About Starr Jordan

I am the Director of the Lowcountry Hall of Science and Math at the College of Charleston. I earned my Masters of Education in Science and Math in 2009 and my Bachelors of Science in Geology in 2000. Both degrees are from the College of Charleston.

Open House at CofC Observatory

The CofC Department of Physics and Astronomy will host an Public Open House on Friday, Sept 21, from 8:30 -10:00 pm.

Weather permitting, the 16-inch telescope in the rooftop observatory and the observing deck with smaller telescopes will be open to the public.  We will also have fun activities and demonstrations for all ages in rooms on the first floor of the science building.  Enter the Rita Liddy Hollings Science Center (NOT the New Science Center on Calhoun St.) via the Coming Street entrance and check in with the Society of Physics Students host (who can direct you to the location of the indoor and outdoor activities).
 
This event is free and open to the public.  However if you plan to bring a large group (10 or more), or if you will need special accommodations, please let us know ahead of time by contacting (truec@cofc.edu, 843-953-2031).
Open-toed shoes are not permitted on the observing deck.
For further information and last-minute weather alerts, see their website:  www.cofc.edu/observatory.
astronomy_open_house_small 
photo by Kiwi Davis

National Chemistry Week Materials for Loan

The LHSM offers an Educator Training Workshop each year in conjunction with National Chemistry Week. This year’s theme is “Nanotechnology: The Smallest BIG Idea in Science”. Although the workshop is currently full, the LHSM will have activities and materials available for loan from the Resource Library. National Chemistry Week is October 21-27, 2012.

Activities may also be found in American Chemical Society’s publication, Celebrating Chemistry, at http://portal.acs.org/portal/PublicWebSite/education/outreach/ncw/CNBP_030513 and at the NISE Network’s site, http://nisenet.org/national-chemistry-week.

 

2011 Lowcountry Regional Science and Engineering Fair – Registration now open

The registration site for the 2011 Lowcountry Regional Science and Engineering Fair is now up and open! The direct link to the online registration is http://tiny.cc/2011_LSF_Registration. However you should visit the LSF website (http://www.cofc.edu/lowcountryhall/lsf.htm) for complete instructions for registration as there are hard copy forms to mail as well. The registration information can be found on the “Students” page.

 As always, please feel free to contact Starr Jordan at jordans@cofc.edu or 843.953.7847 with any questions or concerns. Remember the online registration must be completed on or by Friday, March 4, 2011, and hard copy forms may be mailed Saturday, March 5, 2011. If there are issues meeting these deadlines, please contact Starr ASAP.

lowcountry science fair logo 

FREE Workshops on Addressing Physical Science Concepts using Children’s Literature

The LHSM is offering a series of four workshops to help teachers address physical science concepts using children’s literature. Each two-hour workshop will be hands-on and focus on different physical science concept topics. Lesson plans are inquiry based and geared to the South Carolina Science Academic Standards. A handbook containing workshop lessons will be provided for all participants.

Dates & Topics:        

  • March 1st – Changes in Matter
  • March 3rd – Force & Motion
  • March 8th – Magnetism & Electricity
  • March 10th – Light & Sound

Participants are welcome to register for one, two, three or all four workshops. (Sessions will be limited to 12 members per session, so register soon!!)

Time: 6 – 8 pm  ** Dinner will be provided.

Location: Workshops will be held at the Lowcountry Hall of Science and Math, College of Charleston, 81 St Philip Street, Suite 201.

Grade Levels: Appropriate for 3rd, 4th, and 5th grade teachers

Presenters: Starr Jordan, LHSM & Meghan Fisher, Science and Math for Teachers MEd Program

Register: for workshops @ http://tiny.cc/lhsm-march2011

Contacts: Starr Jordan @ jordans@cofc.edu or (843)953-7847 or Meghan Fisher @ meghanfisher@hotmail.com

CofC Department of Physics and Astronomy Open House

The CofC Department of Physics and Astronomy will host an Public Open House on Friday, October 22nd, from 7:00 – 8:30 pm.

