Meghan Jensen, 8, shows off her hovercraft. She experimented using the hovercraft on different surfaces and found it worked best on a smooth wood floor.
Kyle Simpson, 8, explains his weight and speed experiment. Simpson added pennies and other object to matchbox cars to see how fast they would go. In his hypothesis, he thought the added weight would slow the cars down, but it turned out that the opposite was true.
Giulianna Pinevich, 8, shows off her mummified fish. She found that a mixture of salt, baking soda and borax mummify fish the best. Pinevich said her parents are glad the experiment is over. “My whole kitchen was smelly,” she said.
Helen Meade, 8, made paper airplanes with varying wingspans to see which would fly the furthest. She thought the widest winged plane would fly the best, but the opposite proved true. “I’m really good at making paper airplanes,” she said.
Norah Dreher, 8, shows Melissa Costanzo her washable marker experiment. Dreher used five different brands of washable markers to make drawings and see which ones actually washed out, as promised. The t-shirt with Elmers Paintastics, shown here, never washed out. Others disappeared after the first cycle. “I love art and I like drawing,” Dreher said.
Robert Hanson, 8, explains the results of his edible chocolate melting experiment. He predicted that M&Ms would melt the slowest because of their hard candy coating. His hypothesis proved correct, but he also found that chocolate with higher coco content took longer to melt. “I love chocolate,” Hansen said when asked why he chose that experiment.
PROSPECT – Third graders at Algonquin Elementary School reaped the fruits of two months experimentation at the school’s 16th annual science fair.
About 110 students from five classrooms presented their projects to classmates and parents April 14.
Students employed the scientific method to form a hypothesis, set up an experiment, and make a conclusion based on the results.
Half their grade was based on presentations they made to their classmates, so they had to address questions and take constructive criticism.
“That they can do that, in my opinion, is amazing,” said teacher Deb Pannone. “They are the hardest critics of each other”
She said peer-review is part of the scientific process.
The science program at the school is very hands-on, said Elena Guerra. Not all the student’s projects turned out how they had anticipated.
Students learned that it’s okay if it doesn’t come out right, Guerra said.
The classes of Marty Senich, Kathleen Biscio, and Lauren Thibault also participated in the event. Giulianna Pinevich, 8, shows off her mummified fish. She found that a mixture of salt, baking soda and borax mummify fish the best. Pinevich said her parents are glad the experiment is over. “My whole kitchen was smelly,” she said.
