Be a Scientist!

It's that time of year again! Time to start thinking about science fair projects. Winter Break is a perfect time to begin one.

I remember one science fair experiment I conducted when I was in the sixth grade. I wanted to determine which material(s) would have the greatest effect on the temperature inside your house.

My dad, who was a high school wood shop teacher (lucky me!) helped me make two models of the same house - complete with windows, a door, an attic, and a shingled roof. Inside each house I put a thermometer and set both houses outside in the sun. I left one house "as is" to be the control. With the other house, I added various materials - one at a time, i.e. solar screens on the windows, insulation in the walls and attic, weather stripping around the door, insulated curtains, and bushes/trees around the outside of the house. Over several days, I collected data (the temperature in each house). Then I tested different combinations of the materials (solar screens and insulation; insulated curtains, solar screens, and weather stripping; etc).

I really enjoyed conducting this experiment! And, to my joy, I won the school science fair and moved on to the district and then county level. My project and I went all the way to a Science Fair in Los Angeles (I think it was the Seer Fair). What a wonderful experience and memory!

I encourage all students to participate in the Science Fair this year. Conducting scientific experiments can be really fun and you might just discover that you'd like to be a scientist when you grow up!

I've added a button on the Victoria School website labeled "Science Fair". Click on this button for more information about science projects and our school Science Fair in January.