Senior Science Research
Overview
- The first goal of this class is to turn the lab work you've done into marketable products. Everyone will produce a research paper, a poster, and a PowerPoint presentation.
- The second goal of this class is to enter as many science, technology, engineering, and mathematics competitions as possible including the Regeneron Science Talent Search (Regeneron STS), Junior Science and Humanities Symposium (JSHS), New York City Science and Engineering Fair (NYCSEF), St. Joseph's College High School Poster Session, Afro-Academic Cultural Scientific Technological Olympiad (ACT-SO), Brooklyn College Science Day, and others.
- The third goal of this class is to promote science, technology, engineering, and mathematics through service to Midwood High School, New York City, and the world.
- Grades are based partly on how much you do (the more things you try, the better your grade will be) and partly how well you do them (the better your work is, the better your grade will be). Important dates are in red. Students who fulfill the nominal class requirements will receive a grade of 85% (G) in the 1st marking period, 90% in the 2nd marking period, and 95% for the semester. There will be several opportunities for extra credit.
Fall Semester
Fall Meetings for Seniors
Check the big calendar on midwoodscience.org often. Individual, team, or small group meetings are the way business gets done. Large group meetings are rare. Keep your supervising teacher up to date on your progress. Do not hesitate to tell us of problems. Above all, do not miss your appointments. They count significantly toward your grade.
- September
- Entrance meeting on the second day of the semester. Everyone attends.
- Semester overview
- Verify/update your contact info
- Research paper 1st draft
- September meeting
- October
- First meeting
- Research paper 2nd draft
- Regeneron STS registration & paperwork (optional)
- Neuroscience registration & paperwork (optional)
- Second meeting
- Research paper 3rd draft
- Regeneron STS registration & paperwork (optional)
- JSHS registration & paperwork (optional)
- NYCSEF registration & paperwork (mandatory)
- November
- November meeting
- Regeneron STS registration & paperwork (optional)
- JSHS registration & paperwork (optional)
- NYCSEF registration & paperwork (mandatory)
- December
- First meeting
- Second meeting
- PowerPoint 1st draft due
9:00 AM Wednesday, December 16, 2020 [?]
- January
- PowerPoint presentations for 5–10 days
- PowerPoint final draft due
9:00 AM Monday, January 4, 2021
- Attend 5 days (Students who completed a Regeneron STS application attend only 1 day)
- Present on 1 of these days
- Exit meeting
- Poster meeting (during Regents week)
- Scientific poster first draft
- NYCSEF status
- St. Joe's status
- JSHS status
Regeneron Science Talent Search
Thursday, November 12, 2020 (research paper)

- Students are encouraged to enter this competition for extra credit (and to reduce their work load in January).
- This competition is a combination of a research paper and something similar to a college application (personal essays, letters of recommendation, transcripts, standardized test scores, and lots of short answer questions).
- Obtain a pdf copy of the rules and instructions from the Society for Science and the Public.
- Register and begin the application process in front of your supervising teacher at FluidReview during September or October.
- This application has multiple parts
- Personal Info
- Essay Questions — This includes an abstract and layperson's summary (a.k.a. executive summary).
- Project Recommendation — Your mentor does this part.
- Teacher Recommendation — Your supervising teacher does this part.
- Counselor Recommendation (a.k.a. Secondary School Report) — Mr. Elert will notify the College Office on your behalf. This really isn't a "recommendation" in the traditional sense.
- Official School Transcript — Mr. Elert will take care of this.
- A research paper.
- And for those who need it vertebrate animals, human participants, IRB, informed consent, etc.
- The entire process for students is done electronically. There are no paper documents. Save a copy of the final application pdf and submit it to Mr. Elert via sneakernet.
- The deadline for entry is
Thursday, November 12, 2020. You must provide proof to your supervising teacher that you have met this deadline and completed the application process before the end of the school day
Tuesday, November 10, 2020.
- The top 300 Scholars will be announced on
Wednesday, January 13, 2021.
- The top 40 Finalists will be announced on
Wednesday, January 20, 2021.
