Jake Mueller wanted to find out if cold water holds more oxygen than warm or hot water and how minnows utilized oxygen in cold water versus water at room temperature.
His postulate that bait will do better in cold water was correct.
“I’m a big ice fisherman and fisherman in the summer,” the sixth grader explained. “I noticed that in summer, the minnows are always gulping at the air, and in the winter they’re not.”
In a project she dubbed “Oh Cerealously, we’re eating iron?” fifth grader Addison Sandhurst (above) extracted iron from six different breakfast cereals and determined which contained the most.
“It wasn’t the healthy cereal brand I thought.”
Sandhurst and Mueller were among the fifth and sixth graders who proudly presented their scientific research exhibits to an audience of judges and peers at the school’s annual science fair, which was held in the commons on Friday.
The students started their projects in earnest way back in September, during the very first week of school, said fifth-grade teacher Jeff Skinner.
“The kids worked on choosing a topic in a science area. From that topic they designed an experiment. They worked on procedure steps, materials and variables, which led them to doing their experiments at home starting in December and culminating in today.”
Experiments ranged from determining what brand of consumer product functioned the best to how variables affect plant growth…from what food animals prefer and how pets behave under certain stimuli to how size and weight influence the speed a ball can be thrown.
“The big thing is scientific method, all the different steps of science,” Skinner said. “They also learn the measurements in their experiment and determine what they've learned, what mistakes they've made and if they did it again, what they would do differently.”
But the project also goes beyond science, Skinner said, as students learn how to keep records and present their experiments both verbally and with information displayed on a poster board.
“Presenting, sharing what they learned, is a big part.”
Every student’s project was judged three times, first by their classroom teacher and then by two other adults. A couple dozen students advanced to a regional fair that will be held at Minnesota State University, Mankato.
Fifth graders moving on to the regional fair are Sandhurst, Hazel O'Keefe, Tyler Smith, Hadley Thompson, Jocelyn Clark, Evan Hoffman, Tom Groebner, Anistyn Dauk, Jon Cink and McKenzie Kortuem.
Sixth graders advancing are Mueller, Mattea Grandaw, Luke Kortuem, Clara Hilfer, Brooke Bosse, Kaelyn Blaschko, Jeremy Miller, Blake Stocker, Charlotte Meyer, Pierce Lyons, Jack Mons, Reece Nelson and Maliah Elias.
Judges included fifth and sixth-grade teachers Skinner, Katie Wolf, Brady Hahn and Bree Meyer; fifth and sixth-grade student teachers Paula Nagengast and Emily Taylor; other teachers Lupita Marchan, Emily Manser, Cassidy Block, Alissa Gibbs , Sidney Johnson, Kayla Grotzkruetz, Lacee Johnson, Joel Boehlke, Charlie Haugen, Kyle Atherton, Abby Pinke and Brooke Vogel; staff Kally Remiger, Megan Peterson, Shanna Roloff, Allison Stoffel and Katie Hoffman; Skinner’s spouse Tami Skinner; and Andrea O’Keefe, a parent of a fifth grader.
High school and elementary students were able to tour the fair, and parents visited as well.
Skinner said the school has been holding a science fair each spring for over 35 years.
In a project he named “Got Oxygen?” sixth grader Jake Mueller studied how the temperature affects the amount of oxygen that water will hold, with and without minnows in the water.
Sixth grader Ethan Lloyd had a clever title for his project: “Melting Hearts.” He discovered what liquid was quickest to dissolve Valentine’s Day “conversation hearts.”
Natalie Flowers studied plant watering, Anistyn Dauk determined which is the best paper towel, and Emily Baker compared cheap versus expensive shampoos. They are fifth graders.
Fifth grader Gretchen Heldberg studied how caffeine affects plant growth.
Fifth grader Brennon Holicky experimented with the effects of various liquids on plant growth.
Fifth grader Bray Lassiter determined what food is the choice of squirrels, and classmate Parker Holicky wanted to see how the color of a feeding bowl will affect how much a cat would eat.
Sixth grader Clara Hilfer studied methods to preserve fruit while her classmate Max Frier wanted to find out if speaking to plants in different ways affects their health.
Fifth grader Tom Groebner experimented with how bright lights influenced plant growth.
Fifth grader Charlotte Starke studied how rocks are polished.
Fifth grader Tyler Smith experimented with fishing line.
Sixth graders Gauge Bock, Amelia Baker and Allie Anderson.
Sixth grader Joanna Jordan experimented how effective cleansers were on killing germs on hands while her classmate Alex Johns studied how different types of music affected bunny behavior.
Sixth grader Paisley Jannsen experimented with freezing liquids while her classmate Avery Hunter studied in which color of text is information remembered the best.
Emily Taylor, a student teacher in Jeff Skinner’s fifth-grade class, judges fifth grader Jack Bonorden’s project, “How different paper towels hold up.”
Teacher Lacee Johnson judges Jon Cink’s project, the “Velocity of Different Balls.”
Sixth graders Austin Tarkey, Nolan Schlaak and Graham Reinhardt.
In a project she called “Fear Factor," fifth grader Hadley Thompson studied how different things people are afraid of affect their heart rates.
Fifth grader Carson Jindra discovered which microwave popcorn pops the best.
Using a Secchi disk to gauge how far down in the water he could see, sixth grader Blake Stocker compared the visible depth of aerated lakes vs lakes that don’t get aerated.
Sixth grader Urijah Hoheisel connected potatoes in series to make a battery that would light up an LED.
Paula Nagengast, a student teacher in Bree Meyer’s sixth-grade class, reviews Ethan Lloyd’s project.
As strawberries aren’t getting any cheaper, fifth grader Kylie Wobbrock wanted to find out what storage method will keep them fresh the longest.
Fifth grader Evan Hoffman studied a couple of methods for solving a Rubik’s cube.
“I’m Melting!” Sixth grader Harper Rutz wanted to find out what ingredient thawed ice the fastest.
Sixth grader Charlotte Meyer determined the best way to store salad.
Fifth grader Steven Giebel determined which seed mix birds liked the best.