Middle School Students Compete in Science Fair

Chartiers Valley Middle School sixth-grader Brittany Reinstadtler came up with an idea to prove Newton’s First and Second Laws while daydreaming in her science class. Little did she know where her imagination of the project with a modern day twist would land her.

Reinstadtler and 13 other Chartiers Valley Middle School students traveled to Heinz Field in the North Shore last month for the 72nd Pittsburgh Regional Science and Engineering Fair. More than 1,000 sixth- through 12th-grade students from 107 schools in Pennsylvania and one county in Maryland competed in the annual event, a record amount of students, according to Chartiers Valley Middle School sponsor Scott Caplan. They competed for more than $1 million in cash prizes and scholarships at the fair.

Reinstadtler, who spent about six days prepping her project, I Got Hit by an Apple, was successful in proving her science hypothesis and wooed the judges with toy cars and a track. She won second place while competing with 63 other students in the physical science junior level and received a $100 prize and a sponsor award.

“I was really surprised because there were a lot of kids in my group and I saw their projects and they were really, really good,” said Reinstadtler, who loves science and math.

The 14 students chosen to compete in PRSEF participated in the Chartiers Valley Middle School Night of Science. Other students who traveled to participate in the science event were: Kayla Rennie and Emily Ramous – How Cell Phone Waves Affect the Life of Crickets, Alex Roth – From Leaf to Leached, Nick May – Oil Spills and Photosynthesis, Melissa Rickens – A Handle on Bacteria, Sravanthi Chintakunta – Magic Cup, Will Snyder, Joseph Westrick and Joey Verduci – Which Duct Tape is Worth the Cost? Andrew Maedinger and Matthew Price – How to Split Atoms with Bateries, and Kelly Pattison and Carly Johnson – Which Ice Melt Melts Ice Faster?

“The first, second, and sometimes third place winners in each category are eligible to go to the PRSEF,” Caplan said.

Reinstadtler won first prize in her category among her peers. Middle School science teachers took their classes to the library or used the computer labs to let students’ research topics for projects. Many teachers also had website pages with links to science fair project topics in hopes their students would want to be involved in the Chartiers Valley science event.

Caplan said Chartiers Valley has been competing at the state level for the past seven or eight years. Alex Roth won a sponsor award last year for her project about toxins in paint, Caplan said.