Junior Science and Humanities Symposium (JSHS)
Monday, November 23, 2020 [?] (research paper)
Sunday, February 7, 2021 [?] (presentation)
- Seniors who have completed a research paper before the application deadline may enter this competition for extra credit. The competition has two parts: a research paper and a PowerPoint presentation.
- Team projects are allowed, but only one member of the team will present. Any other members of the team must attend as observers. Presenters will receive more credit than observers. All team members are responsible for contributing to the research paper equally.
- Deadline to submit applications and upload documents is
Monday, November 23, 2020 [?]. Applications are done online and have the following basic components:
- Name, contact, and other info about the presenter
- Abstract
- Research paper
- Parental consent form
- Supervising scientist form
- "Call for papers" form
- Human subjects form (if applicable)
- Biography of the presenter
- Photo of the presenter
- Prepare a PowerPoint presentation for the symposium. Presenters will rehearse in February. The Symposium will be held at York College in Jamaica, Queens
Sunday, February 7, 2021 [?] from 8:00 AM to 1:00 PM. Breakfast and lunch are provided.
- The top students at the NYC Metro JSHS move on to compete in the National JSHS
April 14–17, 2021 [?] in
t.b.d..
New York City Science and Engineering Fair (NYCSEF)
Friday, December 11, 2020 [?] (research paper)
Sunday, March 8, 2021 [?] (poster session)
- Students in this class must enter and participate in this event.
- Register online in November when instructed by your supervising teacher.
- Read the rules and guidelines to ensure your application will be accepted.
- Begin filling out the application forms as soon as possible. Your "Research Plan" from junior year is now called the "Project Summary" and is written inpast tense.
- Make the necessary paper copies of your application and research paper including one copy for our records. Use one of the high volume photocopiers with a document feeder in room A200 (Biology Office) or A300 (Physical Science Office). Use the color printer in the Research Room only for pages with color.
- Materials will be collected for shipping on
Thursday, December 10, 2020 [?]. Mr. Elert will deliver them to the CUNY K16 offices on the 3rd Floor of 16 Court Street the next day —
Friday, December 11, 2020 [?].
- This year's Preliminary Round for all students will be held on
Sunday, March 8, 2021 [?] at
t.b.d.. Breakfast and lunch are provided.
- The top 25 percent of student researchers from each subject category will be invited to participate in the Finals Round
Thursday, March 18, 2021 [?] in the
t.b.d.. Lunch is provided.
- The Awards Ceremony follows on
Friday, March 26, 2021 [?] in the Gerald W. Lynch Theater at John Jay College [?]
- 10–20 students will be selected to represent New York City at the Regeneron International Science and Engineering Fair (ISEF) in
Virtual Realms
May 17–21, 2021 [?].
PowerPoint presentations for seniors
The spring semester is full of events where you are expected to talk about your project to the public. In January, you will practice for this eventuality. All seniors will deliver a PowerPoint presentation to an audience of junior and senior research students and teachers.
The first draft of your slide deck is due the week before we leave for Winter Break —
9:00 AM Wednesday, December 16, 2020 [?]. The final draft of your slide deck will be due when we return from Winter Break —
9:00 AM Monday, January 4, 2021. Email your deck to elert@midwoodscience.org and put "pptx file" in the subject line. This will ensure that it goes to the correct mailbox. Mr. Elert will keep the official copy of these files, but Ms. Mosley and Ms. Katzoff will also need copies from their students.
All presentations will start with a 30 second executive summary. Describe the essence of your project using language that can be understood by people who are generally well-educated but who are not experts in your particular scientific field. The executive summary will not be read off a slide, index card, or any other medium.
The remainder of the presentation should last 6–8 minutes. Each slide will use text sparingly (except for the reference slide at the end). All images will be the work of the student, a colleague from the lab, or a referenced scientific source. No images "from the Internet" are allowed.
