Each year National Engineers Week is held to increase public awareness and appreciation of the engineering profession. On February 18, 2008 (President's Day), the ASCE Met Section celebrated National Engineers Week by organizing a day of interactive activities designed to introduce engineering and basic engineering principles to children at the New York Hall of Science in Flushing, Queens. The event was held in conjunction with the New York Hall of Science's special event series entitled Invention at Play. Over 1,700 visitors attended the New York Hall of Science on the day of the event, which was a wonderful turnout for the Met Section’s first time at the venue.

Children of all ages had an opportunity to complete various hands-on activities during the day. The intention of the activities was to stimulate young minds through a series of educational games. Topple-A-Tug gave the children the opportunity to design a boat made out of aluminum foil. They then competed to see whose boat could withstand the weight of the most pennies without sinking. Paper Bridge and West Point Bridge Designer (a computer program, provided by the United States Military Academy at West Point) afforded the children an opportunity to design their own bridge and subject it to a load. These were just three of the activities afforded the children. Many of the children that attended the event left with a newfound appreciation for civil engineering.

The event could not have been a rousing success without the help of our 25 volunteers that ran the activity tables.  The New York Hall of Science informed us that they received numerous compliments from the visitors for all of the activities that we provided on the day of the event.

See the Met Section photo gallery for more pictures from this event.