PHOTOS: Students Showcase Discoveries at Crompond Science Fair

Yorktown parents, friends and community members were invited to a world of discovery as 's fifth grade students shared their science projects on Thursday. 

Those who gathered made their way around the student-prepared boards and inquired about how they came to conclusions on topics ranging from plant life, energy to comparisons of paper towels, laundry detergents and permanent markers.

Kathleen Muldoon, a school teacher at Crompond who had organized the science fair, said all fifth grade students were required to do a control study as part of the curriculum. 

"They're so proud of it and so excited to tell [everyone] what they did," she said and added that this is just the very first building step for them to develop an interest in science.

All students spoke with excitement about their work and the conclusions they had come to. Some even said they were able to teach visitors something new. 

Paul Turiano discovered that you didn't have to put your bread in a plastic bag to prevent it from getting moldy, as long as it was exposed to ultra violet light. With their "Plants Love Music" project, Casey Gilbert and Kevin Stettnisch came to the conclusion that plants like music and can grow better when the music is loud.

Andrew Longariello's project was based on an experiement he had read about in a "MythBusters" book and discovered that ping pong balls can float from buoyancy and displace water.

Fifth-grader Kileen Forte and her project partner Christina Ruvo worked on discovering how different chapsticks worked and how often they should be applied. They found out that if you wanted your lipstick to last longer, you should use Vaseline. 

"We liked how it was very creative and we got to draw," Kileen said of her project.

Jasmine Laber's project involved figuring out how different temperatures of water affect taking a stain out of a piece of clothing. She said people who checked out her project didn't know they're wasting energy for hot water when they can use cold water, because it works best. 

Another project tested out different types of salt, which Joseph Sgobbo and John Becker put on top of ice to find out which type would dissolve it the fastest. Diane Lang's project involved finding out which orange juice had the most vitamins. Others tested speed, friction and electromagnetics. 

What some moms might have found surprising that day was the outcome of Ryan Onatzevitch and Ryan Serafin's project. The boys did an experiment to see which one of the four laundry detergents they used would do the best job of removing a ketchup stain. They said the most expensive brand did the worst and the least expensive brand took care of the stain the best. 

Was your child at the science fair? Upload your pictures by clicking on "Upload Photos and Videos" above.

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