Dear
Mitchell Families
Head Coach Responsibilities:
The Head Coach serves as the contact person for WESO. All official correspondence and updates will be emailed to the Head Coach or made available on the WESO web site. Head Coaches will be responsible for distributing information to the school’s respective event coaches, parents, and students. Schools may also designate one Co-head Coach. The Head Coach will also be required to be at the event the entire day of May 14th to run the event raffle.
Event Coaches will need
We are in the beginning stages of creating our Science Olympiad
Team. The Washtenaw Elementary Science Olympiad (WESO) is scheduled for May 14th. Children in
2nd through 5th grades can compete. This is a wonderful
opportunity for our students to learn more about science, team work and HAVE
FUN in the process.
Mitchell MUST have a Head Coach (team
organizer) per WESO, for our
school or we will NOT be able to participate in Science Olympiad this year.
See below for Head Coach Responsibilities. Last year, Science
Olympiad hosted EVERY Ann Arbor Public School as well as many charters and all
the other Washtenaw County District Public Schools. More information
about WESO can be found at https://sites.google.com/a/aaps.k12.mi.us/weso-wizards/
If you are interested in
Head Coaching or Co-Head Coaching our team, please email Stacie Jackson at stacie@mikancorp.com ASAP.
School Registration for the events is due by December 1st. Again, if we don’t have a Head Coach by that date,
we will not be able to participate.
If you’d like to learn more about the Science
Olympiad, please come to the PTO meeting on November 17th at 6pm in
the Media Center where we’ll be discussing the event.
Registration forms, as well as event descriptions, will be
coming home this month. Practices
will be after school starting in January and go until May. (These after school
schedules are created by the volunteer coaches; who will work with their group
of students to create an afterschool practice schedule that works for members
of that group.)
Science Olympiad event practices will
require adult Coaches to teach our students various aspects of
their events. WESO does provide training sessions in January for parents
to attend. Coaches DO NOT need to be experts. Volunteering as a coach or at the event is required of all families
with participating students.
The Head Coach serves as the contact person for WESO. All official correspondence and updates will be emailed to the Head Coach or made available on the WESO web site. Head Coaches will be responsible for distributing information to the school’s respective event coaches, parents, and students. Schools may also designate one Co-head Coach. The Head Coach will also be required to be at the event the entire day of May 14th to run the event raffle.
WESO Event Coaches Needed for Science Olympiad (Event Descriptions below)
This is a large, volunteer driven, countywide event on May 14th
Science
Olympiad is only open to 2nd – 5th graders but parents of
younger children can and are encouraged to coach.
- To attend a training
session (date to be determined) hosted by WESO
- Do NOT need to be an
expert in the field
- Can work with another
volunteer to Co-Coach events
- May be coaching one
event for multiple grades
- To pass a background
check
- Meet with students to
practice for 1 hour weekly
- Tentatively -
Mid January – 1st week of May
- No practices
weeks of school breaks
2016 Science
Olympiad (WESO) Event Descriptions
Science
Olympiad 2nd Grade Events
Barge Building: Participants will construct a barge using the given
material that can support a cargo of the largest number of weighted objects
(e.g. pennies) without getting them wet.
Disease Detectives: Students will be tested on various
aspects of public health problems, including disease, risk, spread and
prevention.
Estimania: Measurement is a key component in science. Teams will be asked
to either estimate or calculate answers to ten questions of measurement. Types
of measurement include area, time, speed, height, length, weight, volume,
temperature, and others.
Feathered Friends: Participants
will be tested on their bird identification skills. Bird songs, field markings,
natural habitat, adaptations and other characteristics will be included as part
of this hands-on, multimedia Olympiad event.
In Bloom: Students
will be tested on their knowledge of plants, including grasses, flowers, and
trees.
Map Reading:
Students will test their map reading skills to answer geographical questions.
They will answer questions using various kinds of maps.
Mystery Architecture: Each team will be given a bag of materials (such as
paper, tape, styrofoam, and paper clips) to build a structure that can support
a tennis ball. The tallest structure wins.
On Target:
Each team will build 6 missiles, utilizing precision straws as the missile
body. Missiles will be constructed the day of the event, using only materials
provided by WESO, and launched indoors at a fixed target. The accuracy of the
missile (distance from target) on its three best launches will be used to
determine the team score, with the shortest total distance from target being
considered the winner.
Pasta Bridges: Participants will build a bridge using
the materials supplied (a variety of dried pasta and clay) and support a cup
(in the middle of the bridge) with as many small weights as possible.
