Like many Delaware schoolchildren on
spring break this week, 10-year-old
Jonathan Waters did not have to go to
school -- but he kept his learning alive
during a science day camp at the
Delaware AeroSpace Education
Foundation's Environmental Outpost in
Smyrna.
And missing some vacation did not bother
him a bit, especially after he got to
conduct a kite-flying experiment with an
indoor fan.
"I like learning on spring break because
it gets me caught up on what we're
learning at school," said Jonathan, a
fourth-grader at the Campus Community
Charter School in Dover.
Lynda Rae Gannon, a retired teacher in
the Lake Forest School District who
teaches part time at the site, is
encouraged by that kind of attitude.
"I think we provide fun, engaging
activities for them to do that have a
lesson," she said.
"And we make them think, we challenge
them." The special science camp was
designed specifically for children on
spring break, and 13 children ages 6 to
10 spent much of the day learning about
flight. But the outpost normally buzzes
with children -- and even some adults --
several times each week. The science
themes change, as do the ages of the
children. What remains the same is the
foundation's goal.
"Our mission is to provide as many
exceptional experiences as we can for
students and teachers so they can
appreciate as much as they can about the
Earth and its place in the universe,"
foundation president Stephanie Wright
said.
Wright, a former teacher, started the
foundation almost 20 years ago, shortly
after becoming involved in the Teacher
in Space program. Inspired by photos of
Earth from space, she started with
science-outreach activities before she
had a building. The outpost opened in
April 2006, and field trips to the
facility started cranking up by that
December. More than 10,000 people have
visited the site to learn about science,
technology, engineering and math.
Children who look out the outpost's
window can see the steel girders forming
a skeleton that will one day grow to
become another foundation building. The
third floor of the building will become
a dormitory, allowing children to visit
for overnight programs. The
43,000-square-foot structure also will
house a hands-on museum, classrooms and
educational displays. The foundation is
tackling the project a stage at a time
as money becomes available, Wright said.
Construction of an exterior covering for
those girders should begin in late
spring.
Lynda Rae Gannon helps students build
kites at a recent day camp at the
Delaware AeroSpace Education
Foundation's outpost in Smyrna. After
building the kites, the students tested
them using indoor fans.
Jenna Harmon, 6, proudly displays the
kite she made. Behind her is Jessie
Eastburn, 10. The foundation's mission
is to inspire children to study the
sciences. A new building will include a
dormitory so children can participate in
overnight programs.
Naturally, the new building will feature
a host of environmentally "green"
components, Wright said. On Wednesday,
workers also installed solar panels on
the outpost, replacing the olds ones and
providing enough juice to allow the
foundation to sell some energy back to
the electric company.
Walls of the main room in the
Environmental Outpost are ringed with
cubbyholes that hold containers filled
with science supplies and labeled with
words such as "Dinosaurs," "Minerals,"
"Birds" and "Space Exploration." An
astronomical observatory adjoining this
room houses a 16-inch telescope, one of
the largest in the state. Family nights
give visitors a chance to peer out at
the cosmos and learn about the planets
and stars.
"This is a great learning center," said
Tom Pribanic, who serves on the
foundation's board. "I can't say enough
about it. It's just so good to see the
happy looks on the kids' faces when they
come here. The whole thing is to get
them inspired to study the sciences."
Although most of the program
participants from all three Delaware
counties are in preschool through middle
school, participants also have included
college students and even a group of
senior residents of an assisted-living
facility, Gannon said. Scouts and
birthday-party groups also visit. The
program fees range from about $5 to $15.
David Stevenson, 9, a third-grader at
Stokes Elementary in Dover, likes coming
to the programs so much that he has
visited "at least four times."
"I like that we get to look in the
telescope and look at all the different
things," he said. "It's really cool."
For science's sake, Wright likes to hear
that.
"If you can impress them at an early
age, there is hope that they might go
into this field and keep the United
States in an economically stable
position and maintain our leadership
role in the world," she said.
To find out more about the Delaware
AeroSpace Education Foundation's
programs, visit the dasef.org Web site
or call 834-1978. The organization will
hold a Family Day fundraiser for its
educational programs from noon to 4 p.m.
Saturday at the Environmental Outpost in
Big Oak Park in Smyrna. The entrance fee
is $5 per person (free for children ages
3 and younger) and includes
refreshments, rocket-launching and
kite-flying demonstrations, an outdoor
maze, games, tents and a flight
simulator. The fundraising event, held
twice a year, typically draws almost
1,000 people. The park is at 585 Big Oak
Road, off U.S. 13.
