Children in seven central North Carolina counties will explore science firsthand through a unique summer program hosted by local libraries.

Science in the Summer (SIS), sponsored by GlaxoSmithKline, will offer a free five‐day program for elementary school students at 20 sites. Middle school students also participate in SIS through an intensive one‐day laboratory experience. Morehead Planetarium and Science Center and its DESTINY mobile science laboratories provide instruction for the students at each site.

This is the second year for SIS in North Carolina. GlaxoSmithKline created the program in Pennsylvania several years ago, and last year SIS was offered for the first time in North Carolina at 9 sites.

The 2009 program will focus on chemistry. Students will learn about chemical reactions, build models of molecules, experiment with common foods, explore the density of water and examine how chemistry affects their lives each day.

Each site will offer classes at three levels. Level I, for students entering grades 2 and 3, will meet from 9 a.m. until 12 noon. Level II, for students entering grades 4‐5, will meet daily from 1 p.m. until 4 p.m. Level III, for students in grades 6,7, and 8, will meet one day during the week, completing science experiments aboard the DESTINY mobile science laboratory.