8th Grade Impresses in Annual Science Fair

                Through the months of September and November, eighth graders dedicated their class time to developing and executing an experiment they designed. Those who placed top in their categories were selected to go to the Montco Science fair, which will occur March 13-15, 2014. The awards ceremony will be held on March 16, and award winners will advance to the Delaware Valley Science Fair in April.

Andrew poses with the product of his hard work.

                 Students first had to come up with a topic and have it approved by their teachers, who would act as supervisors through the months of science fair. After some paperwork regarding Montco Science Fair protocols, preliminary research began. Students obtained background knowledge regarding the aspects of their experiment through the internet, books, and other references. Using this knowledge, procedures were carefully created and executed. The deadline for the data was November 8^th. It was a very tight schedule, and a lot of hard work was required to complete the projects. All data generated by the experiments was to be kept in a logbook. Although some of the equipment needed to carry out the experiments arrived late, students persevered and came out with great projects. After the data collection was complete, a display board, abstract, and the logbook were required to assemble the final presentation of the projects. There were many outstanding presentations and demonstrations, including a precariously balanced tea cup. Parents and visitors came around to each display board and listened to the students explain their projects. Projects were placed next to those of the same categories. The categories included Behavioral and Social Sciences, Biochemistry, Botany, Chemistry, Computer Science, Earth and Space Science, Engineering, Environmental Science, Mathematics, Medicine and Health, Microbiology, Physics, Zoology, and Consumer Science.

            After the presentations, students and their families gathered in Honickman Auditorium for the awards ceremony. Winners were called up by category to receive their awards and an invitation to the Montco Science Fair in March. After months of hard work, Germantown Academy’s 2013 science fair came to an end. It was a learning experience for the eighth grade, and some students may even continue their science fair experience throughout Upper School.  Congratulations to all the eighth graders for their hard work in science fair!

 

- Andrew L. '18

Award and category winners at the Middle School Science Fair.