TALOYOAK/UQSUQTUUQ
It's a time for discoveries. Late February for youth in the Kitikmeot signals science fair season.

Jordan Takkiruq, a student at Qiqirtaq Ilihakvik in Gjoa Haven, figured out vegetable bottoms, normally thrown away at the grocery store where he works, could be recycled as he worked on his science fair project The Fourth R: Reduce, Reuse, Recycle, REGROW. - photo courtesy of Kim Rowley

Hayley May Totalik, for example, who attends Netsilik Ilihakvik in Taloyoak, tackled the topic Solving Produce Problem in the North.

"I wanted to do this because we don't have a lot of access to fresh fruit in the North. I wanted to find other ways," she said.

Totalik made two pies beginning with two identical pastries. One was a traditional apple pie and one was an apple pie without apples.

"You use crackers, 36 of those, and you use cream of Tartar and sugar - it's an acid and it produces a flavor similar to that of apples. We boiled it and put it in the pie pastry."

Totalik says it tastes like lemon, but "kind of like apple pie, too."

At Netsilik Ilihakvik, all students from kindergarten to Grade 12 plunge into science fair season, producing more than 100 projects.

"Ideally the students would develop their own independent project idea from a topic they are really interested in and go with it, but some students have difficulty deciding what to do so if, for example a class is already studying a topic like energy, electricity or water, it may be easier for students to do a project related to the larger topic they studied during science class," said principal Gina Pizzo.

However, some of her favourites are those that tackle Inuit or Northern topics.

"Kids have this idea that they are not 'into science' when in fact it is all around them every moment of the day. A few that I have seen over the years included Inuit astronomy and astrology, snow density, traditional Inuit technologies, such as tools, sleds, boats, etc., most effective fuels for kullit, special adaptations of Northern animals, insulating value of traditional Inuit clothing, traditional economies of Northern animals, the physics of the qamutik," said Pizzo.

"But I am waiting for the kid who comes along and does an in-depth study on insects."

Pizzo adds, "The greatest myth is that the youngest students can't do science fair projects. They can of course and it is also a great opportunity to have parents come in and lend a hand with their child and get everyone excited about science and learning in general."

At Qiqirtaq Ilihakvik in Gjoa Haven, high school students are offered the opportunity to tackle a science project.

Four high school students participated.

"They came to me with ideas. They'd gone to regionals last year, so they were thinking about their projects," said the school's science teacher, Brooke Boutilier. "I helped them form questions out of that. From there, it's following the scientific method - how can we find an answer to this question."

Brad Tiriraniaq and Boaz Ikkitisluk tackled From Pangea to Modern Earth, exploring plate tectonics and displaying two globes they made showing what the Earth was like way back when the continents existed as one supercontinent.

Jordan Takkiruq's topic, The Fourth R: Reduce, Reuse, Recycle, REGROW, saw him growing vegetables from scraps.

"He took the bottom of a plant - because he works at the store and he noticed the bottoms were thrown out - so he was wondering if he could take that and regrow a plant, and if it was applicable to doing it in the North," said Boutilier. Takkiruq found he could grow a plant from the discarded parts.

Alaira Sallerina compared the heart structure of Northern and southern animals.

Quqshuun Ilihakvik's Intermediate 4 class produced a science project exploring the effect of sugar on teeth.

Projects are judged and winners attend the regional science fair, which this year will be held in Taloyoak on the weekend of April 8 to 10. From there the top two projects will go on to the Canada Wide Science Fair to be held in Montreal this year.

"We are very proud that many students from Netsilik school have had the good fortune to be selected for nationals over the years," said Pizzo.

Boutilier and the main organizers of the science fairs are members of Science for Kitikmeot Youth and Educators, although it takes many more teachers to help out, not to mention judges from the community.

We welcome your opinions. Click here to e-mail a letter to the editor.