SciFest@School 2024/2025
SciFest@College 2024
SciFest 2024 National Final
Berlin Long Night of Science
SciFest to participate in Eskom
EXPO for Young Scientists 2024
SciFest STEM Champion to Compete at EUCYS 2024
Discover, Connect, Innovate and Have Fun: The SciFest STEM Fair
Redesign and
Are you looking for an exciting way to engage your students in STEM?
A SciFest@School brings the excitement of a STEM fair right to your school, making learning interactive and engaging. You can host a SciFest@School fair anytime throughout the academic year and it can be as big or as small as suits you, the teacher There's also no cost involved and SciFest even supplies a number of prizes. A SciFest school liaison officer will visit on the day of the fair to help with the judging.
To register to host a SciFest@School fair please visit the SciFest website or click on this link.
SciFest@School Resources, see link.
‘Every year for the past 10 years, we have had over 100 students present projects at our in-school SciFest Competition. This positive experience and the learning achieved has had a huge impact of the development of science in our school. The involvement in the research for the projects has positively impacted the uptake in all four of the Senior Cycle subjects (Physics, Chemistry, Biology & Ag Science) The uptake of Chemistry and Physics among girls, in particular has grown significantly SciFest has proved to be a truly invaluable initiative for the teaching and promotion of science in Tullamore College
This year 40 of our students participated in the Regional SciFest Final in TUS, Athlone.’
'The check-in emails were extremely helpful As a busy teacher, it would be in the back of my mind to check in with the SciFest team a few weeks before the event to finalise times etc , but as I would think of it, there would be contact from SciFest. It was nice to feel so supported through the entire process!’
SciFest@School Coláiste an Átha, Co. Wexford
Teacher's Comment SciFest@School 2024 Evaluation
SciFest@College ATU Donegal: Clodagh and Maeve, Loreto Community School, Milford explain their project to a judge
Over 3,100 students from 246 schools submitted more than 1500 projects across the 16 SciFest@College STEM fairs this year Well done to all and special congratulations to all the lucky award winners. A full list of the SciFest@College 2024 award winners is posted on the SciFest website (link)
The following awards were presented at each of the 16 regional SciFest@College
The closing date for receipt of online entry forms to SciFest@College 2025 is Wednesday, 12 March 2025. SciFest@College SpecialAwards
The Best Project Award winners from each of the regional SciFest@College STEM fairs have been invited to compete at the SciFest 2024 National Final which will be held in Dublin on 29 November. A selection of the Runnerup Award winners, the Boston Scientific Medical Devices Award winners and the EirGrid Cleaner Climate Award winners will also compete at the National Final. These award winners have all been invited to submit their report books to SciFest by the end of September The report books will be reviewed by panels of judges representing SciFest, and Boston Scientific and EirGrid, respectively. These judges will select the projects that meet the standard to qualify for participation in the National Final
All students who qualify to participate in the National Final will be presented with an Excellence in STEM award in recognition of their success at the regional fairs
'Overall,agreatexperience.Fun,interesting,and positiveenvironmenttobein.I'mdefinetlymore interestedinscienceandengineering’ Student'sComment,SciFest@College2024Evaluation
ATU
SciFest@College TU Dublin Blanchardstown: Shauna Esmonde, Loreto Secondary School, St Michael's, Navan, Co. Meath, Best Project Award winner
The SciFest 2024 National Final will take place on Thursday, 28 and Friday, 29 November The event will be launched online on a dedicated SciFest National Final website on Thursday with a number of STEM talks suitable for students and the general public. The in-person part of the programme will take place on Friday, 29 November in the Marino Conference Centre, Griffith Avenue, Dublin 9
Judging of the projects will take place on the Friday morning followed by an award ceremony in the afternoon The award ceremony will be streamed live on YouTube
Ohio to compete at the Regeneron International Science and Engineering Fair (ISEF) which takes place from 10-16 May 2025 The mentoring teacher will travelwiththestudent/s.
