Cub Scout Day Camp - World Astronomy Day
April 17 2010

Some of the Campers listen up

Danielle Blake, Firebird District Unit Commissioner, Boy Scouts of America Grand Canyon Council, wrote to West Valley Astronomy Club "I am in the process of planning a Cub Scout Day Camp to observe National Astronomy Day 2010 on April 17, and I was wondering if you do presentations to groups." The response: "YES!"

The enthusiastic response came from club members Steve Dermer and Ed Whitfield. Commissioner Blake explained that scouts would work towards astronomy merit awards. The Day Camp was held in the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter - Day Saints in Surprise Arizona April 17.
Seventy scouts from six Cub packs and escorted by twelve adults attended the two hour session.
Steve and Ed brought a slide projector, audio equipment, models of space craft, styroform models of the phases of the moon, and several items to hand out to each camper.
Presenter Steve Dermer arranges materials
Steve organized the course and was the primary presenter. Topics included:
  • Solar System
    • Planets
    • Moon Phases
    • Eclipses, Lunar and Solar
    • Asteroids and Meteors
    • Comets
  • Extra Solar
    • Star Life Cycles
    • Extrasolar Planets
The list of topics seems to be an over-ambitious curriculum, but Steve had chosen the goals carefully. He wanted to raise the childrens' curiosity about the Sky and pass along some vocabulary so each scout would leave the Camp with the drive to teach himself astronomy by discovering the questions to ask and research.
 
Young Astronomers At Work
The lecture was illustrated with slides and photographs of astronomical objects. The campers threw out questions through out the presentation. Time was spent studying the moon and its revolution around Earth. As an exercise, the scouts were given pictures of the phases of the moon to place in order. (See photograph at right.)
A copy of the April Sky Map went home with each child, and a paper model of the orbiter space shuttle that he could construct at home, and it would actually fly.
Ed Whitfield helped Steve transport equipment and materials to the Day Camp and set them up. He took photographs and made notes of the proceedings for the records of the West Valley Astronomy Club and to report to the Night Sky Network.
The Night Sky Network is a nationwide coalition of amateur astronomy clubs. It sponsored and supported by JPL. For more information click icon below