Science fair to focus on outdoors

"Outdoor Science" is the theme for this year's Sisters Science Fair to be held at Sisters High School March 17 from noon until 4 p.m. Community involvement is the key, organizers say.

A Chinese proverb says, "Tell me and I forget. Show me and I remember. Involve me and I understand." The goal of the Sisters Science Fair is to involve everyone in the area from grandparents, parents, children, and teachers to business owners.

Learning about and taking care of our outdoor native species is a priority for many of us in this area. Jim Anderson will return with one of his popular hawks to marvel our respect for these beautiful birds. Elise Wolf rehabilitates injured birds through her Native Bird Care here in Sisters.

"I have been fascinated by wild birds my whole life. The current stresses on our wild bird populations is extraordinary, and helping them is not only an act of kindness and compassion, but demonstrates that humans do have the ability to be selfless and act with love towards their non-human planetary family," Wolfe says on her website

http://www.nativebirdcare.org.

Jeff Perin, owner of The Fly Fisher's Place in Sisters, and Glen Herron, Environmental Science IEE teacher at Sisters High School, will both bring exhibits concerning the lifecycle of our native fish and a bit about fly-fishing, a popular pastime here in our area.

What about other native species? Bob and Val Collins will present "Backyard Science - What Do Our Trees Tell Us?"

"Science is simply a way of asking questions about the world," said Bob Collins, president of Sisters Science Club. "Once a year at the Science Fair it is fun to see how we're all doing with our questions, and whether there might be some tentative answers for further testing."

Keeping with the Outdoor Science theme, the SciArt Contest challenges students to use their imaginations and "find the art in science." Oregon is a wonder of outdoor beauty and intricacy that only needs to be highlighted by a painting or photograph to bring it to the forefront of our visions. Students grades 6-12 will submit a photo of their artwork online to the Sisters Science Club at http://www.sisters

scienceclub.org. Elementary students can submit photos or drawings of their own creation to their teachers. All submissions must be in by March 7.

Once again, the Design, Construct and Compete (DCC) Contest will take over the high school gym and this year they'll be racing Balloon Cars. Competition will be judged on time and distance and it promises to be an extra-fun event. Cash prizes will be given to the winners, so don't miss out on this challenge.

To find out more about the Sisters Science Fair visit the Sisters Science Club website at sistersscienceclub.org. To volunteer to help at the Sisters Science Fair, email Barbara Bott at [email protected]