Science Fair
By Gary Poole
On Friday, December 11, a visitor to campus might have thought it was Marie Curie Day at GSA. Or maybe "Science Friday," but without Ira Flatow. Instead, it was our annual Science Fair and examples of extraordinary, engaging, and sometimes downright perplexing science experiments were to be found all over the school.
All students in grades first through eighth participate in the science fair and virtually all work on the experiments is intended to be done at school. Lower school teachers introduce such ideas as answering a question by performing some kind of experiment, measuring quantities, and collecting data. Upper school teachers try to deepen the students' understanding of the scientific method and challenge the girls to produce more sophisticated experiments based on more meticulous research. It doesn't always work...
As fourth grader Sophia discovered, sometimes science involves work with wild animals. Her hypothesis was that fire ants would build their nests faster in light, rather than in dark, conditions. To collect her test subjects she used a paint brush and swabbed up ants from the playground. Sadly, however, she put them in jars without lids and not long after many of her test subjects were roaming the fourth grade classroom. Science can be quite an adventure.
Eighth grader Mercy, a veteran of the science fair wars, developed the hypothesis that there is a correlation between height and cautiousness. She tested this by constructing an obstacle course in the classroom and timing her blindfolded test subjects as they navigated their way through it. According to her results, there is no correlation. But to a scientist, to disprove a hypothesis is as important as proving one. Mercy commented, "I think science fair is a good opportunity for hands-on learners."
Sixth grader Solana tested the hypothesis that windmills with larger blade areas would produce more power than those with smaller blade areas and found it to be true. When asked why she likes science fair she said, "Because I like science." And that's what we like to hear.