Do brown or blue chicken eggs hatch quicker? Which wi-fi bandwidth allows for faster downloads? How can you make the sturdiest meringue? These questions and more were answered in the 4th and 5th grade science fair. Every year, students spend months working on a project for the fair. First, they are challenged to come up with a question that can be answered through observation and experimentation. Once they come up with a question, the work begins. They must research for further information about their subject. They use this information to make an educated guess for what they think the answer to their question will be. Now they can experiment. This is often the most fun part of the project. It can get a little messy, especially when the project involves exploding soda bottles! After the experiment, the students analyze the data they collected during the experiment to see if they were correct in their hypothesis. Sometimes it does, but not always. If their data doesn’t support their hypothesis, students try to figure out why.
On science fair day, students present their findings to the class. They’ve created display boards with the important information, including graphs and artwork to demonstrate their findings. Mrs. Vandervort provides a rubric for students to follow to ensure they don’t miss any information on their display.
There was a wide variety of projects at this year’s fair. Some experiments include: testing the strength of toy cars, testing how well different brands of nail polish wear, and determining the best design for paper airplanes. We learned that pea plants like rock music! And to answer the questions at the beginning of this article: chicks in blue eggs hatch faster than those in brown eggs, the download speed of your wi-fi bandwidth depends on how close you are to the router, and adding cream of tartar to egg whites does contribute to a sturdier meringue. The kids did a great job with their presentations. Thanks to all of them for sharing such a wealth of information!