‘Slurry Safety’ was this year’s big winner at the Intel Mini Scientist Exhibition at Timahoe NS.
The annual showcase which took place on Thursday 27th of October was another resounding success as the young scientists of Timahoe showcased their experiments, investigations and research.
The event is a huge part of the Timahoe NS Calendar due to the enormous success enjoyed by the school in years gone by.
The school were delighted to welcome parents back to enjoy the science fair in the school hall after Covid restrictions had prevented this in recent years.
This years’ local winners, Darragh O’Connor and Muireann Brown from 5th class, will now go on to represent the school at regional and hopefully All Ireland level.
The project which was about creating safety censored alarms on the perimeter of a slurry pit was a very popular winner.
The standard of science projects on view was incredibly high and reflected the enthusiasm for science that exists within the school.
It was also clearly evident that these children have benefitted from exposure to the exhibition over the past few years as the quality of visual presentation, oral delivery and all-round ingenuity was exceptional.
The projects completed by 3rd, 4th, 5th and 6th classes covered a broad range of topics including agriculture, food science, health and well-being, energy, forces, bacteria, space, technology and engineering.
There were a host of other category prize winners but the prize winners were only part of the story as all the children produced amazing work.
Agriculture was once again prominent with Patrick Bowe, who investigated ‘Sustainable Dairy Farming; Is robotic farming the way forward?’ earning a category award for ‘Agriculture’.
Ryan Conlon also presented an excellent project as he investigated how to prepare yourself to concentrate with ‘Ready, Steady, Concentrate’. He brought home a Behavioural Health award.
‘Damming Evidence – The power of water’ by Seán Farmer and Sarah Jane Weafer was an excellent engineering project that is very relevant with the current power supply crisis. It earned an engineering award.
‘Why we should wash our paws?’ by 4th class students Harry McEvoy and Ryan McEvoy picked up a scientific investigation award.
They completed a clever investigation on the germs found on your hands after handling different animals’.
The environmental science award prize went to ‘Silence is Golden’ by Shane Moran, David Doyle and Richard Miller for their project that investigated what material is best for soundproofing? The judges were very impressed with their scientific approach.
Sport and hurling in particular was prominent this year as ‘Save Our Hurleys’ by Shane Miller, Aidan Miller and Cian McDonald looked at the problem of ash dieback diminishing the supply of Ash.
Ruairí Bowe, Daniel Tynan and Aidan McDonald investigated the correct length of a hurley for optimal skill.
Mark Hanley and Thomas Tynan studied what material is best for making hurleys in their project ‘Bamboo v Ash – What wins the clash?’.
Agriculture, hygiene and food were all catered for at the exhibition.
‘The Battle of fertilizer vs Lime was an interesting study by Niamh Ramsbottom and Grace Kavanagh as they tested ph levels in soil.
‘It’s time to moove on’ by Lucy Scully and Daisy Ramsbottom looked at how to make farming more energy efficient.
Emelia McEvoy, Anna Clancy and Emma McEvoy studied the pros and cons of animal testing in the beauty industry. Their project was titled ‘Beauty or the Beast’ Amazing or abuse?
‘Treating Eczema- natural vs synthetic care’ by Quentin Kelly looked at finding the best solutions to treating the skin problem.
‘Caffeine Calculations’ by Billy Fennell, Adam McDonald and Ciarán Headen investigated the amount of caffeine being consumed by young children.
‘Sourdough System’ by Aoife Ramsbottom researched how flour and water is transformed to make a healthy bread. Lucy Sage and Ellie May O Flaherty presented an interesting investigation into diabetes in ‘Sugarbetics, Diabetes; Don’t sugar coat it!
‘Handwashing and its effects on the food we eat’ by Lilly Bennett, Sarah Keane, Sara Ramsbottom and Zoe Dumbrell was a fantastic project with excellent scientific research.
Meghan Coady examined how storing our food can effect its preservation in her project ‘Mould on the Go’ and Addison O Reilly researched ‘BPA yay or nay’. Grace Daly looked at how much bacteria we are carrying around in her project ;BAG-teria’.
Energy was another theme that was evident at the science fair. Sean Kelly and Adam Maher had lots of traffic at their project ‘More miles for your money’.
Cormac Kelly, Megan Ryan and Mark Delaney investigated solar energy and impressed the judges with their house exhibition.
Creativity was well catered for at the science fair. Sixth class student Jessica Rothwell studied how art effects our emotional state in ‘Art-ific.’
Roisin Hogan O’Donnell investigated if typing or writing was better to get the creative juices flowing and Mia McGrath looked at the art of using pens or pencils for neater writing.
Other interesting projects on the day were ‘Biodiverstiy’ by Emma Burke.
Emma examined biodiversity in patches of mowed lawn and wild grass and the results were intriguing. Jack Bergin, Ruairí Headen and Evan McGuinness tackled the worldwide problem of pollution in their project on recycling ‘Do we recycle enough?.
Tomas Ramsbottom investigated ways of creating energy at home. His project ‘Dynamite’ demonstrated how kinaesthetic energy can power an appliance. Killian Hendy presented an excellent project on ‘Can you make a Balloon Fireproof?
Finally, 3rd class, exhibiting as a whole class in preparation for next year, completed a brilliant project on the Solar System that was visually stunning.
The judges were impressed with the creativity involved in their presentation through music and drama.
Ann Tilson, the Intel judge was left with a major task as she somehow had to pick a winner from what she described as “an astonishingly high standard of competition”.
She praised the children for their projects that were “so polished, so diverse and so interesting”. She noted how the experience would give the children “a great grounding for presenting in secondary school and college”.
She also praised the staff and said that the “care they show for each child is heart-warming” and that “the encouragement in helping with these projects is evidence of this”.
Principal, Michael McEvoy was delighted with the exhibition and described it as his “favourite day of the year!”
He praised the parents’ work and “remarkable support for this wonderful initiative”. He also commended the students for their “enthusiasm, and commitment”.
The event was well attended by parents, grandparents and friends and there was a real sense of pride on show as the confident students presented their projects to the excited onlookers.
All roads now lead to the regional finals later in the year.
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