Young scientists take center stage at Mt. Diablo Elementary’s STEM Fair
Third grade student Orion Howell and fourth grade student Salma Ataie Ebuen with their STEM exhibit. (Photos courtesy JoAnna Castillo of CVCHS)
CLAYTON, CA (Mar. 27, 2024) — Mt. Diablo Elementary School hosted its annual STEM Fair this month. The school buzzed with activity as parents and family members strolled through the exhibits learning as they went.
Third grade student Orion Howell and fourth grade student Salma Ataie Ebuen’s exhibit posed an interesting question. “What will make wax worms eat more plastic?”
These elementary school scientists proposed several influencing factors to test. These included giving worms music to listen to as well as putting worms in the dark. Some worms fasted while others had small pieces of plastic to dine on. As they predicted, Orion and Salma demonstrated that the worms given smaller pieces ate the most plastic. With these worms, Salma said, “We could reduce plastic pollution.”
CVCHS Engineering students were invited to judge the students’ projects. More than 55 student projects were on display, Kindergarten to 5th grade, complete with detailed presentation boards and live demonstrations. Families and the CVCHS student judges were invited to try the science experiments, including “The 5-second rule: Fact or Fiction?” and “What happens to Skittles when they get wet?” Everyone had a great time checking out a model rocket, a Hawaiian volcano, a pulley system, and an electricity demonstration.
A special thank you goes out to the event organizers Ms. Lovejoy and Ms. Howisey. Teachers, staff, students, and the CVCHS student judges who worked together deserve a round of applause for a successful STEM Fair.
