On Thursday, January 30, twelve students representing E.C. Brice, Frances Corprew, Vivian Fowler, Annie Sims, and P.E. Wallace competed in the Region VIII ESC Science and Invention Fair. Students conducted research and created their displays on their own time and had five minutes to explain their projects and findings to the judges. Projects could be Behavioral/Biological which would include the study of plants, molds, fungus, bacteria, or human and/or animal responses to the environment, or Chemical/Physical which would study the physical and chemical changes in matter. They could also submit an original invention looking to solve a real problem, satisfy a need, be practical and marketable, and include use of the Scientific Method.

In the 5th grade Behavioral/Biological category, Lucas Bailey placed 4th with his project “Deer Do the Moon Walk”. Bailey investigated the moon phases and how deer movement and activity is affected by the different phases. He hypothesized that there would be more movement during a full moon because there would be more light, but he found that there was actually less activity. There was a huge increase in activity right after the full moon, during the waning gibbous moon. He also found that there was more movement of predators during this time. He used trail camera photos from three different locations to gather his data. Not only did he track their activity, but he learned the best time of day to hunt during the different phases of the moon, and if they tended to travel alone or in groups during each phase.

In the 6th grade Chemical/Physical category, Jake Jones placed 6th with his project “How Clean is My Clean?” which investigated self-made cleaners versus store bought cleaners, and how effective they are at eliminating bacteria. He started his investigation by growing his own bacteria, and then made two different cleaners at home, one with vinegar and water, the other with vinegar and isopropyl alcohol. He compared their effectiveness to store bought cleaning wipes with bleach. He found that the cleaner made with vinegar and isopropyl alcohol was the safest and most effective. The cleaning wipes were effective, but not as effective as the homemade cleaner. However, the vinegar and water cleaner was not effective at all in eliminating bacteria. Basically, he learned that homemade cleaners are effective, but only if they are made with the right ingredients.

Additional MPISD participants included Melanie Ferretiz from E.C. Brice, Lucas Ridenour from Frances Corprew, Ariana Ramirez from Vivian Fowler, Sam Jones from Annie Sims, and Kate Cluley, Peyton Glenn, Hadassah Thompson, Khloee Castro, Sebastian Cates, and Victoria Trejo from Wallace Middle School. Science Fair and Invention Advisors were Jamie King (Brice and Corprew), Ritchell DeLaHoya (Fowler), Lexi Litke (Sims), and Kate Babcock (Wallace).

Photos:

1: Jake Jones explains what he learned about homemade vs. commercially made cleaners

2: Lucas Bailey demonstrates how the phases of the moon affect the movement of deer