Science Fair - Where The Girls Are

Sally Ride Festival Stops In Towson, Wired To Inspire The Next Women Scientists

"So much of the educational system today is devoted to passing standardized tests," he said. "There is not enough attention paid to problem-solving."

The exercises also built camaraderie among strangers. Thea Willett, 8, of Ruxton, molded paper into a cat's head, complete with pointed ears. It became the perfect tower topper for 11-year-old Rachel Taylor's base. "I just met Rachel and she is helping me," Thea said.

Rachel's 9-year-old sister, Lauren, held the height record with a 54-inch tower that withstood wind and gravity for a full 30 seconds while their mom took photos to display at their Clarksburg home.

Tameshia Farley, a science teacher at Franklin Square Middle School in Baltimore, said the event helps expose children to different ideas and gives them lessons they take back to the classroom. She brought 16 students to the festival, most of them girls, but she could not leave behind Jemaury Scarlett, a 14-year-old who said he has always wanted to be an astronaut.

"I made a lot of things today that might help me, when I get to space," he said with boyish bravado.