Annual science fair hosts students in Winnipeg for a shot at a Canada-wide event

Students from nearly two dozen schools across a Manitoba school division battled it out this week for a spot at the Canada Wide Science Fair in May.

The annual Frontier School Division’s Science Fair saw students from grades 4 to 12 put up displays of their projects, which ranged from detailing the impact of a hydro project in northern Manitoba to how power can be generated using potatoes and other fruits.

The fair took place at the Manitoba Museum in Winnipeg on Thursday. Winners from the event are chosen to take part in the Canada Wide Science Fair in Ottawa, representing the Frontier School Division. That event is set to take place on May 26.

Reg Klassen, the division’s chief superintendent, said that the fair first began in 2015. The pandemic may put a dent in the event, he said, but it never stopped it from happening — having gone from online versions of the event and then back to in-person once again.

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The annual Frontier School Division Science Fair took place at the Manitoba Museum in Winnipeg, on Feb. 22, 2024. Talha Hashmani / Global News

As for the importance of the event itself, he noted that the projects students bring around apply to the real world.

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“We, in our work, have to solve problems all the time. We have to find solutions, we have to strategize, and we have to explain that. Often, that’s within a parameter of certain limits that we have to work in. A science project has certain parameters and certain expectations,” Klassen said.

“It’s like teaching young people how to do that through curiously and investigation. I think (that) prepares them for all kinds of (possibilities).”

For the superintendent, the choice of hosting the fair in Winnipeg boils down to the ability for students to spend time in the Manitoba Museum. It allows, he noted, for students to get access to science institutions and facilities across the city.

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Two students with the Frontier School Division presented a project on the impact of a hydro project on the community of South Indian Lake, in Winnipeg on Feb. 23, 2024. Talha Hashmani / Global News

For Kylie and Claire, students and project partners, the event allowed them to talk about an issue that was important to them. The project details the impacts of diverting water away from one Manitoban river and a hydro project that they wrote has increased the water levels around the South Indian Lake community.

“I’ve seen so many (other) school projects of stuff I didn’t know about. Seeing all those kids in younger grades studying about (those projects) really inspired me,” Kylie said.

“It’s so amazing. Watching them do all that, getting the opportunity to study about science.”

Stanley, another student, described his project as one that was personal to him. He sought to answer which hydration drink is best for athletes.

“This is just basically for me. Because I wanted to know what the best was, and I like doing a lot of projects,” he said.

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Comparing his experience from last year’s science fair, he said this year his project was competing against so many other good ones.

“This is my fourth or fifth project that I did. (It’s) my third project that I presented here in Winnipeg.”

Click to play video: 'Grade 8 student’s project on planetary defense wins top award at Canada-wide science fair'

Grade 8 student’s project on planetary defense wins top award at Canada-wide science fair

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