District Science Night Offers Fun for All Ages

April 24, 2012 ~ The district's Science Night for students and families is an evening of hands-on, minds-on science for all ages. It will be held from 6-8 p.m. Wednesday, April 25, at Santa Fe Trail Middle School, 1100 N. Ridgeview Road, Olathe.

The free event is billed as a "Night of Mystery and Wonder" because of the themes for elementary and middle school activities.

Elementary students can solve and explore the mysteries of science, while middle school students will become the lead investigator on a mock crime. Key players in the evening are the Kansas Bureau of Investigation and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives with an official drug-sniffing dog and bomb robot.

Olathe North High School's Faraday Society will present an exciting performance and there will be exhibits from Garmin, Olathe North High School's Animal Clubs, Olathe North Geosciences, The University of Kansas, Kansas State University, University of Missouri, Powell Gardens, Science Pioneers, National Oceanic Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), Olathe Fire Department, Ken-A-Vision, Civil Air Patrol, and T-Rex Restaurant.

Robots, snakes, chemistry, plants, bubbles, fossils, Sticky Ooze, Newton's laws of gravity, and "fear factor" foods such as chocolate covered crickets and "pond water" are part of the evening's hands-on activities. (Regular concessions will be available from 5:30-7 p.m.)

The first 600 student attendees will receive a mystery prize, and someone will win a new microscope or an E-TREX handheld GPS from Garmin.

More information about this free event is available from Amy Hillman, science instructor at Santa Fe Trail, (913) 780-7290.