Tuesday, June 29, 2010

Travis County 4-H Office

4-H Families and Friends, the Travis County Extension Office experienced some major issues today with the rain and part of the roof collapsed. All agents and staff are okay and will be working from various locations. Please do not come by or call the office at this time. As changes are made, updates will be posted. At this time you may email Cory at travis4h@gmail.com.

Sunday, June 20, 2010

USA Science Festival Kavli Video Contest

National 4-H Council is partnering with the USA Science & Engineering Festival, a national celebration of innovation in science held in Washington D.C. on October 23rd and 24th . The event is the country’s first national science festival and promises to be the ultimate multi-cultural, multi-generational and multi-disciplinary celebration of the sciences in the United States. The culmination of the Festival is a two-day Expo that will provide more than 500 science & engineering organizations from all over the United States the opportunity to present hands-on, fun science activities to inspire the next generation of scientists and engineers.

Through this partnership, National 4-H Council has been alerted to a great opportunity for 4-H’ers to showcase the innovative 4-H Science work taking place across the nation. The Kavli Science Video Contest is looking for young people around the country to create and submit videos that answer the question "Why is science cool?"

Winning submissions will be creative, surprising, and “contagious” in terms of spreading youth enthusiasm about science to others. Videos might explore a specific scientific concept, demonstrate the wonders of nature, provide a glimpse into the future, show what scientific discovery has done for us in the past or simply explain why you think science is cool.

We are encouraging the entire 4-H system especially those that participated in the Films on video- SET in Urban Communities Kickoff and The Filmmaking Work Group to submit videos.

Who Can Enter – Individual students or groups from K-12 schools, home school networks, after-school programs, science clubs or any other organization the student is representing for the purpose of the Kavli Science Video Contest. All prize monies must go to an educational institution rather than an individual student.
Types of Videos Eligible - Videos should explain Why Science is Cool and may explore a scientific concept, provide a glimpse into the future or show us what scientific discovery has done for us in the past, or whatever else the inspires the entrant. USA Science & Engineering Festival videos must be 30-90 seconds in length, educational and suitable for general public screening.
Selection of Winners - Winning videos will be chosen by a distinguished panel of judges that includes Brian Schwartz, founder of Science & the Arts at the City University of New York Graduate Center and Sheri Potter, a founder of the Coalition on Public Understanding of Science (COPUS).
Deadlines and Prizes – The contest is open now and all entries must be submitted before midnight on July 15, 2010. First prize is $1,000 plus a $500 electronics gift certificate or HD Camcorder (valued up to $500) and a travel stipend to travel to Washington DC for the Expo. Second prize is $500, plus a $250 electronics gift certificate, third prize is $250, plus a $125 electronics gift certificate. The People’s Choice Award prize is $250.
Following in the footsteps of American Idol, America can vote on a People’s Choice Kavli Science Video Award through SciVee, a Web 2.0 site which helps scientists share their work with the general public.

Rules and a submission form can be found at:

http://www.usasciencefestival.org/2010festival/contests/kavli-science-video-contest

Friday, June 18, 2010

Aqua Adventure Camp

Announcing... Texas 4-H Conference Center's Aqua Adventure Camp!

What better way to spend those hot summer days than on the water!

Who: ANY youth age 9-14 years

When: July 12-16, 2010

What: Canoeing, sailing, kayaking, water safety and survival, and MORE aqua learning and FUN!!!

For more information, please visit: http://texas4hcenter.tamu.edu (Information can be found under "Summer Camps & Programs")

Summer Sun Safety at Manor 4-H


Manor 4-H reminds all 4-H'ers out there to protect yourself from that blazing sun this summer! Studies show
that most kids get
between 50%- 80% of their lifetime sun exposure before they reach the age of 18!!!! Have some fun staying safe- pick out a cool hat to protect your face and neck and shoulders, wear sunglasses of course and lots of sunscreen. Remember to put on more sunscreen after you have been out for a while. Kristin Griffin taught us in her program that all you have to do is take the SPF level on your sunscreen and multiply it by 10 then you will know how many minutes you can stay out in the sun before you need to reapply your sunscreen. The Skin Cancer web site (www.skincancer.org) states that a person's risk for melanoma doubles if he or she has had five or more sunburns! Have a great sunburn-free summer 4-H'ers!!!!!