Burke Boxes "Rock"!

Posted by: Julia Swan

Two weeks ago I posted about the exciting launch of Burke Kids. This week, Burke staff celebrated the launch of another great web project: the new interactive Burke Box, “Rocks and Minerals of Washington State.” The Burke Museum has been offering traveling study collections to classrooms around Washington State for many years, but this is the first time we’ve been able to offer lesson plans, background information, and interactive teaching tools on the Web. The enhanced accessibility of the Burke Boxes makes it much easier for teachers across the state to bring a piece of the Burke Museum into the classroom.
“Rocks and Minerals of Washington State” is the first of many interactive, online Burke Boxes to come, so keep checking our website for more updates. In the meantime, you might learn something (like I did) by touring the “Rocks and Minerals Interactive.” I’m very impressed!

Save your gas money: 5 easy ways to get to the Burke Museum without a car!

Posted by: Julia Swan

Everyone’s talking about gas prices these days! It seems to be taking the place of classic weather-related icebreakers—instead of “This rain just won’t let up!” you hear “Gas prices are so high!” when engaged in small talk with someone you don’t really know. And as prices soar at the pump, lots of people are leaving the car at home and looking for different ways to get around town.

Getting to the Burke Museum, and for that matter the whole University of Washington campus, by way of bus, bike, or foot is quite easy from most anywhere in Seattle. In fact, here are my top 5 methods of transportation to the Burke:

1. Take the bus: The transit system in Seattle is pretty good, and bus service to the UW is particularly excellent. Trip plan your way here and you’ll realize how easy it is to reach this part of the city by bus. Just off the top of my head, I know you can take the 25, 30, 43, 44, 45 48, 49, 66, 67, 70, 71, 72, 73, 272…and I there are more!

2. Ride your bike: Whether you ride in from the Burke-Gilman Trail or from one of the other bike routes in Seattle, it’s easy to get to the Burke Museum on two wheels. Keep your bike safe by locking it to our bike rack- located just behind the Burke Café patio.

3. Walk: Maybe you live in the neighborhood, or maybe you’re up for an urban hike, but walking is always a great way to get to the museum.

4. Carpool: If you must bring a car, please carpool! Come with your whole family, or bring a friend or two. If you happen to go to school at or work for the University of Washington, show your U-Pass and pay with your Husky Card Account to receive a huge discount on parking fees when you carpool!

5. Any of the following: motorcycle, Vespa, Segway, pogo stick, stilts, roller skates, unicycle, hang glider, or parachute (only for the most extreme). Be creative!

See you on the bus!

- Julia

Last Polar Bear Summer Camp: A Recap

Posted by: Keely Gnagy and Tim Stetter

What do you get when you cross a dozen middle school students with cameras, a polar bear exhibit, and researchers on the UW campus? Fantastic photography exhibits about environmental issues! The students joined Burke Education staff during the week of July 14 for a summer camp based on the current Burke exhibit, The Last Polar Bear: Facing the Truth of a Warming World. During the camp, the students learned about the basics of climate science, some of the challenges we are likely to face because of it, and what we can do about it.

One of the things we can do is raise awareness about an issue that is important to us, just like Steven Kazlowski, the photographer of “The Last Polar Bear,” did by taking photographs to bring attention to the plight of the polar bear in the warming Arctic. Using disposable cameras, what they learned throughout the week, and their imaginations, the campers created their own exhibits focused on topics such as recycling, transportation choices, native and non-native plants, human eco-footprints, and the power and beauty of nature.

The Burke’s collection was a fantastic resource for the campers. They were able to touch polar bear fur and stand nose to nose with a polar bear skull from the Mammalogy Collection. We saw angler fish, sharks, and sun fish at the Burke’s incredible Fish Collection with tour guide Rachel Schoen, a graduate student in Aquatic and Fishery Sciences. And we were able to use artifacts from Arctic culture, like snow goggles and the intestine material used to make rainproof gear, to imagine the life of a person living in the Arctic environment.

We also learned a lot and had a great time visiting other research centers and talking to scientists on the UW campus. Dr. Kevin Rennert from the Department of Atmospheric Sciences taught us about climate change and the Arctic. We learned about ways plants adapt to climate with Fleur Beckwith, a graduate student at the Botany Greenhouse. We visited the Applied Physics Lab and talked with Dr. Mike Steele, an oceanographer at the Polar Science Center. And we learned about cameras and photography from professional photographer Joe Burnett.

On Friday afternoon, the students displayed their exhibits in the Burke Room. Friends and family attended a reception in their honor. One visitor commented, “I wish I was a kid so I could be in this camp!”

What an awesome week! And what incredible photography exhibits. It was an honor to spend the week with students who are so motivated to learn and to make a difference.

- Keely and Tim

Burke launches cool new Web site for kids!

Posted by: Julia Swan

On Monday of this week, the Burke staff launched an exciting new Web site called Burke Kids. Burke Kids is an educational, interactive site for 6-12 year olds featuring fun games and learning opportunities. It’s a good way for kids to get to know not only the museum, but the people who work behind the museum. Learn what it’s like to be an archaeologist or build your own Northwest Coast mask!

