Science Fair & Trip to Fairbanks

So this is a little late but near the end of March I was able to take 3 students to Bethel for science fair. I took two 6th graders and a 4th grader. They did so well and loved every minute of it, as did I. We went swimming twice and launched rockets and did many other activities. Here is a pic of them with their rockets.

They also worked really hard on their presentations and it paid off. The 4th grader in the back got 1st place in elementary. The 2 in the front got 2nd and 3rd place for middle school.

Directly following science fair I went to Grant and watched them board a plane with another chaperone. I was staying in Bethel a little longer so I could catch the night flight to Anchorage and then continue on to Fairbanks for training for a program. The PREPARES program has been great for my 7th grade students. We have been learning about how climate change is impacting their villages. We are partnered with a Hawaiian school. At the conference we got to meet with our partners and experience sites that our students might get to experience next year. We first went to the Open North American sled dog race. During this event there as also a parka parade and fur auction. 

Another really cool thing to see was the ice sculpture competition. So many great sculptures but since I am a science teacher I will leave you with this one.

One of my favorite places was Chena Hot Springs. We had plenty of time to soak. It was super hot. I only lasted like 10 minutes. This might be a too much info but it was really weird using the toilets. Some of them had water from the springs. When you sat down you could feel the heat. It was a really bizarre experience. 

I also got to see a bear and reindeer!! The bear was at the culture museum. So not a live one. But the reindeer are real. We went to a scientists personal reindeer farm. We got to feed and pet them. However they were terrified of us. The scientist studies permafrost. His experiment is so easy but so cool. All he does is drill down about 5 feet and put a pvc pipe in. Then he takes plastic tubing, seals one end and fill it with water and some dye. He places the tubing into the pvc pipe and lets it sit. You can then pull it out and see which layers are frozen. I want to have my students do it.

Last, I have to share a picture of us leaving. Being a bush teacher we always have totes. We were each given a tote with supplies for next year. It filled the van and we were piled in the back.

This was such a GREAT trip!! I can't wait to bring students next year!!