The folks at Discovery Education and 3M reached out to me last month to share some awesome news from their Young Scientist Challenge. If you haven’t heard of this competition before, they’ve given away thousands of dollars in prizes over the past decade to young scientists from across the country. This year there is an amazing group of finalists who have accomplished great things in different science fields.
Young Scientist Challenge
As someone who believes in the power of students creating a shareable product, working in collaboration with one another and exploring topics they are curious to learn more about, this competition definitely caught my attention! This year’s Young Scientist Challenge included finalists from across the country who focused their work on a variety of topics.
Exploring issues like renewable energy, environmental protection, cancer, and more, these students are working to contribute to the discussion on each topic both inside classrooms and within different industries. There is a full list of all ten of the finalists on this page. You can read about each of their stories including Simone. She is a middle school student from Seattle who invented a safety device for children.
All of the finalists worked with 3M scientists as part of this special mentoring program. Sharing their stories with your students might inspire them to think of members of the community, or someone they can connect with virtually, to help them grow in an area they are interested in learning more about.
Science Resources for Teachers
Later this month, you can take students on a Young Scientist Virtual Field Trip. Right now you can access all different types of resources related to this challenge. Just head over to this website to see the Teacher Resources, Student Activities and Parent Ideas. Each section contains resources to help students see themselves as scientists and explore the world around them.
The Teacher Resources includes lesson plans for K-2, 3-5 and 6-8 grade level bands on a variety of science topics. You’ll also find interactives where students can explore topics like wind energy and travel through time. The Student Activities section includes directions for hands-on science experiments as well as profiles of scientists. The science experiments featured in this section include opportunities to interact with everyday objects in a completely new way. This includes sandwich bags, pencils, balloons and table salt.
As you dive into these resources don’t forget to share the stories of the young scientists from this year’s challenge with your students! Head over to Young Scientist Challenge website to learn more.