BUDDING SCIENTISTS BRING CURIOSITY
TO ELEMENTARY SCIENCE OLYMPIAD
 |
Students from Dorothy Fox school in Camas watched the results of their scientific efforts during the straw egg drop competition. |
Clark College showed its support for science and learning by hosting the Elementary Science Olympiad (ESO) on Saturday, Nov. 8 at the college’s main campus.
The ESO is an inquiry-based, hands-on program covering science, technology, engineering and math.
Through the Science Olympiad format, students are given the opportunity to participate in highly engaging activities that naturally generate interest, enthusiasm and passion for scientific exploration.
Teams of students participated in five events during the ESO:
-
Mystery architecture: build a freestanding tower as high as possible from mystery materials to support a tennis ball at the top;
-
Straw egg drop: make a device of straws and masking tape to hold a raw egg, which will be dropped from a fixed height to a target;
-
Metric mastery: estimate and measure different objects using metric units;
-
Gunk: design and test a ball of gunk (made from glue, liquid starch and salt) that will bounce a certain height; and
-
Aerodynamics: build two paper airplanes to be flown a distance of at least five meters, landing on a predetermined target.
Nearly 200 elementary students from area schools participated, while more than 40 Clark College students assisted with the event.
Since 1993, Clark College has hosted the Southwest Washington Regional Science Olympiad or the State Science Olympiad. This has provided opportunities for middle and high school students to be engaged in science learning opportunities that are engaging, inquiry-based, hands-on, and team-oriented. The Science Olympiad program has proven to be an effective tool for increasing knowledge and interest in science and science-related careers.
Elementary Science Olympiad Results
Results of the ESO events were as follows:
Mystery Architecture
First place: Team #12, Helen Baller
Second place: Team #1, Lacamas Heights Yellow
Third place: Team #11, Captain Strong
Top group: Group 1-C, Lacamas Heights Yellow
Straw Egg Drop
First place: Team #6, Union Ridge
Second place: Team #7, JD Zellerbach White
Third place: Team #3, Jr CAM
Top group: Group 13-D, Hockinson
Metric Mastery
First place: Team #13, Hockinson Intermediate
Second place: Team #5, Maple Grove Green
Third place: Team #11, Captain Strong
Top group: Group 13-A, Hockinson Intermediate
Gunk
First place: Team #11, Captain Strong
Second place: Team #12, Helen Baller
Third place: Team #13, Hockinson Intermediate
Top group: Group 8-D, JD Zellerbach Black
Aerodynamics
First place: Team #6, Union Ridge
Second place: Team #10, Dorothy Fox Black
Third place: Team #5, Maple Grove Green
Top group: Group 4-D, Maple Grove Yellow
