The Grade 6 and 7 scientists presented the results of their scientific investigations at the annual Middle School Science Fair last Friday.

The Science Fair is an annual tradition in which the Grade 6 and 7s apply their core scientific skills to conduct collaborative scientific research on a topic of their choice. Students identify a testable research question, conduct research on their topic using credible sources, formulate a hypothesis, conduct an experiment, and analyze their results to answer their research question. Students then evaluate their investigation to propose improvements and identify further questions.

Some of the research questions investigated this year were:

• “Does a mug covered up with different materials affect how long a liquid holds warmth?”
• “Which powder (cocoa, cornstarch, or flour) shows the clearest fingerprint marks when extracting fingerprints?”
• “How does the concentration of limonene affect the time it takes to pop a balloon?”
• “How long does it take for whole milk and skimmed milk to go bad depending on the temperature?”

Our scientists were met with a number of challenges along the way, which encouraged them to draw upon their problem-solving skills.

It was a wonderful afternoon in which they could share their journey with our community, as well as students and faculty of Yokohama Science Frontier High School, with whom the Science Department has collaborated for many years.

Thank you for attending and we hope to see many of you again next year!