Several Hauser Junior High students recently gave the term “study buddy” a whole new, literal meaning leading up to their seventh- and eighth-grade science fair held May 15 at the school.
“I had so many special requests from students this year,” said Hauser Principal Leslie C. Berman. “Some kids even passed out permission slips for human subjects research. The students asked for more time and space after school to work on their projects.”
With 192 inquiry-based projects displayed at the fair, myriad questions from inquiring young minds wanted to know scientific information like: Do boys or girls have better short term memory? Do boys or girls have quicker reaction time? Do dogs or humans saliva have more bacteria? Does music affect your heart rate?
Based on conclusions drawn from the science projects, the answers are girls, boys, dogs and yes, respectively.
“I swabbed my dog’s mouth and my own mouth,” said eighth-grader Amanda Hejna about her project. “I grew the bacteria on Petri dishes. There’s a myth that a dog’s mouth is cleaner than a human’s mouth but that’s not true. My dog had almost twice as much bacteria.”
Caitlin Boxell enjoyed doing her project on super-cooling liquids. She discovered that if you add salt to different liquids, their freezing points can be kept lower because compounds have lower freezing points.
“I like science because you get to learn a lot,” Boxell said. “It’s like defying nature.”
All the students used a display table and poster board to explain their projects by using the basic steps of the scientific method including problem, research, hypothesis, experiment, data results and conclusion.
The science projects were judged by 17 Riverside-Brookfield High School students who are taking Advanced Placement science classes, many of whom attended Hauser, allowing them to experience what it’s like on both sides of the science fair experience.
RB Science Department Chairman Troy Gobble and 10 Hauser Junior High staff members also served as judges.
All the students were awarded either first, second or third place recognition and a certificate.
“I’ve always liked science,” said Sarah Otmanski, who researched how release angles affect the distance an arrow flies. “My brother suggested I do something with archery.”
The judges assessed each student’s creativity, enthusiasm and actual experiment.
“I’m very honored to judge,” said RB senior Kevin Kunkel. “I remember I did something about dissolving eggs with electromagnetism for my science project [at Hauser]. I was very nervous, so I feel a little sympathy for the students that felt nervous. I tend to grade a little easier.”
Like Kunkel, fellow RB senior and Hauser alumna Maddy King praised the diversity of subjects.
“Some of these projects are so creative,” said King, who will attend Indiana University to study musical theater. “You can tell that a lot of time and effort went into some of them.”
For Debra Potempa, the chairwoman of the Hauser science fair, offering science in such a tangible, fun way allows her a unique opportunity to see the intellectual curiosity and development of her students, present and past.
“I love to see the growth of the students from seventh to eighth grade,” said Potempa, in her 18th year teaching at Hauser. “How much they progress in such a short time is truly amazing. It’s also wonderful to visit with the RB kids and find out their future plans.”