Reflections on Middle School Science Fair

Gourmetmom
Wed, 03 Mar 2010 13:33:29 +0000

Perhaps the best suggestion is to come up with a rubric that reduces the subjectivity in judging. Subjectivity doesn’t really belong in science, anyway. My son participated in Science Olympiad in middle school and he won a top medal in the nationals a few years ago. His was a building event, and let me tell you, it wasn’t pretty, but it did the job and it came at a fraction of a second under the calibrated time. Jaws dropped at his school, because he never did particularly well gussying up his work, but he’ll have that medal long after the glitter dries up and fades away. No one at his school had ever won a national medal before.

You should check out Science Olympiad. Generally, the events and contests are quantitative in nature, so subjectivity in judging isn’t an issue. It’s a great program and it really helps train kids in science.