: 1. The number of participants who signed in each activity 2. Kids will be asked which activity they like best/least 3. Parent comments 4. Volunteer and staff feedback will be taken

----------- Howard County Library System 6600 Cradlerock Way Columbia, MD 21045 410-313-7729