By Naeisha Rose
Community District Education Council 29 will present its 14th annual Science and Technology Fair at Renaissance Middle School (IS 192) in St. Albans June 2, with the deadline for pre-K to eighth grade students to apply May 25.
The school is located at 109-89 204th St. and the event will run from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. Doors open at 9:30 a.m.
“District 29’s Annual Science Fair is a standing-room-only event, which features an array of science projects from across the district,” said Superintendent Beverly Mitchell. “In District 29, we promote STEM education and the development of critical and creative thinking skills essential for success in the 21st century.”
From Springfield Gardens to Queens Village, there are 42 schools that are in CDEC 29 and each can send a maximum of three students per grade to exhibit science experiments that were not previously class projects at the fair.
“Participation in the District 29 Science Fair provides our students with opportunities to make real world connections to what they are learning while exploring new areas of study,” said Mitchell.
Students will receive one to four points on the strength of the questions they ask, on their hypothesis, the clarity of the step-by-step procedure they use to solve an inquiry, the results of the data and the conclusion, and the overall presentation of the exhibit, according to the CDEC 29 rubric.
A committee of science educators from schools across CDEC 29 will judge the presentations from 10 a.m. to 11:30 a.m., and from 12 p.m. to 1 p.m. followed by the award ceremony. From 11:30 a.m. to noon there will be a keynote speaker and some of the special guests expected to attend the event are state Sen. Leroy Comrie (D-St. Albans) and state Assemblywoman Alicia Hyndman (D-Springfield Gardens).
During the fair there will also be an interactive robotics display; a photo booth; giveaways; activities from Bricks 4 Kidz, a science program that uses legos to teach technology; and a presentation on augmented reality from a representative of Google. Augmented reality is technology that uses virtual reality and overlays it with real world technology such as graphics, sounds, and touch feedback to enhance a user’s experience in the virtual world, according to Reality Technologies, a company that provides free information on reality technologies.
First, second and third place winners will receive trophies and all participants will receive a ribbon, according to CDEC 29 representative Nakida Camille. First-place winners will also receive free tickets and certificates to attend the Bronx Zoo Wildlife Conservation Park, the Brooklyn Robot Foundry, the DNA Learning Lab of Cold Spring Harbor, a Bricks 4 Kidz summer camp program in Jamaica, and much more.
“We encourage our entire District 29 community to come out and celebrate our budding scientists and to experience the power of STEM education!,” said Mitchell.
Reach reporter Naeisha Rose by e-mail at nrose
