Chatham Park Elementary Students Show Off In Annual Science Fair

By Katrine Fantini

The rain from Thursday night may have washed away the science themed sidewalk chalk artwork created by the fourth and fifth grade Service Club, but it didn’t put a damper on the growing excitement for annual fourth and fifth grade Science Fair that was held last Friday night.

Scattered throughout the cafeteria and gymnasium were 33 tri-fold displays that the judges had combed through and made the difficult decision of which project from each grade would take home the award for Most Outstanding Project. Students who didn’t receive this award still had the opportunity to win the award for Honorable Mention. 

Each project displayed the effort and organization of information gathered by the students. Topics ranged from general information about the green anole to the effects that household chemicals have on different hair colors. Each student had the opportunity to share their discoveries about their topic whether it was in regards to the consequences of the use of tap and distilled water when comparing store bought and homemade bubbles, or comparing the effects that shallow and deep water have on the speed of a tsunami.

Brain teasers games were available to all who attended and anyone who entered was eligible to win a prize. Arrays of snacks were provided for guests as well. Among those who attended was Chatham Park’s own principal, Dan Marsella.

He mentioned an interesting observation about the turnout this year, “We have been doing this at Chatham for the past eleven years and I think we had more children participate this past Friday than ever before.”

He suggested that the Mad Science after school program at the school may have generated a new enthusiasm for science which had inspired more children to enter a project. He feels that, “…The children were very creative with their entries and they were well prepared to explain in great detail the aspects of their work."

All who attended left the event with a greater understanding of a variety of topics. Among the 31 fourth grade participants who presented 17 projects, the project that stood out most to the judges was Eva Bartholomew, Charolette Sloan, Abby Van Trieste and Abby Wroblewski’s presentation of “Is our taste for sweet and sour affected by age?”

They discovered through sugar and lemon juice water tests that adults are more sensitive to sweet than children. They also discovered that both adults and children were equally sensitive to the taste of sour. There were sixteen projects at the fair presented by twenty nine of the fifth grade participants. The Most Outstanding project presented by a fifth grade student was titled, “Does colored light affect the growth of grass seed?”

The most interesting part of this winning project was not only the colorful growth charts and detailed information about the tests performed, but there was a list of what the student would have done differently as well as why the tests produced such results. The purchase of grass seeds that flourished more in the shade contributed to the result of tinted light producing the tallest grass.

Some of the Honorable Mention awards were awarded to students whose projects reflected some of the many environmental issues that society is currently being made more aware of. Two partners who are currently fourth grade students, won the Honorable Mention award for presenting a project titled, “Can a balloon-powered car go faster with more balloons?”

Their presentation featured a car that used air as an alternative source of energy rather than gas and encouraged people to reduce their carbon footprint by carpooling or using public transportation. Edward Nestor, a fifth grade student, went home with an Honorable Mention award for his presentation of, “How do our everyday choices impact the environment?”

He offered a very informative project that displayed how landfills negatively impact our environment. Another fifth grade group of girls won the Honorable Mention award for their presentation titled, “Sympathetic Solutions.”

With the use of questionnaires, Anna Comstock, Erin Dougherty and two of their friends discovered that both males and females are more likely to donate their money to hungry children than an animal shelter or an environmental group.

Chatham Park Elementary School’s annual Science Fair was a big hit and the best part was no one went home empty handed; everyone received a certificate for participating.