Briefly In Education

Drug prevention poster winners

The Brain Power Collaborative hosted its first annual alcohol and drug prevention poster contest and presented awards to participants at an awards ceremony Oct. 22 at the Boys & Girls Club of Laguna Beach.

The theme was “Happy to Be Alcohol and Drug Free.” Award winners received certificates and a goodie bag filled with treats from the group’s community partners, which are the Laguna Beach Police Department, Mothers Against Drunk Driving-Orange County and Drug Dependence-Orange County/Community Alliance Network.

Hannalir Green received the grand prize: a framed Wyland print, donated by Wyland Foundation.

First- through-third-grade winners were Green (first place), Brooke Beresford (second) and Rose Hunter and Emily Griffith (third). Fourth-through-sixth grade winners were Yasmine Hekmat (first place), Shiloah Hunter and Madison Stevens (second), and Baily Centorbi (third). For seventh and eighth grades, Natalie Houlus took first place. High school winners were: Anastasia Pellecchia (first place), Paul Manntel (second) and Victoria Medina (third).

Kids learn about space shuttle flight

The children of the Boys & Girls Club of Laguna Beach saw a special presentation, “Rockets in Space” Nov. 19, in which retired NASA engineer Stanley Greenberg illustrated the many steps required to prepare a space shuttle to launch.

Greenberg’s presentation included photos of the space station, footprints on the moon and views of the earth from space, and helped the children realize just how big the space shuttle actually is “” “the weight of 600 elephants.” He showed a photo of the external tank that connects to the shuttle and a person standing next to it so the children could put the size into perspective.

The children watched as the presentation led up to the actual launch. The step-by-step slide show of the shuttle blasting off into space provided them with a close-up behind-the-scenes view. Flames and smoke could be seen pouring from beneath the rocket as Greenberg explained how everyone had to get far away during the take-off because of the amount of heat generated from the launch.

The children were excited to see the shuttle blast off and to learn how they could become involved in the space program when they grow up. He let them know that there are a wide range of job opportunities associated with the space program that most people are not aware of, such as model making and sketching.

The club was introduced to Greenberg by Children First, a Merage Foundation retiree placement program that helps Orange County’s skilled retired citizens contribute their time and experience to improve the odds that low-income children will grow up as healthy, educated and productive human beings.

Holiday story time and signing

Illustrator Jan Burlingham will be reading and signing copies of her new book “The Friendly Beasts: A Medieval French Carol,” at 11:30 a.m. Dec. 5 at Latitude 33 Bookshop, 311 Ocean Ave.

In this illustrated version of the medieval French carol “The Friendly Beasts,” Burlingham depicts the animals in the stable surrounding the baby Jesus describing their various gifts.

Burlingham is a French instructor and artist in Santa Rosa. For more information, call the book store at (949) 494-5403.