A lot of work went into planning, writing, and building Burke Kids. It was truly a collaborative effort, with input from communications, education, Web services, and curatorial staff. I think the result is pretty amazing and something that really adds to the museum’s presence on the internet. I hope kids from all over will enjoy playing games and learning about anthropology, geology, and biology on the Burke Kids Web site!

We’re not the only museum to build Web sites aimed at kids. Check out the work of some of our peers around the country:

SmART Kids at the Smart Museum (University of Chicago)

Ology at the American Museum of Natural History (New York)

Diamond Ranch Web Site at the National Cowboy and Western Heritage Museum (Oklahoma City)

Remember Bill Nye the Science Guy?

Posted by: Julia Swan

Growing up, I always thought one of the best shows on TV was “Bill Nye the Science Guy” on PBS. For those readers who didn’t have the pleasure of watching this show when it was on during the mid-1990s, let me briefly fill you in: each episode featured scientist/comedian Bill Nye teaching a different subject in science. No show was complete without a crazy experiment, clever witticisms, a music video, and Bill Nye’s signature bowtie and lab coat. It was a fantastic way to get kids and young teens excited about science. So what the heck happened to Bill Nye?

For many years, Bill Nye was also a favorite local Seattle celebrity, although he has since moved to Los Angeles. Having slipped off my radar for a while, Bill Nye the Science Guy returned to my consciousness a few days ago when I read on the Huffington Post about how he and his friend/neighbor/rival Ed Begley, Jr. are currently engaged in a “good-natured competition” to see who can live “greener.” Nye and Bagley, who live on the same street in L.A., are fighting to see who can leave the smaller carbon footprint. Check out the article here to read more about what these two are up to.

It’s an interesting concept—turning environmentalism into a competition. It would be great if neighbors across the country would compete on par with Bill Nye and Ed Begley, Jr., but a simple challenge can be just as fun and empowering. Perhaps you can bet your roommate, or partner, or coworker that you’ll take the bus or ride your bike to work more days than they will this month. Maybe you challenge your friends or family to see who can lower their electric bill by a greater percentage over the next several months. Or maybe you just compete against yourself to set a personal best for shortest morning shower. Whatever the method, as long as it stays fun, competition can be a great way to remind yourself about the little things that can be done to cut back on energy use and consumption.

And who knows, maybe you could one day take on Bill Nye.

- Julia

Bill Nye poses on the roof with his solar water heating panel.
AP Photo/Reed Saxon

A Fresh Perspective on Climate Change

Posted by: Julia Swan

The Burke is preparing to host almost 40 climatologists, documentary filmmakers, and photographers next week. No, we’re not gearing up for a major conference or convention—we are actually waiting for the arrival of middle and high school students, passionate about the environment, who will attend two great new summer programs: Climate Quest (for high school) and The Last Polar Bear Summer Camp (for middle school).

Climate Quest students will take a University of Washington science and policy class on climate change and produce mini-documentary films capturing their ideas and solutions. Program highlights include taking a field trip to the Cedar River Watershed to meet climate scientists, participating in a live videoconference with Climate Quest students at Western Washington University, and sharing their videos on a national website for youth, www.climatequest.net.

Middle school students in The Last Polar Bear Summer Camp will learn about the basics of climate change, impacts on the arctic ecosystem, and actions that people can take. As a culminating project, students will take their own photos and create a photography exhibit documenting their thinking on climate change, which will be on view at the museum on Friday, July 18 from 2-4 pm.

Its gonna be very cool…or hot (depending on the summer weather)…having these young minds in the museum for a week, brainstorming about ways to tackle climate change. I for one am excited to hear their ideas!

- Julia

Junior paleontologists discover dinos

Posted by: Keely Gangy

From June 23 - June 27 a dozen Junior Paleontologists were hosted by the Burke Museum for a week of Dinos Summer Camp! They adventured back in time, exploring the dinosaurs and their environment.

Parents and friends joined the campers for a party on the last day. They came to admire the campers' marvels from throughout the week. Below is a slide show the campers created telling the story of dinosaurs:

For more information on upcoming Burke Summer Camps, see here.

- Keely

Summer Story Read-Alouds

Posted by: Julia Swan

I just had the pleasure of sitting in on a Summer Story Read-Aloud with Burke Educator Keely Gnagy. It sure was fun! I listened as Keely read “Don’t Let the Pigeon Drive the Bus” to 3 incredibly attentive kids and enjoyed watching as everyone got to see some real bird feathers and specimens and learn a little about the fastest, largest, and smallest birds.

Summer Story Read-Alouds are a new Burke education program targeted at preschool-age kids. It’s a short, but fun 20 minutes every Tuesday morning at 10:30 am throughout the rest of the summer. Each week, Burke Educators present a different story and a different theme—there will always be something new and exciting to look at and learn!