2018-2019 LHS SCIENCE TEAMS

Department of Energy National Science Bowl (DOE)

The Department of Energy National Science Bowl (DOE) Team is a science team that competes in a fast-paced “Jeopardy-like” lockout buzzer competition covering the areas of Biology, Chemistry, Earth and Space Science, Energy,Mathematics and Physics. The team competes in the Massachusetts Regional Science Bowl competition each year in March.  The first place team advances to the National Science Bowl held in Washington DC.

Team practices are held after school–once a week (Tuesdays, 3:00-5:00) during the tryout season (Sept-Nov).  Once the team is assembled, practices are twice a week on Tues and Thurs for the three months prior to the Regional Competition (Dec-Feb) and for the remainder of the school year.. The practices model the actual competition, where the team answers toss up and bonus questions during timed rounds .  Students come away from the experience having learned a lot of science, made great friends and ultimately having had a lot of fun. Please visit the National Science Bowl website at http://science.energy.gov/nsb/for more information. Physics teacher, Nick Gould coaches the DOE team.

National Ocean Sciences Bowl (NOSB)

The National Ocean Sciences Bowl (NOSB) is a fast-paced competitive science team at LHS.   Students on this team study all aspects of oceanography, including geology, marine biology, marine technology, history and social sciences, physical and chemical oceanography, and marine policy. Student try outs are in September and October, and result in the selection of one or two competing teams each comprised of five students.  The regional competition, the Blue Lobster Bowl, is held on a Saturday at MIT in either February or March.  Practices are held after school–once a week (Fridays, 3:00-5:00) during the tryout season, twice a week (Wednesdays and Fridays) for the two months leading up to the Blue Lobster Bowl.

Practices model the actual competition, which consists of buzzer rounds (toss-up and bonus questions) and team challenge questions. A correct answer for a toss-up question from an individual student earns a bonus question for the team. Team challenge questions are completed between the two buzzer rounds. The overall competition is in round-robin format for the morning of competition, followed by single- or double-elimination in the afternoon rounds to determine the final outcome.

Team members are expected to write study questions and attend practices each week. The team is student-led, with team captains taking responsibility for organizing practices, communicating with team members, etc.  Please visit nosb.org for more information about the National Ocean Sciences Bowl.   Janice Compton and Dr. Kari Darling are team coaches.

Environthon

The Envirothon is America’s leading natural resource education program for high school students. Teams, comprised of 7-10 students, represent their school or organization in a statewide competition during the second week of May. The competition tests student knowledge of aquatics, forestry, soils, wildlife and current environmental issues in both a theoretical and hands-on manner.

Weekly practices are held on Tuesdays after school in room 321.  With additional practices and hands on field trips as needed.  Practices may include field trips to analyze water quality, wading through rivers identifying aquatic insects and plants, analyzing physical and chemical properties of the soil, reviewing previous reading materials, PowerPoint presentations or having quiz bowl type review competitions. A series of exams are given throughout the first part of the year with the top 7-10 scorers selected to represent LHS.

Team members are expected to attend practices and to prepare ahead of time for the upcoming practice sessions. Preparation may include reviewing Power Point presentations, reading articles and creating questions for review during the practice sessions.

The Environthon team coach is Chemistry/Earth Science teacher, Steven Wilkins.