In one corner of the classroom, a group of students watched closely as a turtle slowly made its way along a table. In another corner, two girls studied a case of dried insect specimens. Near the front of the room, a trio of boys in lab coats and goggles carefully dipped test strips into samples of water from the fish tank. And in the back, a group of students clustered around their teacher, who reached into the cabinet and hoisted aloft a large skull.

“You can tell what kind of animal it is by studying the teeth!” a boy called out.

It was just another day in the life of the Science Olympiad team at JHS 194 in Whitestone, which took home a 2nd-place trophy in this year’s citywide competition.

At Science Olympiad competitions, teams of 15 students participate in 22 separate events, with each student choosing three to four events to concentrate on over the course of the year. Some events require them to build something in advance, like simple machines or robots. Some events, like Crime Busters — in which students analyze fingerprints and blood splatter patterns — take the form of labs on the day of the competition. Still others are “study events,” in which students study a topic over the course of the year and take tests to determine their knowledge.

Made up of 30 students in 6th to 8th grade who practice after school two days a week, the team at JHS 194 is spearheaded by a trio of teachers who divvied up their areas of responsibility based on their own interests and expertise. Teacher Maria Barber, for example, is known as the team’s resident rocks and minerals expert.

“We have that passion for the subject, and they see that,” said Darlene Colmone, an 8th-grade science teacher and 31-year veteran.

“It’s a great way to learn beyond what we learn in class,” said Max, an 8th-grader who’s been on the team for two years. “Sometimes you feel like you want to give up in science class because it’s hard, but Science Olympiad gives you a better liking for the subject because it’s hands-on.”

Alexandra Heitner, a 7th-grade science teacher and the final member of the trio, said the Science Olympiad allowed students to gain deep content knowledge. “They get to go in depth and research a topic all year,” she said. “They really become little experts.”