Jefferson Lab will host the Virginia Regional Middle School Science Bowl competition on Saturday, March 4, 2023
NEWPORT NEWS – Members of the media are invited to observe portions of the Virginia Regional Middle School Science Bowl on March 4, 2023.
What: The Virginia Regional Middle School Science Bowl competition will be held virtually by the U.S. Department of Energy’s Thomas Jefferson National Accelerator Facility. This is the third year that this competition will be held virtually.
Who: Seventeen teams from 11 Virginia schools are registered to compete in the 2023 competition, including five teams from four schools located in Hampton Roads. Each team is comprised of three-five middle school students and a teacher who serves as both advisor and coach.
The 2023 Virginia Regional Middle School Science Bowl Teams include:
BASIS Independent McLean (McLean) – 2 teams
Cooper Middle School (McLean) – 2 teams
Hampton Roads Academy (Newport News) – 2 teams
Longfellow Middle School (Falls Church) – 2 teams
Luther Jackson Middle School (Falls Church)
Nysmith School for the Gifted (Herndon) – 2 teams
Oak Hill Elementary School (Herndon)
Page Middle School (Gloucester)
Peasley Middle School (Gloucester)
Rachel Carson Middle School (Herndon) – 2 teams
Saint Patrick Catholic School (Norfolk)
When: Saturday, March 4, 2023.
Where: Virtual Event.
Time: Opening Session, 8:15 – 8:45 a.m.
Closing Session, 4:00 p.m.
Credentials: News media may contact the Jefferson Lab Communications Office representative listed below by 5 p.m. on Friday, March 3, to attend the tournament’s virtual opening or closing sessions or to receive the results at the end of Saturday's competition and links to portions of recordings of the virtual competition.
Background: The National Science Bowl® has been sponsored annually by the U.S. Department of Energy’s Office of Science since 1991. Approximately 330,000 students have participated in the National Science Bowl® throughout its 32-year history, and it is one of the nation’s largest science competitions. The competition is meant to encourage students to excel in math and science and to pursue careers in science, technology, engineering and math.
Participating teams are quizzed on their knowledge of math and a range of science disciplines. The question categories for both middle school and high school Include biology, chemistry, energy, mathematics, physics and Earth and space science. In each round, each team will have the opportunity to answer all 18 toss-up questions, with each correct answer worth four points. For each correct toss-up question, the team will also be given the opportunity to answer a bonus question for 10 points.
Every team will compete in three preliminary rounds. Each team’s scores in the preliminary rounds will be combined for a total score to determine the top-scoring eight teams who will compete in the elimination rounds.
The top three teams at the regional competition on March 4 will earn cash prizes and team trophies for their respective schools. The top team will also represent Virginia at the National Science Bowl® finals, to be held in-person April 27-May 1, 2023.
The DOE’s Office of Science manages the National Science Bowl® and sponsors the finals competition. The Office of Science is the single largest supporter of basic research in the physical sciences in the United States and is working to address some of the most pressing challenges of our time.
To learn more about DOE's National Science Bowl competition, visit: https://Science.Osti.Gov/Wdts/Nsb
For sample sets of questions and answers that have been used in previous competitions, visit: https://science.osti.gov/wdts/nsb/Regional-Competitions/Resources/MS-Sample-Questions
Contact: Kandice Carter, Jefferson Lab Communications Office, kcarter@jlab.org