My name is Michelle Li. I’m an Executive Team member and instructor here at ScioVirtual. I’m also Dynamic Planet Event Leader on Mason High School’s Science Olympiad team (2021 and 2022 National Champions).

Throughout my Scioly journey, one of the most difficult and time-consuming tasks is always creating my binders and cheatsheets at the beginning of each season. This issue stems mostly from the fact that each Scioly event encompasses such a large range of topics, so finding high-quality resources for each and every of these individual topics is basically a wild goose chase.

Thus, in hopes of making this study process more streamlined for you all out there, here is a compilation of my favorite earth science resources, along with tips for studying success.

Earth and Space Science is one of the four Science Olympiad domains, the others being Life Science, Physics and Chemistry, and Technology and Inquiry. As the name implies, it includes events pertaining to earth and astronomical sciences, including geology, meteorology, oceanography, astronomy, etc. All Earth Science events are study events, meaning students take a 50-minute written test and there is no lab or build portion.

Related majors and careers: hydrology, geology, ecology, environmental science

Dynamic Planet is an event that dives into processes that change the Earth. The topic on which the event focuses rotates every year between hydrology, glaciology, oceanography, and tectonics. This year, it is hydrology – students will learn topics pertaining to Earth’s freshwater systems, including stream flow and drainage, groundwater and aquifers, lake formation and types, wetlands, and the effects of human activity on bodies of water. In terms of resources, students have a two-inch binder with which to take the test. Dynamic Planet is also a Division C event, so students can continue competing in it all through high school.

Related majors and careers: meteorology, climatology, environmental science

Meteorology focuses on understanding Earth’s weather and climate phenomenon. Topics covered include Earth’s atmosphere, energy balance, oceanic and atmospheric circulation, climate zones, and recent climate trends including climate change. This event also relies heavily on interpreting graphs and data, so it’s great for anyone who is analytical. Contestants bring two cheatsheets to competition. This event is most similar to the Division C event Remote Sensing.

Related majors and careers: geology, topography, cartography, land surveying

Road Scholar deals primarily with maps – reading topographic maps, highway maps, and satellite and internet maps, as well as constructing your own maps and topographic profiles. The student-constructed map is a key part of this event, so I would recommend it to anyone who is precise and meticulous in drawing. The great thing about this event is that it rarely changes from year to year – it doesn’t have a rotating topic of focus like other events; so, once you learn it, you can continue competing in it for the rest of your Division B career before moving on to Geologic Mapping, Road Scholar’s Division C counterpart. Students can bring measuring devices and reference materials, such as the USGS Topographic Map Symbols sheet, to competition.

Related majors and careers: geology, mineralogy, petrology, mining engineering

Rocks and Minerals is about exactly what is stated in the name: rocks and minerals. Students learn general geology topics such as rock formation, the rock cycle, the chemical and physical properties of minerals, etc. The bulk of the event, however, centers around identifying and answering questions about a list of ~100 rocks and minerals. This means students will have to make an ID binder and memorize the general appearance and properties of each rock or mineral. ID events are time-consuming, but can also be a lot of fun once you get the hang of them. Teams use two-inch binders in competition. Rocks and Minerals is also a Division C event, but it rotates with Fossils, so you might not be able to compete in it every year.

Related majors and careers: astronomy, physics and astrophysics, cosmology

Solar System is an event that explores celestial objects, space, and the physical universe as a whole. The topic of focus this year is planet formation and structure. Students must understand the formation, structure, and properties of terrestrial planets, gaseous planets, moons, and minor celestial bodies. They may also be tested on general knowledge such as Solar System evolution, planetary missions, and surface-level orbital mechanics. Each team can use two pages of cheatsheets during competitions. This event is the precursor to Division C Astronomy.

When you first start Scioly, or middle school in general, the best thing you can do for yourself is take time to develop efficient, sustainable study habits.

Here’s what works for me: I begin the year by Google-searching every topic listed on the Official Science Olympiad Rules and reading two or three good sources on each. (Look for credible sources like the NOAA, NASA, universities, etc.) As I read, I take notes on a document. When all these notes are done, I format, and this formatted document becomes my binder or cheatsheet.

Once my binders and cheatsheets are made, I commit to taking around one practice test per week. Take each test in a real testing environment — time yourself, don’t use outside resources, etc. Then, when I’m done, I take the time to grade each test and correct the questions I missed. By correct, I mean researching the topic of the question in-depth with a Google search and adding your findings to your binder or cheatsheet. By repeating this process weekly, you’ll compile a good variety of information.

Dynamic Planet is a pure study event, so your success is determined solely by your ability to master a broad range of information and create a quality resource (Dynamic Planet is a binder event). So, here are my top study links and practice tests for each topic. (And a quick note: Dynamic Planet rules are often the exact same for Division B and Division C, so even if you’re a middle schooler, you can still use Division C tests to study! I actually recommend these for higher-level competitors, as they’re usually harder and higher quality.)

First, before all else, print the USGS Topographic Map Symbols and put it in your binder.

Next, to learn how to read topographic maps. This is honestly fairly straightforward, as long as you understand the basic principles behind how these maps are made. The contour lines on the map connect points of equal elevation, and the elevation of the lines increases at a constant interval called the contour interval. The contour interval is written at the bottom of the map, but you can calculate it as well. Also at the bottom of the map is the scale (something like 1:24,000). This means one inch on the map equals 24,000 inches or 2,000 feet on the ground. This is helpful for questions asking for the distance between things.

Drawing maps was my favorite part of this event, but it took a lot of work to master. There was a period of time where I would take one practice test daily and only do the map-drawing section. You by no means need to practice this intensely, but you definitely need experience under your belt by the time you compete.

This event covers the solar system — the history of the solar system, basic information about each planet, Newton’s and Kepler’s Laws, etc. In certain years there has also been a topic of focus, which since 2018 has been “terrestrial planets and other rocky bodies in the solar system,” but has also previously been “extraterrestrial water.” This event also rotates with Reach for the Stars, which is more similar to Division C Astronomy in that it covers stars and deep sky objects as opposed to planets. However, this guide will center around Solar System as that is the projected event for the 2022-23 season.

ScioVirtual regularly runs Astronomy classes and has a plethora of experienced Astronomy competitors on our staff. If you’re interested in seeing more resources from past Astronomy classes, you can view this Google Drive folder. If you’d like live instruction in Astronomy, you can sign up for ScioCamp.

Meteorology is the science of the atmosphere, and the projected topic of focus for the 2022-23 season is everyday weather.

Thus, Meteorology is a comprehensive event with different skills tested, which means you need the ability to think critically about and build connections between everything you learn. The article below gives a pretty good description of how to do that.

You can find some practice with problem solving through ScioVirtual class problem sets.

This event is essentially looking at pictures of rocks and minerals, identifying them, and then answering the following questions that ask you about said specimen. There’s also usually a general earth-based knowledge section as well as a specified one. Examples of topics from these sections may include tectonics and twinning.

Famous scientist Thomas Huxley said:

If you want to change the world by solving challenging problems (or if you just want to do well on science tests), you need to understand a bit about everything. Real innovation happens through combining different subjects in a powerful way that no one has before thought of.