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Press  >  May 25, 2007 Release

WeatherBug® and USA TODAY Education Announce Winners of the Science Literacy Project's Share Fair

Program Raises Student Awareness of Science and Literacy for Grades 3-12

Germantown, MD – WeatherBug®, the leading provider of live, local weather information, announced today the winners of the Science Literacy Project Share Fair, a joint effort between WeatherBug and USA TODAY Education, to bring interactive and engaging education programs to schools throughout the New York City area. In its third year, Project Share Fair is the end product of a 15-week Science Literacy Project to raise awareness of science and literacy in students from grades 3-12.

Using USA TODAY articles and Education program with WeatherBug Achieve, an award-winning, interactive, learning software that integrates live, local weather conditions from WeatherBug's Network of 8,000 WeatherBug Tracking Stations around the U.S. into interactive lesson plans, students determine how each day's news relates to science and weather and then research and design a project based on that information. Additionally, USA TODAY's Education program provides teachers with daily lesson plans and online resources to support the projects. At the end, a School Share Fair is held where students have the opportunity to show their projects to the entire school and share what they have learned; the top three projects from each school are chosen to participate in the Project Share Fair.

"This hands-on approach to science, social studies, math, language arts, visual arts, technology, vocabulary and reading helps students develop skills in core subject areas," said Lauren Redmond, a participating teacher from PS 176. "The difference in the children's capabilities, knowledge and enthusiasm for learning between now and the beginning of the project is very obvious to me."

Thirty projects from eight schools throughout the New York City area were presented and judged at the Project Share Fair, held at Bay Ridge Manor in Brooklyn, NY. The first place project winner, two runners-up, and the best overall school were presented with awards, and all students who participated received a medallion.

• The first place winners with the best project were from PS 176. Third grade students at the school focused on the problem of global warming and how it relates to air quality. Students generated solutions to global warming and steps people can take at their school, in their community, and around the world.
• Runners-up, 6th graders from IS 30, looked at New Orleans before, during, and after drastic weather and how the people of the city were affected by it. They used maps, charts, and graphs to show the weather data.
• An additional runner-up, a 6th grader from PS 104, compared the weather in Minnesota, North Dakota and South Dakota over a three month period. He found interesting similarities and differences even though the states are geographically close.
• The 6th grade class at IS 30 was the class with the best overall projects. All their projects matched the requirements and expectations for the Share Fair.

Each teacher and classroom participating in the Science Literacy Project received WeatherBug Achieve, copies of USA TODAY newspapers and Inside USA TODAY - daily teaching guide, a project manual, professional development sessions, classroom resources including an atlas and wall map, and project t-shirts.

"The Share Fair was very successful this year," said Diana Dell, manager for WeatherBug Education Programs. "Even though every project couldn't win, they were all very deserving. It was great to see the students get so involved and enjoy their hard work."

WeatherBug Achieve seamlessly integrates real time local and national weather data and camera images into a range of science, math, technology and geography lessons for elementary, middle and high school students. Using WeatherBug Achieve, teachers can create customized learning activities based on current and historical weather conditions from the national network of WeatherBug Tracking Stations, such as wind speed or humidity. In addition, students can compare local weather conditions to data from more than 8,500 other schools nationwide that participate in the WeatherBug Schools Program.

About USA TODAY Education
USA TODAY helps young people better understand the people, places, and events that impact their lives by connecting them to each day's news in an engaging way. USA TODAY's Education program has been in existence since 1983, today reaching over 30,000 middle and high school classrooms and over 480 college campuses. USA TODAY Education offers educational resources that make USA TODAY a daily, real-world learning tool. USA TODAY's Education program provides: classroom sets of USA TODAY; Inside USA TODAY, a signature 3-page daily lesson plan; and unique online resources available at www.usatodayeducation.com.

USA TODAY is the nation's top-selling newspaper. It is published via satellite at 36 locations in the USA and five sites abroad. With a total average daily readership of 5.2 million, USA TODAY is available worldwide.

About WeatherBug®
WeatherBug (http://www.weatherbug.com and http://www.weatherbugprofessional.com) ensures that individuals, schools, businesses and government agencies receive the most precise live weather information, the most relevant weather reports, and the earliest weather warnings to safeguard property, lives and to plan with confidence. With 8,000 WeatherBug Tracking Stations and over 1,000 cameras primarily based at neighborhood schools and public safety facilities across the U.S., WeatherBug maintains the largest exclusive weather network in the world. The live, local weather conditions are delivered to millions of consumers via the Internet and mobile devices, more than 100 state and local government agencies including the National Weather Service, and to broadcast television stations, schools, and businesses. WeatherBug data is unique as it is the only live, neighborhood weather available anywhere. WeatherBug is a brand of AWS Convergence Technologies, Inc. (http://www.aws.com)

Media Contact:

Mara Radis
Director of PR
WeatherBug
301-250-4017
mradis@weatherbug.com