Darrell Greer
Northern News Services
Wednesday, February 14, 2007

CHESTERFIELD INLET - Science continues to be the subject of choice for students at Victor Sammurtok school in Chesterfield Inlet.

The little school with the big reputation for science success held its annual Science Olympics this past month, with the student body being whipped into a frenzy over the event.

The Science Olympics always go over easy with Chesterfield Inlet students and this year was no exception.

Teacher Glen Brocklebank says competition was keen in every grade.

He says the students really flipped over the egg-bungee event and the final tallies boiled down to a difference of mere centimetres.

"Our students do well in science because their teachers make it relevant to things they see and feel around them," says Brocklebank.

"We try to get them to figure out the science behind things they see every day.

"Science doesn't have to be all about sitting behind a microscope in a classroom."

Brocklebank says the Science Olympics help with the school's approach because they put the sunny side up and make learning fun.

He says Victor Sammurtok students also get excited when school projects are turned into competitions.

"You can't lose at our school when you turn a learning exercise into a competition that's fun to participate in," he says.

"The students go all out to win the event."

Brocklebank says past successes at both the Kivalliq Regional and Canada-wide Science Fair have students eager to reach the same level.

He says Chesterfield Inlet students realize if they do well at their own school, they stand a good chance of achieving success at the regional event.

"That's based on the school winning the regional fair three years in a row and placing second in 2006," he says.

"The competition is fierce here and that makes them push even harder to come out on top."

Victor Sammurtok has sent seven students to the Canada-wide Science Fair, claiming a bronze medal and an honourable mention.

Brocklebank says he has high hopes for this year after seeing the results of the egg-bungee event during the Science Olympics.

"Our winners actually had their egg hit the ground twice without cracking," he says.

"You could hear it hit and everyone kept screaming for them to do it again until it finally broke the third time."