Mentoring Opportunity Without Leaving Your Desk

Would you like to help stimulate an appreciation for science and plants in today's youth--without ever leaving your desk? By volunteering a few hours a year as an online scientist mentor, you can make a difference in how students experience and understand science. We would like to tell you a bit about this science outreach opportunity to volunteer as an online scientist mentor.

In PlantingScience, students from across the country have the opportunity to experience the adventure of hands-on plant investigations and work online with peers and scientist mentors. Over 9,000 students thus far have conducted extended plant investigations, posted research information online, and communicated with scientist mentors in a blog style format. Mentors guide students by posing questions and comments designed to help the students discover the answers they seek and make sense of their findings. This is how science is best learned, through experience, experimentation, and explanation.

Thirteen societies are now partnering to infuse authentic inquiry and science experts into the research experience for middle and high school students (and their teachers). The overall time commitment is small--team projects span 2-6 weeks. You can choose to mentor in only those sessions that fit your schedule. Fall and spring online sessions are offered each year.

The Fall session is gearing up now, and will run from 19 September - 18 November, 2011. The Spring session this year will run 12 February - 27 April, 2012.

To learn more, please see www.PlantingScience.org. If you'd like to join the effort now, please register at http://www.plantingscience.org/NewMentor. The PlantingScience team will be happy to answer any questions. Reach the team at psteam@plantingscience.org. We invite you join us to improve science literacy.