Science Olympiad Team
Credit: none, but participation can help to level up a science class
Cost: $10 for first quarter materials fee, plus $50 if competing on the team. (Scholarships for team members will be considered upon request.)
The Mt. Sophia High School Science Olympiad team is seeking interested students for the 2019-2020 team! Prior participation in Science Olympiad or particular science classes is not necessary. Our team members must be Mt. Sophia diploma students in grades 9-12. They should be enthusiastic, committed and curious! We will help students find study materials, answer questions as they arise, and guide students through the process. IF YOUR SCHEDULE PREVENTS YOU FROM MEETING DURING OUR CLASS TIME, you are still welcome to join our team, but you must speak with Mrs. Martin.
Science Olympiad is NOT a science fair! Instead, Science Olympiad is a nationally recognized competition in which a team will participate in up to 24 events drawn from all the fields of science. Events range from traditional laboratory events (such as Chem Lab or Forensics), events in which a device is built ahead of time and then tested (such as bottle rockets, mouse-trap vehicle, or rubber-band powered airplanes), to paper-and-pencil “study” events (such as astronomy, anatomy & physiology, or fossils). Each student may participate in as few as one event or as many as five events. Students usually work with a partner but may on occasion work alone. Long before the day of competition, students are assigned to events and practice for their events. A brief description of last year’s events can be found on the national website.
https://www.soinc.org/learn/c-event-short-descriptions
The Delaware Science Olympiad competition is typically held on the first Saturday in March at Delaware State University in Dover. Sixty high schools from all over Delaware compete. Medals are awarded to the top ten finishers in each event. The team which finishes first overall advances to the national competition. Because Science Olympiad is nationally known and respected, Science Olympiad looks really good on your transcript even if you don’t medal in an event!
Not sure if you’re interested in Science Olympiad? Join our club for the first quarter and try it out! Each week in the first quarter we’ll have stations set up with mini-versions of events so that everyone can get a taste of what the events are like. At the end of first quarter, students will fill out applications to be on the team, indicating the events that they’d most like to do. By late October, students will be assigned partners and events. Students are expected to practice with their partners during our “class time” on Thursdays. Students participating in one event must practice at least twice a month, meeting during our Thursday class time. Students participating in more than one event must meet every Thursday. If a student can’t commit to meeting during our class time, the student must be able to commit to regularly meeting with a partner at a different time. (Failure to regularly practice will result in dismissal from the team.) A student does not need to be enrolled in the Diploma program to participate in Science Olympiad. Come join the fun!
