New club for bright sparks at the Uni of Adelaide

Thursday, 19 February 2015

Young South Australian bright sparks will have a new outlet for their curious minds with the launch today of the University of Adelaide’s Bright Sparks Science Club.

The club offers regular holiday, after-school and weekend science and technology activities for 6-15 year olds.

“The University of Adelaide is delighted to be able to provide young people with the opportunity to be inspired by science and the world around them,” says Professor Bob Hill, Executive Dean of the Faculty of Sciences.

“Science and technology provide the foundation for society’s progress. Getting young people enthusiastic about science is essential for the future prosperity of our country.

“The Bright Sparks Science Club encourages curiosity about how the world works and reveals how important science is in our everyday lives.

“It also shows that science can be a lot of fun. We hope the club will provide the spark which persuades these youngsters to pursue future study and careers in science and technology.”

The Bright Sparks Science Club fills the gap created by the closure last year of the highly successful and popular Double Helix Club and is being coordinated by Rona Sakko, PSM, who coordinated Double Helix.

The Bright Sparks Science Club offers more than 60 activities a year, from behind-the-scenes tours of South Australian venues, field trips, guest-speakers, hands-on laboratory experiments, films and animal studies─ with specific events for different ages.

Upcoming events include:

• Fabulous fossils of South Australia – studying the evolution of life through the oldest known animal fossils
• Nocturnal spotlighting adventure to discover the natural wildlife at Sunnydale Station near Swan Reach
• Behind the scenes at the Pelican Point Power Station
• Mobile Science Spectacular to investigate interesting questions like why do balloons go bang and not pffttt?
• Wet, Wacky and Wild – a marine discovery field trip at Largs Bay.

Club activities from 1 March are mostly restricted to members with occasional events offered to non-members.

Further information about events and registration details for the Bright Sparks Science Club can be found at http://www.sciences.adelaide.edu.au/bright-sparks/

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