What a whiz-bang month it has been! Beginning Nov. 2, fourth graders J Rojas, A Townsend and A Ruggiere sent off their Sci-Fi short film Two Friend, True Friends, based on the Sci-Fi short story of the same name written by Aaron. The three would need to wait until Nov. 19 to find their fate. Aaron took first place with his short story! The threesome also took first place with their Short film! All parents were on hand as the boys accepted their trophies. We had a great evening.
November 3rd and 5th were where the forensics team gathered their insights and competed. Our team consisted of S Holland (4th), A Cotten (4th), A Howard (3rd) and I Serraon (3rd). The girls graciously allowed others to gather information in the crowded room before tackling the task at hand. Though our team did not place, they worked together and collaborated to come to a conclusion of "who done it". They represented our school very well.
November 9th saw the return of H Sherman (5th grade), who joined T Koket (3rd) in the Harry Potter Trivia Competition. With the addition of the seventh book, the competition became even more difficult. Our district was well represented.
November 10th was jam-packed with activity. Third graders L Nykoruk and L Chapman teamed up to enter the egg car challenge. The two worked very hard on their design only to fall short of placing in the event. The girls had a blast and learned a lot from the experience.
In Trash to Treasure, third graders R Pacenza and T Koket paired up with two boys from another district and took 2nd place with their creation. I was very proud of how well the two worked with complete strangers.
Next, was the egg package slide where the children had to build a cage to house an egg so that when it slide down a 100 foot zip line, the egg would survive a crash into a brick wall! Third graders S Pruitt, A Rodionova, M Jeter, L Chapman, L Nykoruk, D Buchanan and J Dickey along with fourth graders D Villars, and M Longenberger were all successful in protesting their egg, so it came down to weight. The vehicles who had the least mass would win. J Dickey placed third. A Rodionova and S Pruitt tied with D Villars for 1st place!
The car joust was up next. 1st grader B Holland and his third grade brother A Holland both built cars. A advanced to the second round after edging out his brother’s car. Fourth graders A Townsend and N Stockmen both took cars into the second round. N continued on to the final round and took third place! Way to go!
The last event of the day was Amazing cut outs. M Hite created an amazing scene of a Christmas tree, complete with decorations and trimming…and of course a LOT of presents! Her efforts earned her second place. Well done!
November 15 our activities were cancelled due to the wreck on the highway. However, A Rodionova had created a wonderful insect project that she will share with her class. Sometimes life gets in the way of our plans. She was quite the trooper when she heard the news.
November 16 was the Make a New product contest, where fourth grader A Adams and third grade team of I Serraon and A Howard presented their creations to the judges. Adams made star mints and the team of Serraon and Howard created a fried spaghetti sandwich. I have no idea how the judges made up their minds!
The numbers competition was also that evening, seeing the return of brother and sister, B (8th) and H Sherman (5th). Even though they were in different grade groups, I think they both took the same test! They represented our district very well. Good effort!
November 17 was the Eiffel Tower competition with E Reyna returning with a brand new model. This year she placed 3rd. Well Done!
The paper tower competition saw teammates of D Buchanan, J Dickey and M Jeter trying to create the tallest structure they could out of a very small amount of paper and tape. At the last second, our team’s tower fell to the ground. It was a great effort.
The last event for us that day was the Texas Card Stacking event with C-K McQuinn as our only entrant. She steadily built and rebuilt for the entire time and left the table with a structure of about 17 cm tall. Unfortunately she had to leave prior to awards being handed out. McQuinn Won the event! Congratulations!
November 18th was started with a bang. Elementary catapult and Adventures in Duct Tape were the first events of the day. R Pacenza built a wonderful catapult that heaved a Hershey’s kiss to a target 3 meters away. He got really close, but three others got closer. Fabulous job Pacenza!
Adventures in duct tape saw three teams from Shady Shores. In fourth grade there were two teams A Holland, A Townsend, N Stockman and M Longenberger, who placed third out of hundreds of children! Congratulations! The other 4th grade team consisted of A Adams, A Cotton, E Reyna and M Hite. In third grade, the team consisted of M Jeter, I Serraon, A Howard and C K McQuinn. The third grade team hung for a little while, but not long enough to place. Great effort gang!
The last event for us that day was the magic marble run. Team members of S Holland and M Longenberger had very successful practice runs, however when the judges were there, the marble didn’t perform. A lot of hard work went into creating this project. Good job girls.
I am so very proud of every student that was able to partake in Winston Science this year. I look forward to next year and the controlled chaos called Winston Science.
