What We Do
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Since founded in 2000, NS YES! has helped to institute regional science fairs in ten regions of Nova Scotia, ensuring that every grade 7-12 student has access to a science fair. Regional science fairs are held in eight English-language school boards, the French-language conseil scolaire acadien provincial de la Nouvelle-Écosse, and the Mi'kmaq First Nations schools.
Our portfolio of "youth science experiences" has been growing steadily. Each May, we run the Team Nova Scotia Showcase event to which we invite those regional science fair winners who will be going to the Canada-Wide Science Fair, a prestigious national event that attracts over 450 of the top science students from coast to coast. The three-day Showcase is a team-building and media/promotional event, to which the public, science fair supporters, and interested corporate representatives are invited to view the student exhibits and show their support for this worthwhile activity. Nova Scotia's representation is getting stronger every year at the Canada-Wide Science Fair.
NSYES established a Web site, at sciencefairinfo.ns.ca, as a resource for students, teachers, and parents. A bilingual poster series has been produced to help teachers promote science fairs in their classrooms.
Other learning resources we have provided to teachers are two science fair DVDs: Science Fairs: an Experience for You, produced in 2006, and more recently Preparing for Science Fairs, which was awarded the prestigious international "Telly" film award in the documentary film category. It was sent to schools in January, 2008. Our latest DVD takes a look inside the Canada-Wide Science Fair throught the eyes of a student, and is hosted by two young award-winning Nova Scotia scientists. Both DVDs were made possible by generous support by EnCana Corp.
We feel it is important to Nova Scotia's economic future for youth to understand that they can be their own boss, so in 2006 we facilitated the development of Taking Science to Market (with valuable partners CEED, CBDC, and ACOA), a workshop focusing on science and entrepreneurship. The workshop shows students how to generate, protect, and market their scientific and technological ideas.
Our most recent accomplishment is the Provincial Science Olympics Challenge. In the fall of 2007 we partnered with Conserve Nova Scotia and the Department of Education to offer the first annual Science Olympics for grade 4 and 5 students across Nova Scotia. Students compete in teams to complete a range of fun science activities, and their families and teachers come to cheer them on. We look forward to annual Science Olympics each October.
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For More Information
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Nova Scotia Youth
Experiences in Science
2021 Brunswick Street, PO Box 578
Halifax, Nova Scotia B3J 2S9
Tel (902) 424-8641
Fax (902) 424-0614
nsyes@sciencefairinfo.ns.ca
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