News

Celebrate Science Education Day with Agate Fossil Beds NM and Oglala Lakota College.

Oglala Lakota College willbring their Little Shop of Physics program to Agate Fossil Beds NationalMonument from 12-2pm on Saturday, March 11^th. This is in celebrationof National Science Education Day, which is the following Tuesday.

 Merle Brave and Jesse Pina,science professors from Oglala Lakota College, will bring about 30 hands-onexperiments. Children, in grades K – 12, and their parents can explore oneexperiment of their choice or try them all.

 The Little Shop of Physicsprogram originated at Colorado State University, Fort Collins. Brian Jones, theDirector and Founder of the program, states, “The big message is that scienceis accessible. The stuff we do is exciting, it’s fun, it’s engaging.” Jones andthe program worked with Oglala Lakota College to set-up their own program andhave been in partnership for over a decade.

 National Science EducationDay started in 1892 by forming a national committee to address the lack ofstandardized science education. It has since led to large changes in sciencecurriculum and instruction. Science is all around us and there’s no betterplace to explore our changing world than in our national parks. “National Parksare amazing outdoor laboratories to learn about the parks themselves and theworld around us,” states an NPS article on Science For Parks. (https://www.nps.gov/subjects/science/index.htm)

 We hope you can join us for afun-filled day of family and science! For more information, please contact thepark at (308) 665-4113 or agfo_ranger_activities@nps.gov. No registration is needed.

Admission to Agate FossilBeds is always free. Check out other events and activities on the park’swebsite at https://www.nps.gov/agfo/planyourvisit/calendar.htm.

 Agate Fossil Beds NationalMonument is located 34 miles north of Mitchell, NE or 22 miles south ofHarrison, NE on Highway 29 and 3 miles east on River Rd. The Visitor Centerwinter hours are 8:00 a.m. until 4:00 p.m. and the trails are open from dawnuntil dusk. Visit us at www.nps.gov/agfo and on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.