Students share knowledge at St. Patrick's Academic Fair
Students at St. Patrick Catholic School in Wadsworth had a chance to view the bright minds of their oldest peers in action Thursday as eighth-graders held their annual Academic Fair in the school's gymnasium.
Eighth-grade students spent the past four months researching a topic of their choice, then wrote an essay, gave an oral presentation and prepared a visual display highlighting all they learned.
Topics included windmills, concussions, the Kennedy assassination, PlayStation and Chick-fil-A, to name a few.
Eighth-grader Hannah Collin had kids put their hands in a bowl of ice to explain how cold can slow down the heartbeat for people suffering from a heart problem called Supraventricular tachycardia.
The fair is run by language arts teachers Becki Mickczyski and Nick Huffman, and was the brainchild of former teacher Adelle Green, who started the event 12 years ago.
"We guide them to make it more academic-related. We want to make sure they are pushing themselves to research something outside of their comfort level," Mickczyski said.
The teachers also encourage students to research topics that they might want to choose as a career.
"The kids that have been here since preschool have seen this every year. It's a big community event that they're looking forward to," Mickczyski said.
The projects were judged Thursday morning by alumni and community members, and an awards ceremony followed Thursday evening to honor top projects.