Washington School PTO Hosts Science Fair

As a way to thank students and their families for their hard work and dedication in making the annual show a success, the Washington School PTO is sponsoring a science fair from 6 to 9 p.m. on Wednesday, March 13. The fair is open to Washington School families only.

"There will be over 25 exciting activities, booths, exhibits, demonstrations and presentations," said Ginger Clarke-Walden, chair of the event. "It will be an educational extravaganza of science and fun all rolled into one. The main objective is to have fun and learn a lot of cool scientific facts along the way!"

The following is a list of events:

1.  CHECK-IN                     Ginger Clarke-Walden                          

 As you arrive don’t forget to check-in and get your Science Fair Packet containing: a booklet listing all the spine-tingling activities and presentations that are waiting for you to experience, a map of all the booth locations (gym, classrooms and field by the basketball courts), a science passport where you will get stamps to earn prizes and a bag to collect all your goodies and hand-outs. Remember: The main objective is to have fun and learn a lot of cool scientific facts along the way!

2.  Get your Reward                     Jill Weiss          WASHINGTON SCHOOL STUDENTS ONLY 

Visit a booth to discover a fascinating aspect of science. Answer a question by the presenter and get a stamp in your passport. After 7 stamps, collect a prize at the Rewards Table. After 14 stamps, you can get another prize. It is that easy! Your scientific journey will be an adventure through chemistry, biology, geology, medicine, dentistry, astronomy, physics, photography, genetics, magnetism, zoology, ecology, robotics, computer science, volcanology and microbiology.

3.  Cool Chemistry with Smartycat Kids!                 Presenter from Smartycat Kids   

Don't miss out on some Cool Chemistry, as we make liquids bubble, fog, erupt, and ooze with our interactive dry ice demonstration! Learn how a pellet of frozen gas can change state to fill the room with fog, or make bubbles grow out of our flask. Feel the "boo" bubbles, and pop them to release the spooky fog! Watch a "crystal ball" expand out of our bowl. This gas has never been cooler! There will be five – 20 minute presentations. Please check the schedule for showtimes.

4.  Trailside Eco-Art and Reptiles Up Close      Naturalists from Trailside Nature and Science Center

Join staff from Union County’s Trailside Nature and Science Center to learn about the importance of conservation and “going green.” Find out ways to turn your recycling materials (like magazines, paper rolls, cereal boxes & more) into beautiful crafts, decorative bowls and jewelry. Make a paper roll snake to take home and meet a live snake from Trailside’s reptile collection. Discover how reptiles, other animals and the planet benefit from your efforts to Reduce, Reuse and Recycle!

5.  GERMS! GERMS! GERMS ARE EVERYWHERE!!!           Marie Guarnuccio and Karen Fishman    

Stop by this exciting exhibit and see firsthand how many germs are sitting on your hands after touching a few common objects, like a doorknob or computer keyboard!  We will use “germ gel” and a black light to show you all the hidden germs hiding on your hands. And just how effective is antibacterial gel in removing these pesky germs?

6.  Be A Surgeon                  Julie Shanebrook-Wein, Josh Wein, M.D. and Ray Garguilo 

Come to the Surgery Science Booth to experience what it's like to be a surgeon in the operating room. Ever wondered how all of those organs fit together in the human body? Come to the surgery booth and have fun "dissecting" a human torso replica puzzle. You can take out important human organs such as the stomach, pancreas and liver and then attempt to put them all back in the right spots. Location is everything!!  We will even have real suture so you can learn how to sew skin and tissue back together. This is a great opportunity to learn all about human anatomy and how surgeons work to keep everybody healthy!! 

7.  Children’s Dental Health Booth                Justine McCabe and Timothy McCabe, DMD     

Stop by to see some amazing dental experiments with teeth. We will show you what soda and other sugar drinks can do to your teeth and how fluoride can protect your teeth. Learn about sugar bugs and how much sugar is in the food we eat. Want to be a dentist? Try our Dentist Play-doh model and make some teeth. Don’t forget to ask for a Dental Goody Bag to go home with.

 8.  COME FRAME YOUR SCIENCE WITHIN                   Nancy Rowe-Kane      

After getting your picture taken as a scientist, come to this booth to be creative and decorate a frame with cool science stuff!   Turn a lightbulb and test tube into people!  You can make the frame just like you want it -- crazy, funny, serious, or fun!  Also, we have magnets to put on the back of the frame so you can display the frame anywhere!  Finally, if you are short on time, we can give you the kit to do at home.  Enjoy!!

 9. TEETH TEETH TEETH                    Paul Arfanis, DDS     

Most animals have them - But not all teeth are for chewing - People usually have 32 teeth which come in four types - And Sharks have thousands of teeth of one type - Have you ever seen the inside of a tooth? - If you found a tooth do you think you could guess what type of animal it belongs to?

10.  Rocks, minerals, and slime              John Dobosiewicz, Ph.D.

 Students will explore special properties of rocks and minerals and make slime!

11.  Scientific Graffiti                    Craig Bowman    

Watch a super cool video filled with 3-D medical animations. Discover how your heart beats, blood travels through your veins and how cells work.

12.  Inside a Computer                       Paul Walden, Ph.D.     

Ever wonder what parts are inside your computer? Drop by to find out. See the insides of a working computer. Learn the names of the different parts and what they do. Remember computers look complicated but they use a language that only has two numbers – zero and one!