Unfortunately the 16-in telescope, housed in the rooftop observatory, is still not operational and will not be open.  However, the observing deck with smaller telescopes will be open to the public.  We will also have fun activities and demonstrations for all ages in rooms on the first floor of the science building.  Enter the Rita Liddy Hollings Science Center (NOT the New Science Center on Calhoun St.) via the Coming Street entrance and check in with the Society of Physics Students host (who can direct you to the location of the indoor and outdoor activities).

This event is free and open to the public.  However if you plan to bring a large group (10 or more), or if you will need special accommodations, please let us know ahead of time by contacting (truec@cofc.edu, 843-953-2031).

Open-toed shoes are not permitted on the observing deck. In addition you may want to bring a jacket as it can be several degrees cooler and much windier on the roof than at ground level.

For further information, see our website:  www.cofc.edu/observatory

astronomy_open_house_small 

photo by Kiwi Davis

Save the Date! 2011 Lowcountry Regional Science and Engineering Fair

The 2011 Lowcountry Science and Engineering Fair (LSF) will be held Monday, March 21, 2011 at The College Center at the Complex for Economic Development, Trident Technical College, in North Charleston, SC. Registration and forms will be due on Friday, March 4, 2011.

The LSF is open to students in grades 5-12 in Berkeley, Charleston, Colleton, Dorchester, and Georgetown counties. More information regarding registration will be sent out at a later date.
lowcountry science fair logo

Earthquake Awareness Week – Nov 1-7, 2009

Governor Sanford has declared November 1st – 7th Earthquake Awareness Week.

The South Carolina Earthquake Education and Preparedness (SCEEP) program at the College of Charleston is working with the South Carolina Emergency Management Division (SCEMD) to promote earthquake awareness throughout the state of South Carolina.

On November 2nd, SCEEP will give a short presentation at the College of Charleston, on how to do an earthquake drill for schools.  There will also be basic background on earthquakes in South Carolina, handouts for teaching about earthquakes, and an opportunity to ask lots of questions.  School administrators, the media, and the general public are invited.  Time: 6:30pm (room TBA) Please RSVP to Charlie Kaufman at KaufmanC@cofc.edu.

On November 4th, public schools across South Carolina will participate in an earthquake safety drill to teach students what to do in case of an earthquake.

SCEEP invites you to check out some websites on how to perform an earthquake drill: http://www.dropcoverholdon.org/, http://www.shakeout.org/, http://quakequizsf.org/

Also on November 4th, SCEEP will hold a public meeting at the Summerville, SC Public Library to talk about the 1886 earthquake, historical impacts, and how an earthquake might affect the area in the future.  Time:  6:30pm – 8:00pm

On November 7th, SCEEP will be at the SC state museum in Columbia, SC to talk about earthquakes.  SCEEP will bring displays to the museum that will show individuals how earthquakes work, provide general information on the geology of South Carolina, and explain hazard maps of the area.  Children will get the chance to build their own structure and test is on our shake table, learn about seismometers, and can take home coloring books about earthquakes.  Time: 10:30 – 4:30pm

Please feel free to check out SCEEP’s website if you have any questions: http://scearthquakes.cofc.edu/.

SCEEP

SSP’s 2010 Fellows Program – Funding Opp for Teachers

Society for Science & the Public (SSP), with generous support from Intel, is pleased to announce the 2nd year of its Fellows Program. Their goal is to enable Fellows to guide students in producing project-based research of the highest quality, such as is submitted to SSP’s premiere science competition, the Intel Science Talent Search.

The SSP Fellows Program will attract the most creative and motivated high school science and math teachers in the country. The SSP Fellows Program provides funds and training to selected US sicence and math teachers who serve under-resourced students, to enable interested and motivated students to perform high-quality independent scientific research.

Through a competitive selection process, the Program will provide teachers the financial and training resources necesary to support and inspire the success of their most enthusiastic science and math students. Fellows may serve for up to four years.

2010 Application opens online November 16, 2009. More information can be found at http://outreach.societyforscience.org.