4 Jefferson Junior High students earn high marks at Texas State Science Fair
JEFFERSON, Texas (KLTV) - Students have time to choose their careers, but some become accomplished scientists at a young age.
Jefferson Junior High School says they have never had three science fair projects advance to state in the same year. Four ambitious students now made the school’s history.
“I love seeing them succeed and then just showing them that hey, you are an amazing person, and you have all these amazing capabilities you don’t even know you have yet,” replied Heather Banks, a Jefferson Junior High eighth grade science teacher.
“Home Sweet Home’ tested animal science over a 30-day period, determining the type of shells hermit crabs prefer.
“A lot of times what people think of the science fair, they don’t think of hermit crabs. They think of like little explosives or volcanoes,” commented Cooper Cohn, an eighth grade Jefferson Junior High student and creator of ‘Home Sweet Home’.
Two sixth graders designed ‘The Algae-nator’, a robot that removes algae from lakes and ponds.
“Some people don’t have a market to go to everyday, so they have to rely on the ponds and lakes all around them. So, we wanted to make something that could efficiently clean their lakes and ponds so they can’t get sick or the fish couldn’t get sick,” explained Brycen Whatley, a sixth grade Jefferson Junior High student and co-inventor of the ‘Algae-nator’.
The ‘Do You Trust a Truss?’ project related to the structural integrity of bridges, inspired by the actual Jefferson Howe Truss Bridge.
“This just has so many opportunities, especially like we were learning about state. You can get scholarships for college. You can get a lot of money. You can get awards and prizes,” stated Cohn.
Well, they did.
‘The Algae-nator’ and ‘Home Sweet Home’ received specialty awards for innovation in science.
“The most important thing that I try to teach my kids is the only limiting factor in your life is you,” said Banks. “The only thing stopping you from achieving what you want is your mindset.”
“We didn’t even know we were going to make it to regionals,” replied Whatley, “but since we just see all that’s on our table right now, it’s just a big thing for us, and it’s just so exciting to see that we made it this far.”
Whatley and Joe Allen, the other co-founder of the Algae-nator’, are invited to be guest speakers at College Station in the fall.
‘Home Sweet Home’ has the chance for an all-expense-paid trip to compete in Washington, D.C.
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