13.  WHERE IN THE SOLAR SYSTEM AM I?            Janyce Wilson from the Amateur Astronomer’s Inc.    

You are on a space mission to explore the solar system and have just woken from a deep sleep to find your navigation system is wonky and you've drifted off course.  Use your knowledge of the solar system (exhibit photos, facts and tools will help) to figure out where you are. 

14.  MINDSTORMS NXT Exhibit                       Reva Narasimhan, Ph.D.   

 Bring a new level of fun to your LEGO building!! We will show how a Mindstorm robot works and how it can be programmed to do many things, including sensing light and sound, race to a finish line, follow a path, and much more. Everyone is welcome to try their hand at programming our bot!

15.  Creepy crawly bugs in our garden      Stacy Draper, Lorraine Mormile and John Mormile     

Stacy Draper, is a Master Gardener from the Rutgers Master Gardeners of Union County. See insects up close in our display and then be able to identify them in your own backyards. 

16.  Radioactivity                    Renata Handzy

Did you know that radiation isn't always dangerous?  Did you know that you are radioactive and that radiation is all around us? In fact, the light that's letting you read this very sentence is a form of radiation! Join us in exploring everyday objects that are radioactive and learn about why it's not always as scary as you might first think.

17.  MAGIC MILK                    Gina Kamins      

Ever wonder why some salad dressings separate into two layers? Come see a colorful demonstration and find out! You’ll get to try your own experiment using everyday household items. Apply what you’ll learn to amaze your friends and family with MAGIC MILK!

18. Iron Content in Cereals                     Washington School Teachers          

Ever wonder how much iron is in the breakfast cereal that you eat?  Come, crush up some different cereals and use a magnet to find out how much iron is in many popular brands today.  You might be surprised by what you find!

19.  Extracting DNA from Strawberries               Washington School Teachers        

Many people know that DNA molecules are the building blocks of life but have you ever actually seen one?  Come and learn about DNA and actually extract this tiny molecule from strawberries and see it for yourself! 

20.  Magma-nificent!                    Tammie Crispino             

Make model volcanoes using clay and make them erupt using eruption powder and cool activation liquid.  Learn what makes volcanoes blow and more in this magma-nificent presentation!!

21.  StarLab                   Gina Bergman and a presenter from Raritan Valley Community College                                                               

WASHINGTON SCHOOL STUDENTS ONLY

Join us inside an amazing portable planetarium to see the night sky. Winter evenings have more bright stars than any other time of year. The astronomer will point out what stars, planets, and constellations are visible tonight. The Star-Lab provides a realistic sense of motion by surrounding students with a 360° virtual environment. You will lift off from the familiar surroundings of Washington school up into orbit where you can look back on the planet Earth. From there you can tour the moon, the sun, and the entire solar system. 15 minute presentations - only 25 children at a time - Tickets will be available on a first come first served basis at the classroom.

22.  Science  Photo-Op               Charlie Bowman          WASHINGTON SCHOOL STUDENTS ONLY

Dress up as a scientist, with a real lab coat and goggles. Let our professional photographer snap you discovering a new virus or finding the cure for a deadly disease. The best part is you get to take home a 4X6 photograph as a souvenir.

 23.  It is Totally Shocking!!!      Washington School 5th Grade Science Teacher: Matthew Cognetti 

Stop by for a shocking experience! See how a Van de Graaff generator works to create static electricity capable of producing big sparks. Charge yourself up and feel your hair stand on end. Experience other cool things you can do with the power of static electricity.

24.  Microscope Laboratory                 Mary Lynn Mercado, Ph.D. and Rob Crozier, Ph.D.

What does an ant look like magnified 400 times? - Would you like to be able to see one of your own cells under a microscope? - Have you ever seen the organisms that live in pond water? Come visit our microscope laboratory, where you can dress up like a scientist and discover what really small things look like under a microscope!  See what creepy crawly insects look like up close!  Participate in our cheek cell lab and look at one of your own cells!  And try to spot the moving volvox, planaria, and diatoms in a sample of pond water!  You'll see things that you see every day in a whole new way!

25.  Night Sky                      Damian Handzy, Ph.D.           

Tonight, we'll have a view of something old and something new.  Jupiter is an old favorite not just because of its massive size (1,000 earths fit inside!), but also because its moons are visible even in a pair of binoculars.  Jupiter will be high overhead all night long.  And if we're lucky, right around sunset, a new comet will appear in the West's twilight glow.  As long as it isn't cloudy, join us outside on the basketball courts for a view with telescopes and binoculars. 

26.  IF CLOUDY - come Inside for a Night sky demonstration             

 Damian Handzy, Ph.D.          

Cloud program (inside): Act out a model of the solar system and see why the moon has phases and why days are getting longer this time of year. Which planet do you want to be?

Please go to Booth #21 (Mr. Cognetti’s classroom to get your tickets)

Tickets will be on a first come first served basis

25 Students per session (maximum)

Session 1:  6:15 to 6:30PM

Session 2:  6:40 to 6:55PM

Session 3:  7:05 to 7:20PM

Astronomer Break:  7:20 to 7:50PM

Session 4:  7:50 to 8:05PM

Session 5:  8:15 to 8:30PM

Session 6:  8:40 to 8:55PM

Please go to Booth #3 (Located in the Gym - Main Exhibit Hall)

No Tickets Required

Session 1:  6:15 to 6:35PM

Session 2:  6:50 to 7:10PM

Session 3:  7:25 to 7:45PM

Session 4:  8:00 to 8:20PM

Session 5:  8:35 to 8:55PM