This year marks the fifth annual American Museum of Natural History Young Naturalist Awards. The Museum, a leading scientific and educational institution for more than a hundred years, created the program to recognize excellence in biology, earth science, and astronomy in students from grades 7 to 12. The Young Naturalist Awards is administered by the Alliance for Young Artists & Writers, Inc., a nonprofit division of Scholastic, Inc. that has been running their successful Art and Writing Awards since 1923.

We received over 700 entries from all over the United States and Canada. We asked students to take an expedition based on a question, hypothesis, or theory they had in biology, earth science, or astrophysics. Students selected one of three projects listed below and were encouraged to include original artwork to support their writing.

On May 17, 2002 the Museum brought thirteen Young Naturalist Award winners to the Museum to receive their awards from President Ellen V. Futter, Senior Vice President and Provost of Science, Dr. Michael Novacek, and President of the J.P. Morgan Chase Foundation, Michael Feller. Each student was presented with a certificate of recognition. The winners also received a cash prize. In addition, the winners met with scientists on the Museum's research staff who had judged their entries, and were guided on a behind-the-scenes tour of the Museum. The winning entries were published on the Museum's Web site, in a printed catalog, and highlighted in the July issue of Natural History magazine.

Scientific Discovery Begins With Expeditions!

American Museum of Natural History scientists go on expeditions to remote places such as the Gobi Desert in Mongolia and as close to home as Central Park in New York City. They go on expeditions to make observations and gather evidence to add to their understanding of the natural world. Focused on a research question, scientists observe, collect data, explore, and then document what they find in a field journal. Many months and sometimes years later, scientists are still analyzing the information they gathered on their expeditions, and then communicate their findings with other scientists and the public.

Go On Your Own Expedition!

You can go on your own scientific expedition anywhere, whether you live in a big city or small town. You can look under a rock, up at the stars, or in your local city park. Begin by choosing a topic in biology, Earth science, or astronomy. Plan an expedition that will provide new data, questions, specimens, or observations on your topic.

Share your data and your experiences.

Choose one of the two projects listed below. You should include illustrations, maps, or photographs from your expedition. In addition, you can include any research or interviews that helped you plan your expedition or make sense of it once it was finished.

1. a narrative essay
   

   Take the reader along with you on your expedition and share your story with sound facts, detailed observations, and insightful questions. Fictional stories will be disqualified.

2. an essay with a focus on field journal entries
   

   Field journal entries are a valuable way to capture your expedition activities, observations, and questions. You should include selections from your field journal within your essay.

Copyright © 2002 American Museum of Natural History.