GlaxoSmithKline’s Science in the Summer Returns to Philadelphia-Area
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Philadelphia – Beginning in late June and continuing through early August, the usual quiet atmosphere in Philadelphia-area libraries will be replaced with bursts of “WOW” and “AAH” as elementary school children become scientists during GlaxoSmithKline’s Science in the Summer program, where learning becomes fun through hands-on experiments. This free summer enrichment program returns to local libraries in Bucks, Chester, Delaware, Montgomery and Philadelphia Counties with the goal of fostering a life-long appreciation of science and learning in students entering second through sixth grades. Research shows that over extended summer breaks children tend to forget some of what they learned during the school year. GlaxoSmithKline’s Science in the Summer has been addressing this issue for the past 24 years by engaging all students through experiment-based classes designed to teach scientific concepts and encourage curiosity. By challenging young minds with new ideas and lessons that support the Pennsylvania Department of Education’s academic standards, the program helps to lessen the impact of summer learning loss while also introducing participants to the world of science. Since its inception 24 years ago, GlaxoSmithKline’s Science in the Summer has reached out to over 100,000 Philadelphia-area children. “Science is a part of everyday life,” explained Andrews. “Through simple self-conducted experiments and short, easy-to-understand presentations, the approximately 5,000 elementary school students participating this year in GlaxoSmithKline’s Science in the Summer learn basic scientific concepts that relate to the world around them. In the process, students learn and get excited about studying science. In fact, former participants of the program who were recently surveyed continue to be enthusiastic about their participation.” GlaxoSmithKline’s Science in the Summer program consists of four 45-minute classes. Special two-day sessions and Saturday classes also are available at select branches. The courses are taught by certified teachers to groups of 15 students in two age groups: Level I, children entering second and third grades and Level II, children entering fourth through sixth grades. This year’s courses are Bioscience (Montgomery County), Chemistry (Delaware County), Genetics (Chester County), Oceanography (Bucks County) and Physical Science/Electricity (Philadelphia County). In addition to supporting the classes at local libraries, as part of the Science in the Summer program, GlaxoSmithKline also provides an annual grant to each participating library to purchase science books. GlaxoSmithKline’s Science in the Summer program is conducted in partnership with local libraries and administered by the American Association for the Advancement of Science. For more information about the program in Bucks, Chester, Delaware, Montgomery and Philadelphia Counties, including the course description, library-specific registration and course dates, please visit www.scienceinthesummer.com or your local library. GlaxoSmithKline – one of the world's leading research-based pharmaceutical and healthcare companies – is committed to improving the quality of human life by enabling people to do more, feel better and live longer. For company information, visit GlaxoSmithKline on the World Wide Web at www.gsk.com. The American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS) is the world's largest general scientific society, and publisher of the journal, Science (www.sciencemag.org) as well as Science Translational Medicine (www.sciencetranslationalmedicine.org) and Science Signaling (www.sciencesignaling.org). AAAS was founded in 1848, and includes some 262 affiliated societies and academies of science, serving 10 million individuals. Science has the largest paid circulation of any peer-reviewed general science journal in the world, with an estimated total readership of one million. The nonprofit AAAS (www.aaas.org) is open to all and fulfills its mission to advance science and serve society through initiatives in science policy; international programs; science education; and more. For the latest research news, log onto EurekAlert!, www.eurekalert.org, the premier science-news Web site, a service of AAAS. ### Editor’s Note: Teacher, student, and sponsor spokespersons are available for interviews. Please contact Kristin Campbell-Salamone or Jaclyn Grebe at 215-440-9800. |
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