Today, dozens of students gathered in Clear Creek School’s gymnasium to share bubbling volcanoes, growing crystals, solar ovens and more during the first science fair at the school in recent memory.
Complete with community judges, donated prizes and countless volunteer hours, the science fair held at the small rural school on McCourtney Road came together thanks to one parent’s fond memories and a persistent idea.
“We are thrilled to bring an old-fashioned science fair to our school. As a school community we have come together to ignite a fun learning opportunity for the students that is nostalgic for most of us,” said parent organizer Kait Schauffler.
Schauffler thought it would be fun to recreate her own childhood experience for her two daughters in kindergarten and third grade.
“I don’t remember a lot about elementary school but I do remember seeing white flowers soaking up colors at the science fair… I didn’t know it then but I was already learning biology. Those kinds of experiences were extremely foundational for my love of science,” said Schauffler who is now a nurse and says an early exposure to science helped open doors for her.
Last summer, Schauffler couldn’t get the idea of a science fair out of her head. So, she reached out to Principal Duane Triplett and the Parent Teacher Club, who all fully endorsed the idea.
When 113 students registered for the science fair out of 167 total students at the school, Schauffler and Principal Triplett knew they were onto something.
“That number is really impressive. Kait’s done a tremendous job. It’s exciting to see the enthusiasm in our school community. It’s been a really, really long time since we’ve had a science fair here,” said Principal Triplett who has been at the school for two years.
Triplett says having a parent involved in the planning and organizing, helps take a load off of teachers who already have a lot going on. Now the school is looking into making it an annual or biannual event with more parent volunteer involvement. For now, Schauffler has enlisted her friends, family, neighbors and colleagues to fill in.
Schauffler got to work creating instructions for projects, registration forms, scheduling important dates and giving presentations with her sister and children to each class to gain interest. She also reached out to the community to raise money and collect donated supplies.
Nevada County Superintendent of Schools Office became a sponsor for the event and helped purchase supplies with California Mathematics Science & Computer Science Professional Learning Partnership (CAL-MSCS) funds dedicated to promoting science, math, computer science, professional learning and family engagement for students in grades fourth through twelfth.
Support for the science fair came from many local community sponsors including: Northern Sierra Forestry Services LLC., C and D Contractors Inc., Bright Electric LLC., Finn’s Coffee, B and C, Grocery Outlet and Hansen Brothers.
Besides the individual student science projects at Clear Creek’s science fair, there were be a number of learning booths such as an engineering “Build It Booth,” a “Bath Bomb Booth” with a step-by-step guide for DIY bath bombs and a “Photo Booth”.
“I feel these types of events are so beneficial for our children. They get to explore investigative science – seeing a topic through from beginning to end and analyzing the ‘why’ and ‘what-if’ of how things work. The overall goal is that they will have a memorable experience through science activities,” said Schauffler.
In her own home, she has observed her daughters now looking at science in a whole new light. Her third grade daughter will be entering a “brain study” for the science fair.
Designed to empower students, the science fair also encourages friendly competition. A panel of 10 community judges give out first, second and third place awards for each grade level. Students can enter different categories such as “experiment,” “robotics” and “inventions” and are scored on completeness, understanding, creativity and overall effort. A voting booth allows all participants to vote for their favorite project to win the people’s choice award. The school will celebrate winners at a school assembly on Friday and we will bring you the results.
Having parent involvement to create this extracurricular activity provided teachers with an opportunity to enhance classroom learning. Some teachers even rolled the science fair into their curriculum.
Kindergarten teacher Andrea Hansen is a supporter of the pilot project. She helped pitch in on weekends and create flyers for the event. She says the science fair provides students an opportunity to grow academically and personally.
“It sparks a love for science and helps students practice critical thinking and problem-solving skills. It’s a great way to build confidence and the hands-on learning allows them to explore topics that interest them. Presenting their project to judges also adds a communication aspect,” said Hansen.
Along the way, Schauffler offered assistance after school for students who needed extra help. Others teamed up with classmates or worked on their science projects at home with family. She is thrilled by the level of interest and participation in the inaugural year of the event and hopes to inspire other schools to start science fairs.
“A lot of these kids have never done a science experiment. We don’t want it to be an intimidating process, instead we want science to be fun,” said Schauffler.
She already has plans for the next Science Fair, “I haven’t checked with Principal Triplett about the outcome, but I think this went really well. All I need is a little bit of funding and more volunteers for next time.” If you’re interested or know a parent who might like to help, contact Kait Schauffler at schauffler4science@gmail.com or you can Venmo (@Clear-Creek) a contribution for prizes to the PTC.
Later this month, look for the county-wide event, STEAM Expo 2025 on March 25.