On the 14th March 2015, 18 students from Riverside Junior High travelled to Vienna for the Vienna International Science and Engineering Fair. The students had worked tirelessly for 3 months, attending Science Club, working through lunch breaks and giving up their Saturdays to end with a final product they should all be very proud of.
Each group/individual worked on designing, carrying out and evaluating a scientific investigation. The skills students gained were abundant, including not only scientific, communication and presentation skills but the vital life skills of laminating and screwing together poster boards! The topics covered a wide range of fascinating subjects including plants, bacteria, electricity, psychology, light and mining.
Our visit to Vienna began with a fantastic trip to the United Nations. Students enjoyed learning about nuclear material and the work of different departments across the UN. They were very excited to be in the same room as Uranium; a rare opportunity! After a lovely dinner together, students spent the last few hours of the day reviewing their reports and practicing their presentations- they’re dedication and hard work was inspiring.
The day students had been preparing themselves for finally arrived, the Vienna International School was buzzing with over 75 enthusiastic young scientists from across 11 different schools. With the poster boards all set up and looking amazing, the students nervously awaited the arrival of the judges. The groups faced on average 5 judges each, explaining their projects to leading Scientists from around Europe. All the students represented the school in an impeccable manner; they were confident, polite, worked well as a team, and demonstrated fantastic scientific knowledge.
The judges awarded ribbons of either Gold, Silver, or Bronze to each group and we were thrilled with the results. Of the six Gold ribbons awarded in the Junior Division, three were awarded to groups from Riverside: Paulina and Nooralhuda (Year 8), Viviana, Catalina and Audrey (Year 7), and Matthew and George (Year 9). There were also five Silver ribbons awarded to: Lucy and Marie (Year 7), Zuzanna (Year 8), Vilmos, Dennis and Joseph (Year 8), Zsombor, Aapo, Nicholas (Year 8) and Caleb (Year 8). A Bronze ribbon was awarded to Edward (Year 9). The students thoroughly earned their success and were a credit to the school.
The prizes didn’t stop there, with an additional prize giving just a few days later. The quick journey to the Science Fair Banquet was a worthwhile trip, collecting a number of outstanding awards:
Best in Category (Computer Science and Environmental) – Paulina and Noor – “What Effect do Different Detergents have on Oil?”
Best in Category (Health and Life Sciences) – Matthew and George – “Can Money Spread Disease?”
Women in Nuclear Award (for top female project) – Paulina and Noor
Overall Junior Division Winner – Matthew and George
A fantastic achievement for all students involved! Come and visit the students projects in the entrance to the Junior High School.
Riverside graduates have been accepted to some of the most prestigious universities around the world.