SciFest@College SETU Waterford Fionn O'Súilleabháin, Meánscoil San Nioclás, Rinn Ó gCuanach, Dún Garbhán, Co. Phort Láirge, EirGrid Cleaner Climate Award winner
There will be lots of awards on the day including the SciFest STEM Champion 2024 Award The winner/s of this award will receive a trophy and an allexpenses-paid trip to Columbus,
SciFest 2024 National Final: 28/29 November
Other awards include the Boston Scientific Medical Devices Grand Award, the Intel Technology Grand Award, the EirGrid Cleaner Climate Grand Award and the opportunity to attend the Berlin LongNightofScience
SciFest@College NorthWest, Derry: Lorcan McVeigh and Shea O'Connor, St Ciaran's High School, Ballygawley, Dungannon, Co. Tyrone, Intel Technology Award winners
SciFest@College TUS Limerick: Laura Brennan and Aoibhilinn Heath, Desmond College, Limerick, Boston Scientific Medical Devices Award winners
Meábh O Sullivan and Sarah Harte from the Sacred Heart Secondary School, Convent of Mercy, Clonakilty, Co Cork were the winners of the Berlin Long Night of Science Award at the SciFest 2023 National Final. The award consisted of a trophy and an all-expenses-paid trip to attend the Berlin Long Night of Science They travelled to Berlin in June, accompanied on the trip by their teacher Claire Holland
Speaking about their experience of the Long Night of Science Meábh and Sarah said: “Our trip to Berlin was both captivating and enchanting, a journey we will never forget. At the start of our SciFest journey, we could never have imagined such an opportunity, and we are forever grateful for the memorable experience. Our journey continues to remind us that with passion, creativity, and determination, anything is possible We extend our heartfelt thanks to Sheila Porter, the SciFest Team, and the Embassy of Ireland, Germany, for making this opportunity possible. We returned to Ireland more conscious and appreciative of the scientific context and community in which we situated our project, more empowered by the well articulated and presented rich lineage of scientific inquiry and more determined to make our contribution count in this vital field of human endeavour. Thank you Berlin. Thank you SciFest and the Embassy of Ireland, Germany. ” To read more click here
TheEskomEXPOforYoungScientistsisSouthAfrica'spremiersciencefair,heldannually andfeaturingaseriesofregionalexposacrossthecountryTheseeventsculminateinthe prestigiousInternationalScienceFair(ISF),wheretopyoungscientistsfrom35EXPO RegionsinSouthAfricacompeteagainsteachotherandagainstselectedinternational participantsEachyear,anumberofinternationalfairsareinvitedtoselectstudentsto competeatISF,andthisyear,SciFestisthrilledtoannouncethatithasreceivedan invitationtoparticipatevirtuallyintheSeptembercompetition
BasedontheoutstandingqualityoftheirprojectsattheSciFest@Collegeregionalfairs, SciFesthaschosenMauraMoore-McCunefromTheKing’sHospitalSchoolandKamaya GognafromStJoseph'sSecondarySchool,RushtorepresentIrelandatISF2024
WewishMauraandKamayatheverybestofluckastheycontinuetorefinetheirprojects andpreparetocompeteatISF2024
SciFest 2023 STEM Champion, Jack Shannon from Clongowes Wood College, Co Kildare represented Ireland at Regeneron ISEF 2024 in Los Angeles, California in May, coming away with two top awards Jack was placed First in the Environmental Engineering category and also won the prestigious EUCYS award which earned him an all-expenses-paid trip to compete
in EUCYS in Katowice, Poland from 9 to 14 September
We are confident that Jack will represent Ireland, SciFest, and the Society for Science with distinction at EUCYS, and we wish him the very best of luck in the competition.
SciFest is not just about fostering a passion for STEM; it's about creating a vibrant community where students can make new friends and connect with like-minded peers
A SciFest STEM fair offers a unique opportunity to students to explore STEM in an engaging, friendly, interactive environment. Participants get to experience hands-on learning that goes beyond traditional classroom settings, encouraging them to think creatively and solve problems in innovative ways
SciFest is a day filled with excitement, joy, discovery and collaboration, where students can enjoy the day with friends, making it a memorable experience for all involved
Have you ever looked at something as simple as a mug and wondered how it could be adapted for a person with a neurological disorder that makes them shake? Maybe you have been on crutches and found it very difficult to lower yourself into a chair or to carry your school bag. Everyday objects often need to be redesigned to make them more user friendly, more cost effective, safer to use or more environmentally friendly, etc
SCAMPER is a technique that was introduced by a teacher, Alex Osborn, in 1953 in his book Applied Imagination It was later adapted in the 1970s by Bob Eberie to help generate ideas for new products and services by encouraging individuals to think about how they might modify and improve an existing idea.
Hannah Nugent and Katie Rattigan, from Loreto Secondary School, St Michael's, Navan, Co Meath won a Boston Scientific Medical Devices Award for their project ‘Stopping the Shake’ Hannah and Katie redesigned a mug to make it suitable for use by people suffering from Parkinson's disease
Thomas Curtin and Dylan Moloney from Desmond College, Newcastle West, Co Limerick won a Boston Scientific Runner-up Award and the Berlin Long Night of Science Award for their project ‘Height Adjustable Crutch’. Thomas and Dylan redesigned a crutch that would help people with a lower body disability to stand up and sit down more easily.
The majority of students carry their books and sports gear to school each day in a backpack. These backpacks are usually extremely heavy. Often non-environmentally friendly materials such as PVC (polyvinyl chloride) are used in their manufacture Posture support and sustainability are often overlooked in the design process in favour of appearance
The student’s task is to redesign a backpack using SCAMPER that is more ergonomic, functional and stylish, and more sustainable and eco-friendly
Students should:
Copy the table opposite into their copybooks
Brainstorm ideas with their team for each letter of SCAMPER, filling out the table as they come up with ideas
Evaluate and select their best ideas
Use diagrams to present their design or prototype
Present their prototype to the class and look for feedback to help them improve their design
Dear Colleagues
SciFest
Email: info@scifest.ie
Mobile: 0863796143
Website: www scifest ie
Welcome back to a brand new academic year! We hope you had a restful and rejuvenating break.
At SciFest we are excited to announce that we are heading into our 20th year of supporting STEM in second-level schools. Since the inagural SciFest@College in 2006 more than 115,000 students have participated in the programme.
We are very much looking forward to your participation and collaboration in making SciFest 2024/2025 a resounding success.
With Regards
The SciFest Team
SciFest on:
Instagram: @scifest4stem X: @scifest4stem
Facebook: @scifest4stem
LinkedIn: scifest CLG
YouTube: @scifest4stem
Issuu: SciFest Ireland
