Join the Science Olympiad Team!

If you love learning about Science and using Technology to solve challenges, then Science Olympiad is for you!

The New York State Science Olympiad (NYSSO) is a non-profit organization dedicated to improving the quality of science education in grades 6-12, increasing male, female and minority interest in science, creating a technologically literate workforce and providing recognition for outstanding achievement in science and technology. These goals are achieved by providing opportunities for teams of students to participate in regional and state Science Olympiad tournaments across New York State.

  We spend the fall and winter preparing for our regional science competition.  There are usually about 24 events and it is kind of like a science track meet.  Each event has 2 students that have prepared for the event and will compete for a medal at the competition.  Each student participates in 2, 3 or 4 events.  Some of the events are about a particular subject and students compete on a test.  Some of the events are about identifying birds, trees, fossils, insects, amphibians or rocks and minerals.  And some of the events are about building a car, tower, trebuchet, slingshot, balance lever, airplane, helicopter, or Rube Goldberg device and then competing with it.  Each year there are new and challenging events and new topics to study. We study assorted topics in Biology, Chemistry, Earth Science, and Physics.  Mrs. Beshures is so proud of her Science Olympians( just ask her about them!). Science Olympiad is a great way to start a lifelong relationship with or career in Science and STEM.

This year our team is building cars and planes and other stuff! We study together and sometimes play games to prepare for interesting challenges in many topics. We will spend the season working in small groups to prepare to compete in 23 different events (topics or challenges) at our regional competition at St John Fisher College in late February or early March . Each student will be expected to choose at least 2 events to work on for the year, and each event can have 4 students working on it. More than 4 students can work on an event but only 4 students will be able to compete ( unless we have more that 30 students on the team and are able to add a third official "team" of 15 students).

We meet on Mondays and Thursdays( September, October, November, and December) after school in Room 327 ( Mrs. Beshures' room) from 3:15 to 4:15pm. Sometimes Students will stay until 5 to work on bulding events. When that happens, Parents will need to pick team members up at 5:00 because there is no late bus at 5:00pm. Sometimes students need to leave early or miss a meeting, and that is reasonable, but students need to stay late some days in order to make good progress with their events. In January and February our meetings will be on Mondays and Fridays (because Mrs. B does Ski club on Thursdays). After Ski club has finished for the season we will meet Mondays, Thursdays, and Fridays to prepare for our competitions. After our competitions are finished for the season, we will have Rocketry and Aerodynamics club for the rest of the year. Rocketry and Aerodynamics meets on Mondays only

Check out the State Science Olympiad Website or the National Science Olympiad Website . The National Website has many resources that are helpful.

We need new members, so please consider checking us out! Just come to any meeting. (Parents are welcome to come to our meetings anytime to better understand what we are doing, or help us!)

We have a lot of fun. Come and join us and bring a friend!

Mrs. B.