Love of science shines at Arlington Heights Olympiad

More than 400 middle school students from around the Chicago area voluntarily spent their entire Saturday at South Middle School in Arlington Heights to compare their knowledge of various aspects of science as well as their proficiency at building many different types of complicated contraptions.

The school's annual Science Olympiad Invitational provided 28 teams an early opportunity to compete in the 23 events they've been preparing for since nearly the start of the school year before the regionals later this winter.

Each team of approximately 15 students shared their strengths and skills in such exercises as building gliders, bridges and Rube Goldberg machines and their knowledge of fossils, anatomy, invasive species and map-reading.

"It teaches them life skills," said volunteer Janet Helminski of Arlington Heights. "It's critical thinking."

Students at South Middle School tried out for the team over a week in September, eighth-grade science teacher Kim Dyer said. For those who qualified, the work will have kept them busy through nearly the entire year before the state finals in Champaign in April.

Helminski said the kids spend hours each week practicing out of their coaches' homes and at the library.

Volunteer coach Dave Cooke's daughter won the state gold medal in the Rube Goldberg competition four years ago and is now on the WildStang team at Rolling Meadows High School. But he continues to coach today's South Middle School students in the Rube Goldberg event.

Students Meghan Paral and Morgan Topps, both 12, accepted the challenge to build a device that starts by dropping a racquetball and involves as many as 18 in-between steps before ringing a bell.

Their final version had the head of a Barbie doll ring the bell with her nose.

Blaire Weinberg, a senior at Buffalo Grove High School and another volunteer for South Middle School, said the Science Olympiad helped sustain her interest in science and led to her decision to pursue a science degree in college after she graduates this year.

"I loved science since third grade!" she said.

Another competition in the gym involved the testing of balsa-wood bridges that should be as light as possible but hold up to 15 kilograms of sand without breaking. Many of the bridges weighed as little as 4 to 9 grams.

Lillian You and Sabrina Xue, both 11, of Daniel Wright Junior High in Lincolnshire were among those who successfully designed a bridge able to hold the full 15 kilos.