Looking for a great way for your students to celebrate winter? Have them enter the Winter Poster Contest! The Winter Poster Contest is open to all children who are between the ages of 7 and 12 by September 1, 1996, and every child who submits an original drawing of Winter wins a prize. All kids have a chance to win the grand prize of a trip for four to Canada's Capital where they will enjoy Winterlude in February 1997 and learn more about Canada's Capital Region.

One entrant from each province will win a pair of Lange ice skates (or prize of equal value) and a Winterlude souvenir kit, with two lucky winners claiming the grand prize. Winners are chosen by a draw, so everyone has a chance to win!

Entries must be postmarked no later than November 30, 1996. To get contest rules and entry forms (the official entry forms/activity sheet may be replaced with drawings of approximately the same size as original form) call the National Capital Commission at 1-800-465-1867.

On June 20, 1996, the space shuttle Columbia began a 17-day mission dedicated to life and microgravity science research. The job of Canadian Robert Thirsk and six other astronauts from the United States and France was to conduct experiments on behalf of scientists from around the world. One hundred thousand canola seeds from Canada also completed this spaceflight and are now being offered along with an equal number of ground-based control seeds to budding scientists in Grades 4 to 6 for a classroom-based experiment known as Canolab.

The primary goal of Canolab is to use canola seeds as a tool to introduce the scientific method to elementary school students and impart basic knowledge about the space environment and plant biology by giving students practical experience in hypothesis testing, decision making and data collecting.

Canolab seed kits containing flight seeds and control seeds, with instructional materials and data collection sheets will be distributed free, to selected elementary school classrooms in the beginning of December 1996. These kits will be used between January and March of 1997, when students will design and execute their classroom experiments, testing the hypothesis that environmental factors associated with spaceflight may alter seed microstructure by comparing flight seeds and control seeds for germination rates, growth rates and fruit products.

At the end of the experimentation, students will prepare reports describing their results which will be sent to the Canadian Space Agency before the end of June 1997 for compilation into a national summary report. Each teacher will receive a copy of the national report in autumn of 1997 with a certificate of participation.

Any Grade 4 to 6 teachers who are interested must have a registration form sent before November 22, 1996, to: Canolab Project, Canadian Space Agency, 6767 route de l'Aéroport, St-Hubert, Quebec, J3Y 8Y9, Fax: 514-926-4352. For more information, Tel: 1-800-511-3500 or check Website at http://montrealmedia.qc.ca/canolab.

The search is on! ... Since 1989, YTV has celebrated the accomplishments and excellence of young Canadians through the YTV Achievement Awards. This Spring, The 8th Annual YTV Achievement Awards will honour 1997's winners in a two-hour special broadcast on YTV. But, before we can celebrate and hand out the awards, YTV goes through an extensive search and judging process to find the most amazing young Canadians.

Winners receive a $3,000 cash honorarium per category, a statuette and an all-expense-paid trip to receive their award on national television. To be eligible, nominees must be 19 years of age or younger and residents of Canada who have made a significant contribution in one of the categories listed below.

The categories are Acting, Band/Musical Group, Bravery, Dance, Entrepreneurship, Environment, Innovation/Science and Technology, Instrumental, Public Service, Specialty Performance, Sports, Visual Arts, Vocal, and Writing. The 15th category is the Terry Fox Award, given to an individual or group best exemplifying the dedication, determination and spirit for which Terry Fox is remembered.

Please call the research office at 416-530-5164, or e-mail yya@ytv.ca, if you have any questions for supporting The 8th Annual YTV Achievement Awards.

Postmark deadline for submissions is November 29, 1996, at 5:00 p.m., but we encourage you to send in your nominations now, to YTV Achievement Awards, YTV Canada Inc., 64 Jefferson Avenue, Unit 18, Toronto, ON, M6K 3H3.

You've heard of CNN? Now there's SNN!

The SchoolNet News Network (SNN) is a national K-12 online news project sponsored by Canada's SchoolNet and managed by STEM~Net. It is a project designed to get students writing and includes a monthly web publication with stories coming from across the country. All students and schools are encouraged to participate. Students are asked to submit articles related to news, sports, entertainment, science and technology, and opinion. Deadlines, writing assistance for students and suggestions on activities for incorporating journalism into classrooms are included on the web site.

For more information or if you have any questions, please contact: Nancy Parsons Heath, SNN Director, or Nick Gardner, Project Coordinator; Tel: 709-737-8836, e-mail:
snn@calvin.stemnet.nf.ca, or website: http:// www.stemnet.nf.ca/snn.

Let's talk science

The mission of Let's Talk Science program is to heighten awareness and interest in science among elementary, junior and high school students. Graduate students in all areas of science are involved and give talks to classrooms on specific research topics, or general talks on various areas of science. The program also organizes trips for students to visit labs in the university for more hands-on science. Grad students help update classroom material, assist in science demonstrations, judge science fairs, speak on school career days, and run workshops for science teachers.

The idea of the program is to liaison one grad student with each school, so that when a science teacher from that school has a question or a request, they would have a contact person in the university who can forward the request on to the Let's Talk Science coordinator, who then could find the expert in the field to help the teacher.

Grad students volunteer for this program and are not paid for their time. Their reward is invaluable teaching experience.

This program is nation-wide, with chapters in over 10 medical schools from Newfoundland to B.C. Nationally, the program is sponsored by the Governor General's wife, her Excellency Mrs. Dianna Fowler-LeBlanc, C.C. Last year the program won the Michael Smith Award for Science Promotion in Canada.

To become involved in this program, teachers need only ask the Let's Talk Science coordinators, Scott Hancock at 737-6890, Fax 737-7010, or e-mail shancock @morgan.ucs.mun.ca, or Christine King at 737-6419.

Canadian College of Teachers offers Awards

Theses Awards Program 1997 Masters and Doctoral levels, recognizes and rewards excellence in educational research and educational studies. To be eligible, candidates should have successfully completed a masters or doctoral program including thesis/dissertation requirements at a university recognized by the Association of Universities and Colleges of Canada.

The thesis should have potential for supporting such objectives as the evaluation and dissemination of new ideas in education and in assisting in improving the quality of education in Canada, and must be directly related to classroom practice and its accompanying statement should be presented with clarity and insight so that the study's findings may be readily applied by classroom teachers and administrators of elementary and secondary schools. The thesis must have been completed during the 1994, 1995 or 1996 calendar years.

Awards in the form of a certificate and a sum of money ($450, master's thesis; $600, doctoral thesis) will be presented at the annual general meeting of the Canadian College of Teachers.

Margaret A. Johnston Memorial Teaching Excellence Award 1997 is made available to outstanding classroom teachers who, through their teaching and/or related activities, are considered to have made an outstanding contribution to education in the area of "Innovative Programs In The Science Classroom".

This is learning which promotes and embraces the integration of applies and social sciences both inside and outside the classroom.

Teachers can be nominated by individuals, officials and administrators of schools, school boards, universities, departments of education and other educational institutions. Nominations should include a curriculum vitae of the nominee along with a rationale and documentation in support of the candidate. Letters of support from other professionals, committees or associations should also be included.

Awards in the form of a plaque and a sum of money will be announced and presented at the annual general meeting of the College.

The deadline for receiving submissions is March 1, 1997. Material submitted in support of awards becomes the property of Canadian College of Teachers, with the right to publish. Submissions, requests for application forms and information should be sent to: Awards Committee Chairperson, Canadian College of Teachers, Box 57157 Eastgate P.O., 2010A Sherwood Drive, Sherwood Park, AB, T8A 5L7; Tel: 403-475-3646, Fax: 403-475-3646.