Three times a week, thirty students at Longfellow Middle School in McLean, Virginia gather after classes to prepare for the Science Olympiad. These students were chosen from about 120 who tried out for the team earlier in the school year. The goal is to continue Longfellow’s record of 13 consecutive state titles in the competition. Since 2002, the school has won the state championship 19 times and achieved a national ranking as high as fifth place.
Students on the team have various backgrounds; some participated in similar programs during elementary school, while others joined to connect with peers who share an interest in science.
“It seemed like a cool opportunity to research things, build stuff, and meet other people who like to do the same,” said eighth grader Kayla. She decided to try out after seeing a friend’s post about Science Olympiad on Instagram and prepared by studying for a one-hour test on general science knowledge.
Seventh grader Richard explained that participants must understand topics such as plant life cycles, physics laws, atomic structure, rainbow formation, and the periodic table. Those scoring in the top half of the initial test move on to building challenges—this year constructing a tower from specific materials that could support a set number of pennies. The top thirty performers make it onto Longfellow’s Science Olympiad roster.
Once selected, students choose three subject areas from over twenty options—including anatomy, heredity, meteorology, and entomology—to focus on throughout the year.
“I’ve learned how to build circuits, solve codes, and about different muscle systems in Science Olympiad,” Richard said.
Esher, another seventh grader with an interest in water quality due to raising fish at home, shared: “When you have fish at home, understanding water quality is important. Half of what we need to know for water quality I already knew. I learned for fun, going to streams, trying to think of more ways to keep my fish healthy at home.”
Calix joined because he enjoys research and believes skills like organization and time management will be useful later in life.
Parents are also key contributors; they help mentor students or assist with logistics such as supervision or providing snacks. Lindsay and Amit Sharma—parents of seventh grader Ari—described families’ commitment: “Our families are all in and totally committed,” Amit said. “Some kids are having Zoom meetings at 9 on Friday nights to brush up on their subjects.”
Lindsay assists with forensic science activities despite no prior experience with Science Olympiad: “When you see how it brings your child to life, if this is their thing, you want to support that,” she said. “Especially at this age when so many kids are seeking more independence from their parents—it is nice to have a way to stay involved and supportive.”
Coach Julie Cox highlighted community involvement as essential: “It truly is not just a commitment of students; our families really step up and help out a ton too—it’s like having 30 different coaches.” Cox added that accumulated knowledge benefits current teams since notes are shared each year. She sometimes contacts alumni now in high school or college for advice: “It is not uncommon for me to hear back from the alums within the hour,” Cox said. “That’s how strong the bonds are to this program.”
Eighth grader Jolyn spoke about maintaining tradition: “Having a 13-year streak of state championship wins is a big deal,” she says. “Knowing we don’t want to be the ones to break it keeps us going.”
More information about FCPS Strategic Plan 2023-2030’s Goal 5 “Leading for Tomorrow’s Innovation,” which includes initiatives like Science Olympiad programs at schools such as Longfellow Middle School can be found online.