Attend 5 days of the 5–10 possible days of presentations. Present on one of these days. (Students who entered the Regeneron STS need only attend on 1 day — the day they present.) You are welcome to attend extra days, but extra credit will not be awarded. Clap politely after every presentation and try to ask each presenter at least one good question. Fill out a feedback form after every presentation. Presentations will be scheduled for period 9 in rooms to be determined.
St. Joseph's College High School Poster Session
Saturday, February 6, 2021 [?] (poster session)
- Students in this class must participate in this event.
- Register online during your January meeting with your supervising teacher.
- Students who wish to compete as a team must register individually with the exact same project title.
- This event is open to high school students who have completed research in any scientific area during the past year and can present their findings in a poster.
- The posters will be judged by professors and/or scientific professionals and cash prizes will be awarded for outstanding entries.
- The competition is held at St. Joseph's College - New York in the Clinton Hill area of Brooklyn at 245 Clinton Avenue, Brooklyn, NY 11205 on
Saturday, February 6, 2021 [?] from 9:00 AM to 1:00 PM. Awards are presented at the end of the event and breakfast is provided.
- This event is sponsored by the New York Section of the American Chemical Society.
Lab Log Format
- In general …
- Use a hardbound notebook — one that would show obvious damage if a page was removed.
- Number all pages so that missing pages can be spotted.
- Never remove pages from your lab notebook.
- Place important information on the inside front cover.
- Personal information
- Your name, phone number, email address so that a lost lab log can be returned to you
- Your ICE name and phone number (ICE means "in case of emergency")
- Where you work
- Name of primary worksite, location (room number), phone number (if applicable)
- Name of secondary worksite, location (room number), phone number (if applicable)
- Name of tertiary worksite, location (room number), phone number (if applicable)
- Who you work with
- Principal investigator (PI) name, phone number, email address
- Other researcher name, phone number, email address
- Lab manager/technician name, phone number, email address
- Post-doc name, phone number, email address
- Graduate/Undergraduate student name, phone number, email address
- Daily entries
- Date
- Location
- Time In/Time Out
- Aim/Goal
- Notes/Procedures/Results
- Monthly summaries
- At the end of each month, create a table that summarizes the work you did for that month.
Name of Month |
Date |
Hours |
Activity |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
⇐ Total hours for the month |
Weighting and Extra Credit Requirements
- In order to receive extra credit for the month (juniors only) or to receive a 1.05 for the semester (juniors and seniors), you are expected to attend lab and/or do lab-related work for at least 4 hours per week (16 hours per month for a month with 4 full weeks).
- A possible option for this time is analyzing articles that are related to your subject similar to the way you reviewed articles for this class.
- For all equipment that you use, you should read the manual from your lab and explain the operating principle behind that piece of equipment.
- For all protocols you should create an extremely simple flow chart of the procedure and identify the final product.
Fall Lab Logs
- Junior lab logs are due at the first meeting of each month.
- Summer lab logs are due in October.
- September lab logs are due in October.
- October lab logs are due in November.
- November lab logs are due in December.
- December lab logs are due in January.
- Senior lab logs for September, October, November are due December 1 and are only used to qualify for Honors Research (1.05 weighted class).
Spring Semester
Spring Meetings for Seniors
Check the big calendar on midwoodscience.org often. Individual, team, or small group meetings are the way business gets done. Large group meetings are rare. Keep your supervising teacher up to date on your progress. Do not hesitate to tell us of problems. Above all, do not miss your appointments. They count significantly toward your grade.
- January
- Poster meeting (during Regents week)
- Scientific poster first draft
- NYCSEF status
- St Joseph's status
- JSHS status
- February
- Entrance meeting on the second day of the semester in
A215/A219. Everyone attends.
- Expectations for the semester
- February meeting
- Poster approval (mandatory)
- JSHS practice (if accepted)
- Competitions
- March
- March meeting (before end of marking period)
- Prepare for NYCSEF finals (if selected)
- Prepare for ACT-SO (optional)
- First marking period service logs
- Service options for April
- New York City Science and Engineering Fair
- NYCSEF Preliminary Round at
t.b.d.(mandatory)
Sunday, March 8, 2021 [?]
