LINCOLN, Neb. (KOLN) – More than 100 students got the chance to show off some science experiments Thursday night at Lincoln Public Schools’ annual science fair.
At the Sandhills Global Event Center, students from 5th to 8th grade gathered to present their projects and were joined by community members from various STEM fields, some of whom were scouting for future scholarship recipients.
Experiments ranged from harnessing electricity to building robots to determining whether cats have a favorite color.
Taylor Vanous and Elsie Froehlich did their first experiment for the science fair together, testing the efficacy of different mascara products with water.
“We wanted to see which one was most waterproof,” Froehlich said.
“So like if you’re having a bad day and you need to reapply your makeup you know which one to use,” Vanous said. “Tower 28 mascara is the most waterproof and Fanfest and Telescopic can only withstand 4 drops.”
Each project gets judged three times based on the students’ idea, use of the scientific method, and the overall presentation. Awards will be given out at school on Friday.
Amanda Higgins, a 5th grade teacher and co-director of the fair, said there’s been a smaller number of students participating since the pandemic, around 120.
She’s hoping to grow that number over the next few years, particularly by getting girls involved in STEM.
“It’s good to get kids in these types of fields, boys and girls. There’s always areas that are constantly growing and expanding, and getting kids to explore is always important.”
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