I'm excited to share the news that starting today I am the Senior Manager of Digital Learning for the California Academy of Sciences. I am honored to be leading a crack team of youth development and digital media specialists, and to be part of an amazing youth programs family at the Academy. If you had…
Category: Science
Happy Fifth Birthday, California Academy of Sciences!
On September 27 2008, five years ago today, the California Academy of Sciences opened it's new headquarters to the world, in the heart of San Francisco's Golden Gate Park. I wasn't here at that time, but I heard that it was an impressive sight seeing the thousands of people lining up to get a peek…
This is where I work
The California Academy of Science: the world's only natural history museum, planetarium, aquarium, and rainforest, all under one living roof. Also, my office. I'm a very fortunate person.
My Talk on Social Dancing and Embodied Learning
For a staff retreat day at work last week, we had different staff people give short talks about something that they are passionate about that in some ways relates to our work as science educators. I decided to give a talk on "social dancing and embodied learning" since dance is such a big part of…
Retreating with the Cal Academy of Sciences’ Youth Programs Team
Wednesday and Thursday I got to spend much needed retreat time with the youth programs team at the California Academy of Sciences. We met up at the beautiful Pepperwood Preserve up in the Trinity Alps region, just a couple of hours north of San Francisco. The evening was spent recreating and bonding with my…
Youth-created Science Video: The League of Extraordinary Marine Animals!
I was blown away by the all videos created by our "Science in Action" teen science filmmakers this Summer. But as a comic geek, this one was particularly close to my heart: "The League of Extraordinary Marine Animals." Created by Arun, Sofia, Juliet and Brandon. Enjoy and share! Superheroes of the world, unite! Related Links:…
1000+ Teens Take Over the California Academy of Sciences!
Image by C. Wilkinson This Friday, we opened up our doors for our very first "Teen Science Night" at the California Academy of Sciences. Over 1000 teens from across the Bay Area converged on the Academy to learn about science, present their own projects to each other, socialize, and dance in our museum. This…
Who is Faster, Michael Phelps or the Sailfish? (video)
I'm excited to report that the first of three awesome short science videos produced by Cal Academy teens has just been released online. Entitled "Phelps vs. Fish," this video explores what makes Michael Phelps one of the fastest humans in the water, and how he compares to the fastest marine animal, the sailfish. (HINT: not…
Helping teens teach science through music and dance
This summer, I've been given the opportunity to expand the range of youth programs I facilitate at the California Academy of Sciences. Along with the Digital Learning youth programs that I manage, I also started co-managing the Cal Academy's "TASC Force" last week. The Teen Advocates for Science Communication (TASC) is an initiative to…
“Call of the Sea”: Learning Science and Seamanship on a Schooner
Last Saturday, I had the opportunity to take a group of ten teenagers on an incredible educational sailing trip in the San Francisco Bay courtesy of the "Call of the Sea" educational nonprofit. For three glorious hours, our teens and chaperones got to voyage out into the beautiful Bay on an 82' schooner called the…