Summer at the library isn't just checking out fun books and
collecting prizes for reading. This summer, 152 public libraries
will host free, hands-on science explorations for kids sponsored
by GlaxoSmithKline’s Science in the Summer program. Carol
McKnight, children’s librarian at the Free Library of
Philadelphia Bustleton branch, recalls a past summer when young
participants at her site tried hands-on chemistry. With help
from visiting science teachers and some dry ice, kids turned
fresh bananas into frozen hammers that could actually pound
nails. “That’s the kind of ‘wow’ factor that keeps lots of kids
coming to the program, summer after summer after summer,” says
McKnight. “It’s well worth doing something that gives children
excitement about things that are real, and gets them thinking
about the surprises and complications of the world around them.”
She encourages summer participants to check out science-themed
books, some of which the program contributes to the permanent
library collection. McKnight defin