Archive for Middle School Science Fairs

Boston Middle School Student Lights Up White House Science Fair

April 29, 2013 James Engineering, Events, High School Science Fairs, Middle School Science Fairs, Science Fairs

President Obama took a tour of more than 30 science, technology and engineering projects on Monday, April 22nd in his third White House Science Fair. Exhibits included a bicycle-pedal powered water filtration system created by Payton Karr and Kiona Elliot, classmates at Northeast High School of Oakland Park, Florida, that was tested by the commander-in-chief himself. Senior Administration officials and leading STEM communicators, advocates, and educators attended the White House Science Fair as well and met the students, encouraging further participation in both science fairs across the nation and STEM fields.

One projected was created by Boston, Massachusetts native Cassidy Wright through her school’s TechnoSWAG learning-apprenticeship program. Cassidy created an LED banner programmed to automatically flash the message “BE YOURSELF.” She built the banner in order to make a statement against bullying in middle schools and encourage diversity in the student body.

With that same spirit of individuality in mind, Cassidy declares a lesson learned from her mother. “I’m specially gifted in my own way and I don’t try to be like everybody else.”

~James Penna

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Massachusetts Middle Schooler a Semifinalist in Disney’s Iron Man 3 Inventor and Innovator Fair!

April 5, 2013 editor Middle School Science Fairs, Science Fairs

As a sixth grader, Nathan Han of Boston received first-place honors at MSSEF’s 2011 Middle School Science Fair for his project, “A Study of Somatic Sensory Receptive Fields in Human Skin.” From there, he went on to the Broadcom MASTERS — a prestigious national STEM competition for 6th, 7th, and 8th graders.

This spring, Nathan has another honor to add to the list.  He has been named one of 30 semifinalists in Disney’s Iron Man 3 Inventor and Innovator Fair. Held in conjunction with the release of Marvel’s “Iron Man 3,” starring Robert Downey Jr., the competition asked students from across the United States to produce innovative, inventive projects based on themes from the movie.

If he is selected as a finalist, Nathan will win a trip to California for the premiere of Iron Man 3, a visit to Disneyland, a trip to Broadcom Headquarters, the opportunity to share his research at the El Capitan Theatre and more!  Good luck, Nathan!

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Sally Ride’s Legacy: Advancing STEM Education in Middle School

September 7, 2012 editor Middle School Science Fairs, Science Fairs, STEM Education

Broadcom Foundation Executive Director Paula Golden received a “high-five” voicemail from astronaut and STEM champion Sally Ride just weeks before Ride’s untimely death from pancreatic cancer: “Paula, this is Sally Ride. I clipped an article you wrote about the importance of motivating kids to study math and science in middle school and called to let you know that the Broadcom Foundation is on target with support for training teachers in STEM project-based learning.”

As Golden points out in a blog post on Huff Post Impact, Ride’s most significant legacy may well be the results of her effort to empower middle school teachers to inspire kid to pursue STEM studies — and eventually, careers — through Ride’s “Train the Trainer” program.  “Sharing STEM knowledge and inspiration has never been more essential,” Golden writes. “According to the National Academies, among wealthy nations, the United States ranked 23rd in science and 31st in math in standardized tests. We now know from study after study that the effect of a quality teacher on a child’s life is monumental.”

Broadcom does its part to advance science education among students in this important age group through its national science fair competition, the Broadcom MASTERS.  By supporting teachers and honoring excellence among students, Broadcom honors and advances the mission championed by the great Sally Ride.
See on www.huffingtonpost.com

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Massachusetts Students Make Broadcom MASTERS Finals!

August 30, 2012 editor Middle School Science Fairs, Science Fairs

Two of the 30 U.S. students in the final round of the Broadcom MASTERS (Math, Applied Science, Technology and Engineering for Rising Stars) competition finals hail from Massachusetts.

Daniel Lu of Carlisle, MA will compete in the finals with his project, “Psychoacoustics: The Perception of Volume.”  Assonet’s Ethan Messier will present “Wave To The Future (The Utilization of Marine Waves Using Wave Buoys to Generate Electricity).”  A program of Society for Science & the Public (SSP), Broadcom MASTERS is a leading science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) competition for middle school students.

“The 2012 Broadcom MASTERS finalists represent the nation’s finest young innovators,” said Paula Golden, Executive Director of the Broadcom Foundation. “We need ideas from these students, and the thousands of others who participated in the Broadcom MASTERS this year to help solve the grand challenges of this century.”

Daniel and Ethan are among 16 girls and 14 boys who will compete in Washington DC on October 2 for more than $40,000 in cash prizes.  The top award is the $25,000 Samueli Foundation Award, a gift of Susan and Henry Samueli, co-founder of Broadcom Corporation.  While on their all-expenses-paid trip to the nation’s capital, the finalists will take field trips to historical sites illuminating American contributions to science and technology and visit Capitol Hill to meet their elected representatives.

“Independent research and hands-on learning is vital to the success of our bright young students, both while still in school and later in their careers,” said Elizabeth Marincola, President of Society for Science & the Public. “We hope that programs like the Broadcom MASTERS encourage students to expand and continue the process of scientific inquiry.”

Broadcom Foundation was founded to inspire and enable young people throughout the world to enter careers in science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) through partnerships with local schools, colleges, universities and non-profit organizations.