- NYCSEF Finals Round in the
t.b.d.(if selected)
Thursday, March 18, 2021 [?]
- NYCSEF Awards Ceremony in the Gerald W. Lynch Theater at John Jay College [?]
(if selected)
Friday, March 26, 2021 [?]
- April
- April meeting (before end of marking period)
- Prepare for ACT-SO (optional)
- Prepare for Brooklyn College Science Day (optional)
- Prepare for JSHS Nationals (if selected)
- Prepare for ISEF (if selected)
- Second marking period service logs
- Service options for May and June
- Competitions
- May
- May meeting (first week of May)
- Competitions
- June
- Exit meeting (last full week of classes)
- Third marking period service logs
- Return your drawer keys
- Grades and other exit topics
- July
Senior Service
- Students will be available to assist research teachers during their free periods or before or after their regularly scheduled school day. Each period of work counts as one point toward your final grade. A period of work may require a full 45 minutes or a fraction thereof.
- Seniors should plan to complete 10 periods of service in each marking period or obtain an equivalent number of points through other means. More periods will result in a higher grade — fewer periods, a lower grade.
- Students may perform additional periods of service to substitute for the St. Joseph's College Poster Session or NYCSEF in the event of illness or failure to qualify.
- Examples of acceptable service activities include, but are not limited to …
- Read resumes and cover letters.
- Assist sophomore teachers with the set up and take down of labs, experiments, demonstrations.
- Mentor sophomore students as they prepare for the Midwood Science Fair.
- Speak to the sophomores about how you found your lab and what you did there.
- Computer maintenance.
- Seniors will keep service logs. Logs will be checked at monthly meetings and one or two days before the end of each marking period. Totals for each marking period will be recorded by Mr. Elert. Log entries should contain the following information …
- Date and period of service.
- Elapsed time.
- A brief description of what was done.
- A signature from the supervising teacher (Ms. Mosley, Ms. Goldstein, Ms. Katzoff, Mr. Elert and, rarely, Mr. Rosenfeld or Ms. Kornaker).
St. Joseph's College High School Poster Session
Saturday, February 6, 2021 [?] (poster session)
- Students in this class must participate in this event.
- Register online during your January meeting with your supervising teacher.
- Students who wish to compete as a team must register individually with the exact same project title.
- This event is open to high school students who have completed research in any scientific area during the past year and can present their findings in a poster.
- The posters will be judged by professors and/or scientific professionals and cash prizes will be awarded for outstanding entries.
- The competition is held at St. Joseph's College - New York in the Clinton Hill area of Brooklyn at 245 Clinton Avenue, Brooklyn, NY 11205 on
Saturday, February 6, 2021 [?] from 9:00 AM to 1:00 PM. Awards are presented at the end of the event and breakfast is provided.
- This event is sponsored by the New York Section of the American Chemical Society.
Junior Science and Humanities Symposium (JSHS)
Monday, November 23, 2020 [?] (research paper)
Sunday, February 7, 2021 [?] (presentation)
- Seniors who have completed a research paper before the application deadline may enter this competition for extra credit. The competition has two parts: a research paper and a PowerPoint presentation.
- Team projects are allowed, but only one member of the team will present. Any other members of the team must attend as observers. Presenters will receive more credit than observers. All team members are responsible for contributing to the research paper equally.
- Deadline to submit applications and upload documents is
Monday, November 23, 2020 [?]. Applications are done online and have the following basic components:
- Name, contact, and other info about the presenter
- Abstract
- Research paper
- Parental consent form
- Supervising scientist form
- "Call for papers" form
- Human subjects form (if applicable)
- Biography of the presenter
- Photo of the presenter
- Prepare a PowerPoint presentation for the symposium. Presenters will rehearse in February. The Symposium will be held at York College in Jamaica, Queens
Sunday, February 7, 2021 [?] from 8:00 AM to 1:00 PM. Breakfast and lunch are provided.
- The top students at the NYC Metro JSHS move on to compete in the National JSHS
April 14–17, 2021 [?] in
t.b.d..
