Hundreds of Middle School Kids From Around the Country to Compete in Fifth Annual TOYchallenge Nationals in San Diego

(San Diego, CA) - Sally Ride Science™, Northrop Grumman and Southwest Airlines announced today that the TOYchallenge™ 2007 Nationals will be held at the San Diego Air & Space Museum, Balboa Park on April 21 and 22. The fun-fueled toy- and game-design competition is intended to motivate middle school-age kids, especially girls, to pursue their interests in science and engineering education and careers.

TOYchallenge 2007 contenders include such original creations as:

All Clammed Up - a water game where an oversized clam with ping-pong balls representing pearls is placed around a sprinkler, and the object is to get color pearls into a bucket without getting wet: The Tree Climber, a seat that hangs from a tree branch, with hooks, pulleys and ropes to make the seat rise: Water Whipper, an outdoor water game that tests eye and hand coordination using the force of water from a revolving hose: Float Your Boat - a game with toy boats traveling around a simulated canal picking up supplies.

“Now, more than ever, it is important to provide young people, especially girls, with science experiences that take them out of the classroom and into the world,” said Sally Ride, founder of Sally Ride Science. “Making science fun and relevant to them will help to positively influence the workforce of the future.”

For the competition’s Preliminary Round, teams comprised of at least 50 percent girls submitted written descriptions and visual presentations of their original toy or game concepts based on themed categories including Games for the Family, Get Out and Play, and Toys that Teach. 150 Preliminary Round finalists were invited to advance to the Nationals. The submissions were judged on originality, creativity, feasibility, design process description, team participation and clarity of communication. All teams received certificates of participation.