Launching gliders from a balloon, building a 10-gram tower capable of holding 15 kilograms and building a robot to perform a task are the kinds of things that make science fun and, on April 5, competitive.

More than 900 Kansas students will put their creative and scientific skills to the test in the 21st annual Kansas Science Olympiad tournament, hosted by Wichita State University.

Events will take place in various venues throughout the campus, starting at 9 a.m. Saturday, April 5. The locations and times of events that are open to the public can be found at webs.wichita.edu/scienceolympiad.

Sixty teams of middle and high school students will challenge each other in 46 events. The participating teams advanced to the state contest from five regional contests.

The winning team in the middle and high school divisions qualify for the National Science Olympiad to be held at George Washington University on May 30 and 31. Kansas teams have a tradition of doing well at the national tournament.

The Kansas Science Olympiad is supported by corporate donations, with companies also providing many of the volunteers needed to judge the contest. LSI is a major sponsor. Other contributors are BG Products Inc., Air Products & Chemicals Inc., Barton Solvents, the Sallie Mae Fund and Lubrication Engineers.

WSU’s Fairmount Center for Science and Mathematics Education coordinates the contest and provides training to coaches each fall.