Montana Kids Explore Hawks, Fingerprints at Science Fair

Ten-year-old Graham Linam noticed something curious on a December bird count: rough-legged hawks appeared less often during warmer winters. So he did what any budding scientist would do—he gathered data from Cornell Lab of Ornithology and NOAA to test his theory.

Graham was one of 170 students who filled Glacier Gateway Elementary's gymnasium in Columbia Falls, Montana on March 5 for the annual Flathead County Science Fair. Third through 12th graders from across the valley brought experiments that ranged from animal color preferences to how music shapes memory.

Eight-year-old Claire Hensley from Edgerton Elementary wanted to know if sand conducts electricity. She set up three plastic tubs with an electric stick—one with water, one with wet sand, and one with dry sand. Her discovery? Sand needs water to carry a current.

"Always check the weather before going to the beach," Claire advised after her experiment.

Eighth grader Madelyn Lee has her sights set on becoming a lawyer, but first she wanted to crack the case of fingerprint dusting. She tested different dusts to see which captured the clearest prints. Her hypothesis favored graphite, but magnetic powder won out instead.

Seventy volunteer judges scored the presentations on thoroughness, originality, and delivery. Judy Scallen, in her sixth year judging, said the creativity never gets old. Marshall Fladager from Applied Materials returned for his second year because the students think about questions he never considers.

"These kids are inquisitive, and they think about stuff I don't think about," Fladager said. "It's really cool."

The Ripple Effect

Jess Hensley, who sits on the Flathead County Science Fair Committee, doesn't know of another Montana county hosting a similar event. She's spent eight years working to keep the program alive because she believes in its power to spark lifelong curiosity.

The gymnasium buzzed with young voices explaining hypotheses, data, and conclusions—proof that scientific thinking thrives when given space to grow. Each project represented hours of wonder, research, and discovery that started with a simple question.

These young scientists aren't just learning the scientific method—they're learning to see the world as a place full of questions worth answering.