SLAC Today logo

SLAC Kids' Day 2010

(Photo)
Kids' Day 2010 participants head to lunch outside the Linear Cafe. (Photo by Calla Cofield.)


Scouts Lend a Hand


Scout Troop 466 helps with the optics workshop. (Photo courtesy of Matt Hayes.)

For the second year, boys from Scout Troop 466 of Cupertino, led by Matt Hayes of the Mechanical Fabrication Department's Vacuum Systems Group, helped out with one of the activities for Kids' Day.

For Kids' Day 2010, seven scouts (including three Eagle Scouts, the highest attainable Scout rank), assisted with the vacuum workshop. They blew up balloons, handed out certificates, helped kids assemble and leak-check a vacuum system, cleaned up after each session and prepared for the next.

As Scout Master Hayes explained, these scouts have participated in Civil War re-enactments, backpacked 100 miles through the Rockies, driven cattle down the Chisholm Trail, and hiked across England. Wasn’t shepherding 9–11 year olds a bit tame?

On the contrary, said Hayes, the scouts had fun with the vacuum workshop, too. "They were blown away. This is pretty cool stuff." Kids, it seems, are kids.

But Hayes said it’s more than that. "They’re very smart boys, and they’re dedicated to community service—dedicated to giving back."

And having fun doing it.

—Lori Ann White
 


Scout helpers from left to right: Nicholas Reed, Spencer Rodrigues, Kevin Hayes, Michael Serio, Riley Cressler, Brian Nordby and Brian Holt. (Photo courtesy of Matt Hayes.)


 

Last Friday, many SLACers took a recess from their usual work to dazzle nearly 180 kids with talks and hands-on workshops. Children ages 9 to 16, sponsored by SLAC employees, descended on site for a day of exploring the lab and its science.

Clad in bright orange T-shirts, participants took part in 12 different workshops hosted by SLAC employees and some special community volunteers (see sidebar). The workshops ranged from shooting off hydro rockets on the green to dabbling in magnetics and electronics to catching a 3-D movie of the early universe in the Kavli Visualization Lab.

Kids' Day kicked off at 8 a.m. with a quick chat about safety, followed by question-and-answer sessions about life as a physicist with SLAC scientists Nicole Ackerman and Bill Schlotter. After attending workshops in the morning and afternoon, participants settled down for presentations about dinobirds by Uwe Bergmann and lasers by Ryan Coffee before heading out at 3:30 p.m. The $20 Kids' Day registration fee also covered lunch, an ice cream social and a T-shirt featuring the design of 2009 Kids' Day contest winner Jonathan Huang.

Coordinators enlisted the help of more than 50 volunteers from around the lab to serve as escorts and make sure the kids arrived at each event safely and on time.

"Kids' Day would not happen without the many SLAC staff who volunteer their time and enthusiasm to create a day that encourages our kids' interest in science," said program coordinator Pat Kreitz. "Watching a child jump up and down with joy as her hydro-rocket launches makes everyone feel proud and excited to be involved."

—Julie Karceski
  SLAC Today, August 24, 2010

Kids' Day participants at the vacuum workshop. (Photo by Ruth McDunn. Click on image for larger version.)

Waves were the subject of one workshop. (Photo by Ruth McDunn. Click on image for larger version.)

Kids built Galilean telescopes at the optics workshop. (Photo by Ruth McDunn. Click on image for larger version.)

Hydro rockets flew high in the air on the SLAC Green. (Photo by Ruth McDunn. Click on image for larger version.)

Participants took a break from workshops to play frisbee. (Photo by Ruth McDunn. Click on image for larger version.)

The astrophysics workshop gave kids a chance to see solar flares. (Photo by Ruth McDunn. Click on image for larger version.)

Additional photos are available on the Kids' Day Web site.