So, part of the parenting “treaty” is getting to do the Science Fair with your littles one day. Well, today (this year) was my first experience with said project, and it was eye-opening. First of all, my son is in fourth grade and it is really not mandatory until fifth grade, but being the overachiever (where does he get that?) and explorative kid he is, he wanted to give it a go.
Considering whether to construct a volcano, test for mold growth on bread or figuring out if you can re-train artificial intelligence, was just the beginning of the journey. Once we figured out what we were going to actually do, we bought all of the different items to conduct the project and then took a look at the journal that is to accompany the project.
Did you know the science fair journal is about 20 pages long? Which is fine, and necessary to adequately report the journey and results, but not when it is “optional” and you wait until the weekend before.
So, we did NOT participate this year, but we DID learn a very valuable lesson. The Science Fair is awesome and we will do it next year when it is required, BUT we will begin in the summertime. This way, we can be sure to have it completed, but also give it the time it deserves because it is a great way to teach kids how interesting science is and have them get excited about it!
