- April 5, 2025
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Wadsworth Elementary School fifth grader Leilany Guzman assists Wadsworth teacher Allison Cencebaugh at the Guy Harvey Foundation table. Cencebaugh shows a student a lionfish, an invasive species in the Atlantic and Caribbean. Photo by Brent Woronoff
Old Kings Elementary School science teacher Jessica Stone at the solar system activity table. Photo by Brent Woronoff
Science Fair winner Miles Foster with his parents Erin Hanley and Joey Foster. Miles' project was, "Can I power a small Lego house with a green energy source?" Photo by Brent Woronoff
Middle Schooler Adam Fenty-Graifer was the host of Old Kings Elementary School's "Are You Smarter than a Fifth Grade Scientist" game show. Flagler Schools courtesy photo by Kerri Henderson
Judging the Fifth Grade Science Fair. Flagler Schools courtesy photo by Kerri Henderson
Matanzas High Fishing Club's Taylur Camic and Shawn Swartz with Shad the live lobster. Photo by Brent Woronoff
The Fifth Grade Science Fair winners Miles Foster (first place), Kayla Joy (second place) and Sofia Roberto (third place), all of Old King Elementary School, with Science Teach and Learning Specialist Heidi Alves and Director of Teaching and Learning Jeff Reaves. Flagler Schools courtesy photo by Kerri Henderson
Mary Perret and her son Paul sift through rocks and minerals at the Diamond Del Rock Mining activity table. Photo by Brent Woronoff
Belle Terre Elementary School student Zaida Cutrer makes ice cream by shaking the double bags of ice cream mix and ice with rock salt. Photo by Brent Woronoff
Seventh grader Adam Fenty-Graifer was the MC for the Are You Smarter Than a Fifth Grade Scientist game show for the third year in a row. Photo by Brent Woronoff
Matanzas High Fishing Club members Randall Coffelt, Charlotte Sinfield, teacher/sponsor Richard Kurth, Taylur Camic and Shawn Swartz assisted with the Flagler Sportfishing Club's activity table. Photo by Brent Woronoff
Old Kings Elementary School science teacher Jessica Stone holds up boards identifying the inner and outer planets of the solar system. Photo by Brent Woronoff
At the Micro Marvels: Exploring the Unseen World activity table, students got to see a goldfish, tiny bat, frog lifecycles and microorganisms in pond water through a microscope. Photo by Brent Woronoff
Aubriana Ash of Bunnell Elementary school tries to build a shelter in the sand that will stand up to a strong wind at the Weathering and Erosion activity table. Photo by Brent Woronoff
Old Kings Elementary School fifth grader Miles Foster said he and his parents brain-stormed about what to do for his science project.
His project, "Can I power a small Lego house with a green energy source?" was the first-place winner at Flagler Schools' Fifth Grade Science Fair on April 1 at the Buddy Taylor Middle School/Wadsworth Elementary School cafeterias.
Foster used a wind turbine to power LED lights in a Lego house.
"I wanted to learn about green energy and how it works," he said. "I thought a lot of people would do the same project."
The second- and third-place winners were also from Old Kings Elementary. Kayla Joy placed second. Her project was, "Does the store affect the cleanliness of the cart?" Sofia Roberto placed third with her project, "What percent of alcohol in hand sanitizer is most successful at killing bacteria?"
Every fifth grader in the county was required to do a science project. The top 10 at each of the five elementary schools competed for the top three prizes at the Science Fair and Expo.
Seventeen activity tables gave students a hands-on science experience at the Expo. Several of the tables were sponsored by foundations and nonprofits. Each table was based on third-, fourth- or fifth-grade science standards that appear on the fifth-graders' science assessments.
At the activity tables, children got the chance to make ice cream in a bag, learn about invasive marine species, learn about artificial reefs and hold a lobster, identify rocks and minerals and characteristics of the inner and outer planets, build a structure in the sand that can withstand wind erosion and view microorganisms in pond water through a microscope among several other activities.
They could also compete with their parents in the gameshow, "Are You Smarter than a Fifth Grade Scientist?" And there were several sessions in the Starlab portable learning dome.
The foundations that provided activity tables included Marineland, hand2mind, the Flagler County Education Foundation, Diamond Del's Gem Mining Adventure, the Everglades Foundation, Flagler Sportfishing Club's kids4reel, the Guy Harvey Foundation and Pender Learning.
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