Event(s) Summary
Number of Events Organized During Brain Awareness Week:
2
Year:
2019
Type of Events Held:
- Conference/Forum
- Open House
Target Audiences:
- Elementary school students(1-5)
- General Public
- High School students(9-12)
Approximate Number of People Reached:
1800
Details of Major Brain Awareness Week Events/Activities:
The Girls in Science Festival is an event put on by the Science Center of Iowa annually. The goal of the festival is to promote and engage interest in various STEM-related fields for young girls in elementary, middle, and high school in the state of Iowa. Graduate students displayed and coordinated a booth containing similar activities to “Brain Day” during the festival. There were over 1,766 people were in attendance from a variety of age groups. There were 101 girls who attended. The success of the event was made possible by our strong collaboration with the Science Center of Iowa. Their resources allow for our neuroscience outreach to reach the broader public in not only Des Moines, Iowa but also the entire state. Children and their guardians participated in Brain Day for Kids to learn about neuroscience with activities and games spanning the topics of neuroanatomy, sensation and perception, cellular and molecular neuroscience, and cognition. Examples of activities included real brains available from Des Moines University for viewing and interacting, squishy brain toss while wearing prism shifting goggles, mirror drawing challenge, creating pipe-cleaner neurons and circuits, brain myths, and Stroop task among other activities. The success of the event was made possible by the hard work of graduate and undergraduate students. It is crucial that both faculty and students support and understand the importance community outreach to make these events successful. Over 40 children and their guardians were in attendance.
Event Planning & Publicity
Publicity Methods Used:
- Advertisements
- Calendar Listings (newspapers, radio, television)
- Emails
- Posters/Flyers
- Press Release/Media Advisory
- Website
- Social Media
Which of These Publicity Methods Was The Most Successful?
Resources
Of the Dana Foundation publications/resources distributed at your event(s), if any, please indicate the three most popular. Please choose up to three. If "other," please indicate below:
- More Mindbogglers!
- Brain-shaped Erasers
- The Mindboggling Workbook
What downloadable materials from the Foundation did you use for your events?
- Puzzles: Grades K-2
- Puzzles: Grades 3-5
- Puzzles: Grades 6-8
- Puzzles: Grades 9-12
What other downloadable materials would you like the Foundation to provide?
- New Fact Sheets
Feedback & Keys to Success
How do you feel BAW participation benefited your organization and the local community?
BAW has benefitted greatly by helping us have activities and handouts that attract participants of ALL ages.
Please share any suggestions or lessons learned that may help others plan future events:
Plan EARLY! Try to get faculty involved.
Did/do you like our Facebook page?
Yes
Was the information provided on Facebook useful?
Provide more information more frequently on new items provided by the foundation.
