'Catch the Science Bug' earns Parents' Choice Silver Award

Catch the Science Bug Series Wins Parents' Choice Silver Award!

We received this wonderful announcement from the show's executive producer / series host / scientist-in-chief, Kim Bent, who lives in nearby Massachusetts. Congratulations to Kim and the Catch the Science Bug team!

If you are not yet familiar with the show, this news comes at an especially opportune time: you can Catch the Science Bug on WSBE Rhode Island PBS this Sunday, June 19, at 10:30 a.m. The episode is "Water Purification" and shows how water leaving a reservoir is cleaned to become drinking water. Next Sunday, June 26, at 10:30 a.m., "Engineering Enigmas" visits seven engineers to find out how a chip used in electronics is made.

Here are links for more information about the series, events, and science camps, or to contact Kim:

Catch the Science Bug Foundation, Inc.

Free educational website: www.sciencebug.org

Traveling science programs: www.catchthesciencebug.com

PO BOX 321, Holden, MA 01520

508-854-1681

Established in 1978, Parents' Choice is the nation's oldest nonprofit guide to quality children's media and toys. Here is the award announcement and show review:

Catch the Science Bug
Spring 2011 Television
Ages: 6 - 9 yrs.
Producer: Catch the Science Bug Foundation, Inc.
Rating: TV - Y

Review:
No longer just a Punch Buggy, the iconic Volkswagen gets an image re-haul through this quirky, fun and educational show. Host Kim Bent travels around in her green, polka-dotted "science bug" testing theories, performing experiments and sparking interest in all things scientific. Aimed at the younger spectrum of viewers, the show does an excellent job of using and defining scientific vocabulary, sequencing procedures and offering fun examples of problem solving. For instance, in an episode about a boat racing, Bent tests different designs to see which floats best. Through easy experiments that can be duplicated at home, kids and parents can see the Archimedes Principle at work. (Any floating object displaces its own weight of fluid). All that's needed is a blow up pool, some tin foil and marbles. Because these principles are presented in fun, hands-on situations, it gets kids thinking in scientific ways-even if they don't know it. How does water go from a reservoir to our drinking glasses? How many gallons does it take to do simple household chores? Through interviews and experiments, kids also get great visual images of how and why things work. Who could forget the sight of grown men trying to row across water in giant, carved pumpkins or whole families rowing on cardboard box boats? Overall, the show offers many reasons for viewers to catch the science bug.

- Laura Fries ©2011 Parents' Choice

A freelance writer and TV Critic for Daily Variety, Laura Fries has been writing about television and film entertainment for more than eighteen years. She lives with her husband and daughter in Alexandria, Virginia.