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Hilltop scientists present their results
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A Hilltop Elementary School fourth-grade student proudly displayed his science experiment display board on gas ratings during the school’s annual Science Fair Feb. 16. He came to the conclusion that Coke makes him burp the most in five minutes, compared to Mountain Dew and Sprite.
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Hilltop Elementary School fourth-grade students created display boards illustrating their science experiments for the school’s annual Science Fair Feb. 16.
By ABBY SLANKER
The multi-purpose room at Hilltop Elementary School was transformed into a scientific laboratory Feb. 16 for the school’s annual fourth-grade Science Fair. Students put their experiments and results on display for family, friends and fellow Hilltoppers to observe.
According to Kay Abel, fourth-grade teacher and science teacher to all fourth-graders, the students have been studying the scientific method for the past six weeks.
“We have been studying the various steps of the scientific method, including controlling variables to get an answer to the question they asked. For their experiments, the students could research any question they wanted answered. They could test products and come up with their own way of testing,” Abel said.
Each student was required to conduct a scientific experiment on a topic that interested them and then create a display board describing their experiment.
Each display included the project’s purpose or question, the student’s hypothesis, the materials used, the procedure of the experiment, data, results and a conclusion in which the student stated if the hypothesis was correct or incorrect and what he or she learned from the experiment.
Students could also include photos of themselves conducting their experiment, charts, diagrams, illustrations and graphs on their displays.
The students positioned themselves by their display board in the multi-purpose room and were available to explain their projects to attendees and fellow students and answer any questions someone may have had concerning their experiment.
The fourth-graders chose a variety of topics, such as paper towel absorbency, keeping vegetables fresh, gas rating and electric fruit.
Some questions the students asked included, ‘What melts ice fastest?,’ ‘Are marshmallows full of hot air?,’ ‘What lotion heals dry skin fastest?’ and ‘Which is more dense - Coke or Diet Coke?’
“This is the most exciting day for both me and my students. To see it all come to fruition is just amazing. They are very proud of themselves and I am proud of them, too. It is a teacher’s dream to see the kids this excited about science,” Abel said.
Each student received a red participant ribbon at the Science Fair to hang on their display boards.