To Infinity And
Beyond: Using a
planetarium, charts, and a written test, students will demonstrate an
understanding and basic knowledge of the solar system and its elements
(including apparent motion of the sky, planets and moons, constellations and
stars, asteroids, and comets).
Science
Olympiad 3rd grade Events
Aerodynamics: Participants will build and fly paper airplanes for distance, time and
accuracy.
Disease Detectives: Students will be tested on various
aspects of public health problems, including disease, risk, spread and
prevention.
Estimania: Measurement is a key component in science. Teams will be
asked to either estimate or calculate answers to ten questions of measurement.
Types of measurement include area, time, speed, height, length, weight, volume,
temperature, and others.
Feathered Friends: Participants
will be tested on their bird identification skills. Bird songs, field markings,
natural habitat, adaptations and other characteristics will be included as part
of this hands-on, multimedia Olympiad event.
In Bloom: Students
will be tested on their knowledge of plants, including grasses, flowers, and
trees.
Map Reading:
Students will test their map reading skills to answer geographical questions.
They will answer questions using various kinds of maps.
Mystery Architecture: Each team will be given a bag of materials (such as
paper, tape, styrofoam, and paper clips) to build a structure that can support
a tennis ball. The tallest structure wins.
On Target:
Each team will build 6 missiles, utilizing precision straws as the missile
body. Missiles will be constructed the day of the event, using only
materials provided by WESO, and launched indoors at a fixed target. The
accuracy of the missile (distance from target) on its three best launches will
be used to determine the team score, with the shortest total distance from
target being considered the winner.
Pasta Bridges: Participants will build a bridge using
the materials supplied (a variety of dried pasta and clay) and support a cup
(in the middle of the bridge) with as many small weights as possible.
Water Rockets: Students will build a rocket in advance out of a 2-liter
soda bottle, making alterations and adding a parachute to help it stay aloft.
The rocket that stays in the air the longest will be the winner.
To Infinity And Beyond: Using a planetarium, charts, and a written test, students
will demonstrate an understanding and basic knowledge of the solar system and
its elements (including apparent motion of the sky, planets and moons,
constellations and stars, asteroids, and comets).
Science
Olympiad 4th & 5th Grade Events
Circuit Wizardry: Circuit Wizardry tests participants’
knowledge of basic electrical circuit concepts, components, schematic reading
and understanding, and ability to design and build a simple circuit from a
functional description.
Disease Detectives: Students will be tested
on various aspects of public health problems, including disease, risk, spread
and prevention.
Estimania: Measurement is a key component in
science. Teams will be asked to either estimate or calculate answers to ten
questions of measurement. Types of measurement include area, time, speed,
height, length, weight, volume, temperature, and others.
Feathered Friends: Participants will be tested on their
bird identification skills. Bird songs, field markings, natural habitat,
adaptations and other characteristics will be included as part of this
hands-on, multimedia Olympiad event.
iCompute: Participants will be
tested on their knowledge of basic computing concepts, including hardware and
software, their understanding of how computers solve problems, and their ability
to create a simple program.
May
the Force be With You: Students will perform activities and answer questions related to
force and motion.
Map Reading: Students will test their map reading
skills to answer geographical questions. They will answer questions using
various kinds of maps.
Mystery Architecture:
Each team will be given a bag of
materials (such as paper, tape, styrofoam, and paper clips) to build a
structure that can support a tennis ball. The tallest structure wins.
On Target: Each team will build
missiles, utilizing a precision straw as the missile body (all materials being
provided by WESO). The accuracy of the missiles launched indoors at a fixed
target will be tested.
Potions: Each team will follow instructions to
make a potion, demonstrating basic lab skills (e.g. weighing, measuring,
transferring, and filtering materials) and familiarity with safety rules.
Straw Tower: Each team will attempt
to build the strongest tower with the specified number of drinking straws and
straight pins.
To Infinity And Beyond: Using a planetarium,
charts, and a written test, students will demonstrate an understanding and
basic knowledge of the solar system and its elements (including apparent motion
of the sky, planets and moons, constellations and stars, asteroids, and
comets).
Water Rockets: Students will build a rocket in advance
out of a 2-liter soda bottle, making alterations and adding a parachute to help
it stay aloft. The rocket that stays in the air the longest will be the winner.
Write It, Build It: Two team members will
be shown a “picture” and will write a description of it. In a separate room,
the other team members will be given the pieces of the “picture” and the
written description and attempt to rebuild it. The team with the most pieces
placed correctly wins. This event tests competitor's ability to clearly
communicate in writing and follow written directions.