The first day of Goshen Elementary School’s science fair had a few surprises.
“Back in the day, (the projects) were things like volcanoes. But, not anymore,” said Debi Coggins, a bookkeeper at the school. “There are a lot more resources available for them to look up and choose projects.”
Her favorite was one presented by Justin Helms about identifying dogs by nose prints. It was a favorite of judges, too.
“Did you know dogs’ noses are like our fingerprints?” Coggins said.
Morgan Wilkes did a similar experiment involving paw prints. She questioned whether they were as unique as fingerprints.
“I learned that the answer was yes and no. They are different, but they get scuffed up and change over time,” she said.
This is the school’s third annual science fair. Fourth-grade students presented their projects Tuesday. Fifth-grade projects will be due today and sixth-grade will wrap up the fair Thursday. Judges will choose the top project of each grade.
Fifth-grade teacher LaTasha Vaughn said students had the option of working in groups or completing individual projects. Most chose to do individual projects, but they did not work alone.
Vaughn encouraged parents to get involved and was pleased to see that they did.
“The hardest part is getting parents to help. Overall, they did a wonderful job,” she said.
Students chose topics in physical science, earth science and life science. Vaughn enjoyed seeing the variety of ideas from her class.
“It gives the students a chance to investigate something that they’re interested in, to choose something they love,” she said.
Sam Trotter managed to prove his hypothesis that a boy could, in fact, assemble a Lego set faster than a girl.
Avery Henderson made crystals and charted their growth.
Sean Buchanan examined the differences in the fizzes of his favorite soft drinks.
Amari Moorer and Piper Jones each did experiments involving mold.
“What I learned so far is it’s kind of weird and gross,” said Moorer.
Kaylee Copeland looked at the value of vitamin E in beauty products.
“You should put vitamin E in things to stay fresh the longest,” she said.