Busiest October Ever!

Not like last year...

Fall is normally a quiet time at the Science Center.  Schools are adjusting to the new classes and students are getting to know their teachers.  Field trips are often the last thing on anyone's mind this time of year.  But not this fall.  This month was a whirlwind.  The Harbor Community Benefit Foundation provided funding for buses for many local schools for free field trips to the Science Center.

Starting with the Open House on October 2nd, the Science Center has been a very busy place.  Then, October 4th we hosted another successful community clean up day.  Thanks to all of our volunteers, trees were trimmed, gardens were weeded, and seeds were harvested.  Also on October 4th was the first LAUSD Indian Education Family Day.  Participants were enthralled and entertained by a native american story teller and listened attentively to a native american speaker on history and folklore.  And that was just the first week of the month!

We kicked off the second week of October with Johnston CDS students taking their High school exit exams on October 7th and 8th.  We wished them all great success and hope their hard work has paid off. Bandini elementary came for the Jr. Farmer's and Desert Dweller's tours on October 10th, followed by a girl scout troop of local middle school girls trying to earn their silver award.

Week three in October began with almost 60 3rd graders from Bandini elementary school on October 13th.  Followed by an amazing group of volunteers from Santa Monica college on October 14th.  We especially want to thank them for purchasing a new guava tree for the fruit orchard.  October 15th and 16th we hosted over 100 3rd graders from Leland elementary school.  October 17th Gulf elementary students came to explore the gardens and interact with the animals. The week ended on October 18th, with an Eagle Scout project completing new garden boxes for us to grow California Native Sage plants.



Week four was just as busy.  October 21st and 23rd we hosted over 100 3rd and 4th grade students from South Shores elementary and October 22nd and 24th we hosted 96 kindergarten and 2nd grade students from Point Fermin.   Students felt cotton growing right on the tree, tasted kale, sorrel, fennel, and chard.  They even found out they like stevia because it really does taste a lot like sugar.  Plus, on October 23 the Tongva Language class was held here and the first ESC South  Science Cadre meeting, a teacher workshop, was attended by 17 elementary school teachers.

The month ended with 1st graders from park Western elementary on October 29th, and Gulf elementary with 2nd graders on October 30th.  Students got the opportunity to feed the chickens and the goats while learning about what animals eat.  They especially enjoyed the taste of fresh picked cucumber.

Finally, we ended the month on October 31st with a special treat for our very special sulcata tortoise.

We can't wait to see what November brings...