LIVINGSTON, Ala.—Several area science teachers met Saturday, Sept. 10 to prep for the Elementary Science Olympiad, which will be held Nov. 12 on the University  of West Alabama campus. The tournament, sponsored by Alabama Power and the Tombigbee RC & C Council, gives students in third through sixth grades the opportunity to compete as teams in 16 different events.

“The Olympiad is like an academic track meet,” said Dr. Ketia Shumaker, UWA Assistant Professor of Biology and event organizer. “The teams are made up of two to 12 students, with the best students participating in different events.”

Students will compete in events including “No Bones About It,” an anatomy and physiology competition; “Grab-a-Gram,” which challenges students to guess the weights of different items and “Tree and Leaf Finder,” a botany test.

Winners in each event will receive ribbons, and the school with the most ribbons will be awarded the overall trophy.

“The Elementary Science Olympiad Tournament hosted by UWA is geared toward 3rd-6th graders, but can be enjoyed by any age group,” Shumaker said.  “Science Olympiad helps put the fun back into learning about science and math concepts. From the classroom teacher and teenager who have volunteered their time to coach students to the grandparent who watches attentively as his or her grandchild launches her team’s rocket during the bottle rocket event, every participant enjoys this competition.”

The Olympiad committee members, including Shumaker, Dr. Don Salter, Dr. John McCall, Michael Curry, Hazel Truelove and student representative Kasey Cockrum, expect 7-10 teams from Livingston to Montgomery to participate in the third Olympiad held on campus.

It is not too late to sign up for coaches’ training, Shumaker stressed. Anyone interested in coaching a team can contact Shumaker before 5 p.m. Friday, Sept. 30, at (205) 652-3406 or kshumaker@uwa.edu.