GRAFENWOEHR, Germany - Displays of Chlorphyll, Electromagnetism, Crystals and many more filled the gymnasium of Grafenwoehr Elementary School May 15 as students proudly presented their self-directed research projects to parents, teachers and peers.

Through his original experiment, one young scientist posed the question, “Could someone tolerate more pain while playing a handheld videogame than normal.”
The experimenter, fourth-grader Tyler Cooper, had students place their feet in ice cold water then timed them as they played video games. He concluded that the distraction of the video game allowed people to tolerate the cold water longer. “We wanted our students to demonstrate their understanding of scientific inquiry by posing a question, researching an answer and displaying their results to a larger audience,” explained Cathy Gladden, Gifted Education Teacher and co-sponsor.

Another displayed adorned with crystals of different shapes and sizes asked, “Which crystal growing recipe grows the best?” The research, presented by fourth-grader Nicole Ogborn, used different solutions of borax and salt to come to her conclusions. “She helped us as teachers know which solution to use the next time we grow crystals in our classroom,” Gladden said. The fourth- and fifth-grade overall winner, Erika Schneider, questioned if plants grow better in organic or inorganic soils. A self proclaimed “nature geek,” Schneider showed her potted plants with the organic soils and explained that her research might have implications for farmers and whether or not they should use fertilizers or not. She aspires to be a zoologist and proudly showed the t-shirt with a print of two manatees she adopted.

Another display, combining an interest in chemical reactions and volcanoes, was presented by Jagger Alexis. “There are over 90 active volcanoes in the United States,” he stated. He then pulled out a bottle and poured the contents into his handmade volcano. Slowly the volcano erupted as orange bubbles came out of it. He said mixing vinegar and dishwater soap makes the volcanoe erupt. “The Science Expo allowed students an opportunity to explore scientific areas of their interest,” GES Principal Crystal Bailey said. “Students had to write about their results which supports our continuous school improvement goal of writing across the curriculum.”

There were three criteria for the projects in the judging:
• Creativity and originality of their scientific inquiry
• Visual representation of the display of their project
• Explanation and presentation of their project

Science Fair winners by grade levels
Kindergarten and first-grade:
1st place- Brooklyn Hall, 2nd place- Marissa Brennan, 3rd place- Brandon Lester
Second- and third-grade:
1st place- Joshua Alonzo, 2nd place- Mallory Brennan, 3rd place- Dexter McDuffie
Fourth- and fifth-grade:
1st place- Erika Schneider, 2nd place- Jennifer Shimkus, 3rd place- Ryan Martin

Photo Cutline: Third-grader Jagger Alexis pours vinegar into dish soap solution located inside his handmade volcano simulating an eruption May 15 at the Grafenwoehr Elementary School Science Fair.