New York City Science and Engineering Fair (NYCSEF)
Friday, December 11, 2020 [?] (research paper)
Sunday, March 8, 2021 [?] (poster session)
- Students in this class must enter and participate in this event.
- Register online in November when instructed by your supervising teacher.
- Read the rules and guidelines to ensure your application will be accepted.
- Begin filling out the application forms as soon as possible. Your "Research Plan" from junior year is now called the "Project Summary" and is written inpast tense.
- Make the necessary paper copies of your application and research paper including one copy for our records. Use one of the high volume photocopiers with a document feeder in room A200 (Biology Office) or A300 (Physical Science Office). Use the color printer in the Research Room only for pages with color.
- Materials will be collected for shipping on
Thursday, December 10, 2020 [?]. Mr. Elert will deliver them to the CUNY K16 offices on the 3rd Floor of 16 Court Street the next day —
Friday, December 11, 2020 [?].
- This year's Preliminary Round for all students will be held on
Sunday, March 8, 2021 [?] at
t.b.d.. Breakfast and lunch are provided.
- The top 25 percent of student researchers from each subject category will be invited to participate in the Finals Round
Thursday, March 18, 2021 [?] in the
t.b.d.. Lunch is provided.
- The Awards Ceremony follows on
Friday, March 26, 2021 [?] in the Gerald W. Lynch Theater at John Jay College [?]
- 10–20 students will be selected to represent New York City at the Regeneron International Science and Engineering Fair (ISEF) in
Virtual Realms
May 17–21, 2021 [?].
Afro-academic, Cultural, Technological, Scientific Olympics (ACT-SO)
Saturday, March 27, 2021 [?] (registration)
Saturday, April 24, 2021 [?] (poster session)
ACT-SO Competition Categories
STEM |
Visual Arts |
Performing Arts |
Humanities |
Architecture | Drawing | Dance, Ballet | Music Composition |
Biology & Microbiology | Filmmaking | Dance, Contemporary | Original Essay |
Chemistry & Biochemistry | Painting | Dance, Modern | Playwriting |
Computer Science | Photography | Dance, Traditional | Poetry, Written |
Earth & Space Science | Sculpture | Dramatics | Short Story |
Engineering |
| Music, Instrumental, Classical | |
Mathematics |
| Music, Instrumental, Contemporary | Business |
Medicine & Health |
| Music, Vocal, Classical | Entrepreneurship |
Physics |
| Music, Vocal, Contemporary |
|
| | Oratory | Culinary |
---|
| | Poetry, Performance | Culinary Arts |
- The Afro-academic, Cultural, Technological, Scientific Olympics (ACT-SO) is an "Olympics of the Mind" sponsored by the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP). All seniors should seriously consider participating in a STEM category and may also participate in another category. Students may compete in up to 3 categories.
- The STEM competition consists of a research report and poster session (and paperwork of course). Submit your paper and supporting materials via email before
Saturday, March 27, 2021 [?].
- The New York City ACT-SO will be held on
Saturday, April 24, 2021 [?]at
George Wingate High School [?]. Lunch is provided.
- The awards ceremony will be held on
Monday, May 3, 2021 [?];at St. Francis College in Brooklyn.
- Gold medal winners move on to the National ACT-SO at the NAACP National Convention
July 22–27, 2021 in
t.b.d..
Brooklyn College Science Day
Wednesday, April 7, 2021 [?] (abstract registration)
Friday, May 7, 2021 [?] (poster session)
- Brooklyn College Science Day is an annual poster competition for graduate, undergraduate, and high school students. This competition is mandatory for all Midwood seniors with Brooklyn College mentors (optional for juniors). Students working at other CUNY schools may be allowed to participate at the discretion of the event organizers.
- Registration instructions can be found on the for students page. Submit your application before
Wednesday, April 7, 2021 [?].
- The poster session will be held from 9 AM to 2 PM on
Friday, May 7, 2021 [?] at the Student Center (a.k.a. SUBO), which is two blocks away from Midwood on Campus Road. Awards are announced at the end of the event and lunch is provided.
