Society for Science & the Public Re-Launches Science News for Kids

New look and content will provide easier navigation, more resources, and a better connection to SSP's other education programs

WASHINGTON, May 2, 2011 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Society for Science & the Public (SSP) recently re-launched Science News for Kids. Sciencenewsforkids.org is the award-winning site published by the Society since 2003 to bring the important content of Science News to students aged 9-14, as well as their parents and teachers.

"We hope to inspire students, parents, and educators by emphasizing hands-on science and supplying resources for students to explore their world," said Elizabeth Marincola, President of SSP, and Publisher of Science News and Science News for Kids. "We hope that students will not only learn about the latest scientific advances, but also see that science is about interacting with and exploring their surroundings."

With hundreds of archived articles on topics ranging from weather to fossils to space and astronomy, Science News for Kids continues to serve as an invaluable resource for students researching a science topic and for teachers looking to augment their curriculum with creative, engaging articles. Last year, nearly 4 million visitors came to the site, which features stories covering a range of areas -- from the importance of healthy reefs and why teenagers often don't get enough sleep, to how Midwest summers have grown colder and wetter in the last four decades. The site is available free and without barriers to access for all visitors.

"We will continue to report news from the frontiers of science, making it accessible to our youngest readers, the science newsmakers of the future," said Tom Siegfried, editor in chief of Science News magazine and its website sciencenews.org, both publications of SSP.

The new kids' site will better connect learning about the cutting-edge science of professional researchers with SSP's programs, which encourage young people to learn by doing science themselves. For example, visitors to the site can easily learn how to get involved with SSP's middle school and high school science competitions, which include the Intel Science Talent Search, the Intel International Science and Engineering Fair, and the Broadcom MASTERS. Teachers can learn about the SSP Fellowship, which provides resources and support to selected teachers who work with underserved populations.

The re-launch of SNK was made possible by support from the Albert and Mary Lasker Foundation, Agilent Technologies, and Elmer's Products. Intel and Broadcom also provide critical support of SSP's programs.

"When she received the Congressional Gold Medal in 1989, Mary Lasker said 'medical research is our hope for our children and for the building of a healthy America.' Science News for Kids' re-launched website will help fuel these hopes by fostering young people's curiosity about the medical, scientific, and technological advances that will play such an important role in governing the direction of their entire lives," said Dr. Maria Freire, President of the Albert and Mary Lasker Foundation.

Society for Science & the Public is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit membership organization dedicated to the achievement of young researchers in independent research and to the public engagement in science. Established in 1921, its vision is to promote the understanding and appreciation of science and the vital role it plays in human advancement. Through its acclaimed education competitions, including the Intel Science Talent Search, the Intel International Science and Engineering Fair, and the Broadcom MASTERS, and its award-winning publications, Science News, which reaches more than 120,000 subscribers, and Science News for Kids, which reaches nearly 4 million viewers each year, SSP is committed to inform, educate, inspire.

For more information about SSP and its work visit www.societyforscience.org.

Contact: Caitlin Jennings
(202) 872-5158
[email protected]

SOURCE Society for Science & the Public