Afton Elementary teacher, Rachael Hauben, shares that all of the first graders at this Pennsbury school had the pleasure of meeting with Dr. Brittany Leigh, a microbiologist from Vanderbilt University, through the “Skype a Scientist” organization. Dr. Leigh shared details about the type of science that she studies, which focuses on viruses and bacteria found in insects. After watching a video about mosquitoes and the bacteria they can carry, the students were able to take a virtual tour of Dr. Leigh’s laboratory and see some of her fellow scientists at work. Students also participated in an informative question and answer session with Dr. Leigh. She answered student questions that ranged from “When did you know you wanted to be a scientist?” and “How long did you go to school to become a scientist?” to questions about the mosquitoes and the experiments her team has performed so far. The first graders were engaged and excited to meet with a real scientist. All educators are encouraged to try to match with a scientist by visiting skypeascientist.com.