Young scientists compete on St. John's campus

By Kelly Foss | May 3, 2011

More than one hundred Grade 6, 7 and 8 students from across the Avalon Peninsula participated in a day-long science enrichment competition at Memorial University on May 3. The All Science Challenge saw students from 11 St. John’s-area schools take part in a fun-filled day of competition and camaraderie that’s part of the nationwide Let’s Talk Science Outreach program to inspire the next generation.

Following the opening ceremonies, teams participated in two rounds of questions with professors, staff and university students serving as judges. Students tested their knowledge in a range of disciplines, such as earth sciences, engineering, biology, chemistry and physics.

In the afternoon, teams competed in a hands-on design activity, where they were challenged to build an object with the materials supplied to them. For example, during a past All Science Challenge, students were tasked with building a bridge capable of holding a bottle full of water using only plastic cups, post-it notes and duct tape. The top three teams then faced off in a final elimination round with the last team standing becoming the All Science Challenge Champion. 

The All Science Challenge was developed in 2004 by Let's Talk Science Outreach volunteers at McMaster University in Hamilton, Ont., and will be held at 19 universities across Canada this year. Shaw Cablesystems, 3M, Honda Canada Foundation and Canada Foundation for Innovation (CFI) are generous sponsors of this year’s competition at Memorial University.

Let’s Talk Science is an award-winning, national, charitable, science outreach organization. It delivers science learning programs and services that turn kids on to science, keep them engaged in learning and develop their potential to become 21st century stewards, innovators and citizens. Through Let’s Talk Science Outreach, more than 2,600 enthusiastic post-secondary student volunteers are engaged at 33 universities and colleges across Canada to turn more than 120,000 kids on to science, engineering and technology each year. For more information about Let's Talk Science, please visit www.letstalkscience.ca.  

 


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