Official Science Fair

Amiya's teacher this year has been very strong in science - something that Vinay appreciates. The concepts that are being taught are not always concrete, but the students seem to have a good grasp of the abstract - not always easy with mixed ability levels, elementary school science supplies and an educational climate that focuses on testing the Rs instead of a broad-scope curriculum. So, in a nutshell, yeah for science and yeah for Amiya's teacher this year.

Amiya's class and her neighboring class conducted an experiment this year to determine which shape aluminum foil boat would hold the most weights - diamond, rectangle or triangle. The students went through the scientific method and then presented their results with text, graphs and graphics.

The work was strong enough to earn a spot in the regional science fair. So, off the Guptas went one Thursday evening to the Sun Dome at USF to check it out.

Here, our budding scientist in front of the class' display:


We had many conversations as we were walking around - Vinay's conversations with Amiya focused on the science used, the questions posed, the ideas probed. My conversations with Amiya focused on the presentations - this one has too many colors, this one is messy, this one is lined up nicely, this one is typed. Of the two topics, Amiya will struggle far more with presentation than she will with science. And since doing well at this event seems to mean a lot to Amiya, she's going to have to think about that.

Because her class did well enough to make it to regionals, they were all invited to the awards ceremony that evening. As a group, they went up on stage to get their class ribbon.

Somehow, Amiya led the charge and got to hold the ribbon while walking across the stage. I hop she didn't elbow her way in there - it's awfully hard to curb your enthusiasm when getting a big fancy ribbon.

So the science bug has bitten my chicky. And my little rooster, too. More on that tomorrow.