Midwood High School Science Fair
Thursday, May 27, 2021 [?]
All Science Research students participate in this event.
- Sophomores
- Bring something to eat or drink
- Participate as contestants
- Feast
- Juniors and Seniors
- Help set up
- Participate as judges
- Feast
- Help clean up
- Alumni and Teachers
- Participate as judges
- Feast
Extra Credit
STEM = Science, Technology, Engineering, Math
Public Lecture
Attend an approved STEM lecture
- Attend, listen, and take notes.
- Retain your admission ticket, program, or any other handout given at the lecture.
- Have your photo taken at the event by a teacher or other approved attendance taker.
- Complete this assignment while the lecture is still fresh in your mind. (Print the page before you go.)
- Type up your responses to the questions and submit them to your supervising teacher the next business day along with proof of attendance. Be prepared to discuss the lecture at your next meeting.
Possible Lectures
Competitions and Events
Participate in STEM competitions or attend STEM special events.
- Review this list at the begining of the school year.
- Find an event or competition you are interested in.
- Tell your supervising teacher what you intend to do.
- Provide evidence of progress or participation for partial credit (when applicable).
- Manage your time effectively. Anticipate Deadlines.
- Provide evidence of completion for full credit.
Last Updated 2 September 2019.
Lab Log Format
- In general …
- Use a hardbound notebook — one that would show obvious damage if a page was removed.
- Number all pages so that missing pages can be spotted.
- Never remove pages from your lab notebook.
- Place important information on the inside front cover.
- Personal information
- Your name, phone number, email address so that a lost lab log can be returned to you
- Your ICE name and phone number (ICE means "in case of emergency")
- Where you work
- Name of primary worksite, location (room number), phone number (if applicable)
- Name of secondary worksite, location (room number), phone number (if applicable)
- Name of tertiary worksite, location (room number), phone number (if applicable)
- Who you work with
- Principal investigator (PI) name, phone number, email address
- Other researcher name, phone number, email address
- Lab manager/technician name, phone number, email address
- Post-doc name, phone number, email address
- Graduate/Undergraduate student name, phone number, email address
- Daily entries
- Date
- Location
- Time In/Time Out
- Aim/Goal
- Notes/Procedures/Results
- Monthly summaries
- At the end of each month, create a table that summarizes the work you did for that month.
Name of Month |
Date |
Hours |
Activity |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
⇐ Total hours for the month |
Weighting and Extra Credit Requirements
- In order to receive extra credit for the month (juniors only) or to receive a 1.05 for the semester (juniors and seniors), you are expected to attend lab and/or do lab-related work for at least 4 hours per week (16 hours per month for a month with 4 full weeks).
- A possible option for this time is analyzing articles that are related to your subject similar to the way you reviewed articles for this class.
- For all equipment that you use, you should read the manual from your lab and explain the operating principle behind that piece of equipment.
- For all protocols you should create an extremely simple flow chart of the procedure and identify the final product.
Spring Lab Logs
- Junior lab logs are due at the first meeting of each month.
- January logs are due in February.
- February logs are due in March.
- March lab logs are due in April.
- April lab logs are due in May.
- May lab logs are due in June.
- Senior lab logs for February, March, April are due May 1 and are only used to qualify for Honors Research (1.05 weighted class).
teachers |
office |
em |
ail |
extension |
Mr. Elert (Coordinator) |
A214 |
elert@ |
midwoodscience.org |
2141 |
Ms. Goldstein |
A214 |
sgoldstein11@ |
schools.nyc.gov |
2141 |
Ms. Cunningham |
A300 |
acunningham12@ |
schools.nyc.gov |
3001 |
administrators |
office |
em |
ail |
extension |
Mr. McDonnell (Principal) |
127 |
mmcdonn2@ |
schools.nyc.gov |
1270 |
Ms. Kornaker (Assistant Principal) |
A300 |
jkornaker@ |
schools.nyc.gov |
3003 |
Mr. Rosenfeld (Assistant Principal) |
A200 |
trosenf@ |
schools.nyc.gov |
2004 |