My Zone

The Dolphin Schools held their annual science fair over a three day period from 5th -7th of June at the Walvis Bay Bowls Club. Around 96 children, ranging from Grade 4 to Grade 9, took part in the event which was planned by Mr Charl Carelse and Mrs Poppie Swanepoel. The students could pick their own topics that truly interested them and present their research in the form of a report, model or investigation.
We spoke to one Mr Charl Carelse and asked him why he thinks a science fair is good for the students. This is what he said: “It allows the kids to learn more about science and to think about science in a way beyond what they are just taught in class.”
Sarita Rossouw (Grade 9), winner of the secondary division, investigated whether more expensive batteries work better and last longer than cheaper batteries. She started working on her project a little over a month in advance so that she had “enough time to try the experiment more than once, so that I could have a more conclusive answer. Just as I suspected, the more expensive batteries lasted longer and worked better than cheaper ones.”
Liam Allen (Grade 6), winner of the elementary section, did his project on the red planet, Mars. Like Sarita, he also started a month in advance on his project. “It was fun, but also stressful working on this project,” he said. He added that he chose to research Mars as he found it extremely interesting.
With so many benefits to the youth and so many children that are interested in science, the science fair is an annual event that is here to stay.