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Nine Massachusetts Students Make Broadcom MASTERS 2012 Semifinals

August 16, 2012 editor Middle School Science Fairs, Science Fairs

The Broadcom MASTERS® (Math, Applied Science, Technology, and Engineering for Rising Stars), a program of Society for Science & the Public, is the national science, technology, engineering and math competition for U.S. 6th, 7th, and 8th graders that inspires and encourages the nation’s young scientists, engineers and innovators. This year’s list of semifinalists includes the following nine young stars from Massachusetts:

Dayle Kwang-Liang Wang | Grade 8
Massachusetts Region V Science Fair (USMA01)
Dover-Sherborn Regional Middle School
Gusty Discoveries

Evan Leon Tilley | Grade 6
Massachusetts Region III Science Fair (USMA03)
St. Francis Xavier School (Acushnet)
Salt Water Desalination

Ethan Wyatt Messier | Grade 6
Swansea New England Christian Academy
Wave to the Future: The Utilization of Marine Waves Using Wave Buoys to Generate Electricity

Katherine Miranda | Grade 7
Massachusetts Region II Science Fair (USMA05)
Grafton Home School
Nuclear Energy: How Can We Make It Safer?

Kumaran V.K. Ratnam | Grade 7
Massachusetts State Science and Engineering Fair (USMA50)
R.J. Grey Junior High School (Acton)
A Study of Macular Degeneration and a Design of an Ultrasonic Guiding Device to Aide the Patients

Daniel Lu | Grade 8
Carlisle Public Schools
Psychoacoustics: The Perception of Volume

Emily Anna Lane | Grade 7
Douglas Elementary School
Peel Power

David Anthony Bau | Grade 8
Lincoln Public Schools

Fan Liu | Grade 8
Quincy Central Middle School
Fly Why? Will Irradiation Produce Mutations on Drosophila melanogaster?

Congratulations to them all!
See on www.societyforscience.org

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UMass Medical School & UMass Memorial Medical Center Lend a Hand (or 52!) at State Middle School Science & Engineering Fair

June 8, 2012 editor Middle School Science Fairs

Last weekend’s Massachusetts State Science & Engineering Fair owes its success in no small part to UMass Medical School. Twenty-six faculty and staff from UMMS and UMass Memorial Medical Center spent a rainy Saturday at Worcester Technical High School serving in the crucial role as science fair judges.  With every competitor receiving judging from three professionals, the demand for judges is tremendous, and UMass Medical School’s contribution to this year’s State Middle School Science & Engineering Fair made a big difference.  “No other organization had more volunteers than ours,” said Sandra Mayrand, director of UMMS’s Regional Science Resource Center. A big “thank you” from MSSEF to UMMS for this extraordinary and valuable effort!
See on www.umassmed.edu

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2012 State Middle School Fair Results

June 5, 2012 editor Middle School Science Fairs, MSSEF, Science Fairs

A fabulous Massachusetts State Middle School Science & Engineering Fair took place on Saturday, June 2nd at Worcester Technical High School.  Students in grades 6-8 from all over the state spent the rainy day making new friends and explaining their projects to the volunteer judges.

Two projects emerged as grand prize winners.  From Melican Middle School in Northborough, Yashaswini Makram entered the grand-prize winning, “Accelerometer Apps: Sizing Up Smart Phones to Measure Height and Distance.”  Ethan Messier, a student at Swansea’s New England Christian Academy, won the other grand prize with “Wave to the Future: The Utilization of Marine Waves Using Wave Buoys to Generate Electricity.”  Congratulations to Yashaswini, Ethan, and the other prize-winners on a tremendous accomplishment at this year’s state middle school fair!

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Science Fair Project Resource Recommendation

January 31, 2012 editor Middle School Science Fairs, Science Fairs

We recently received the following note from a middle school science teacher, and thought that the resource she mentions might be of interest:

“I am a teacher currently preparing for the 6th grade science fair. I just happened to come across your resources page while I was looking for some experiments and other science project ideas to create a project sheet to hand out to my students with some ideas of what they can do for the science fair.

I just wanted to take a second and say thank you for helping me out, your page is very helpful in creating my assignment sheet. I am very grateful for all the information and resources you took the time to post.

I thought I could share a resource I came across. Rubber, Plastic, and More — Top Science Project Ideas (from Polymer-Search) has some good resources for science fair projects and I thought you might want to add it as an another resource.

Thanks again for your help, I really appreciate it!”

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British Study Reveals Low Science-Career Aspirations Among 10-Year-Olds

January 12, 2012 editor Middle School Science Fairs, STEM Careers

New research from King’s College London suggests that there’s a disconnect between young students’ enjoyment of science in school and their attitude about pursuing a professional career in the sciences. The ASPIRES research team surveyed more than 9,000 primary school age children, and found that at around the age of 10 or 11, attitudes about science begin to drop off. “Children and their parents hold quite complex views of science and scientists and at age 10 or 11 these views are largely positive,” notes research team leader Louise Archer. “Nevertheless, less than 17 percent aspire to a career in science.”

What do you think is happening in school to drive this trend, and do you believe that a similar phenomenon exists in the USA?
Via www.myscience.me.uk

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The Discovery Education 3M Young Scientist Challenge

January 10, 2012 editor Middle School Science Fairs

Middle School teachers: Do you have a student whose science aptitude and interest might make her or him a contender for the title of America’s Top Young Scientist?  Open to students in grades 5 through 8, a national middle school science competition sponsored by Discovery Education and 3M could net the winning scientist $25,000! Click here for details:
www.youngscientistchallenge.com

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