FORSYTH COUNTY — School curriculum and extracurricular activities in Forsyth County have placed a spotlight on technology in recent years, from robotics teams and science, technology, engineering and mathematics programs to modern labs and initiatives to supply low-income students with mobile devices and the Internet.

One way to showcase the application of a student’s technological learning is through the forthcoming Forsyth County Technology Fair, for which registration is open until Jan. 8.

The fair, which will be held at Whitlow Elementary on Jan. 30, is open to all third- through 12th-grade students in Forsyth County — public, private and home schooled.

“We are a very technology forward-thinking county, so a lot of these students are already doing these projects,” said Karen Daughtery, an informational technology specialist at Whitlow and the director of the event.

Forsyth initiated the tech fair program in 2001, expanding it to the state level in 2002.

Daughtery said about 150 projects are judged each year in a number of categories: 3D modeling; animation; audio production; device modification; digital photo production; game design; graphic design; internet applications; mobile apps; multimedia applications; non-multimedia applications; project programming robotics; tech literacy challenge; tech programming challenge; and video production.

Grade-level divisions for judging are: third-fourth grades; fifth-sixth grades; seventh-eighth grades; ninth-10thgrades; and 11th-12thgrades.

The hardware category and programming challenge divisions are open only to seventh-12thgrades.

First-place winners in each grade level and category will represent Forsyth — its own region — at the state level March 5.

Daughtery said many students tend to take home top prizes at the state tech fair each year.

“We have students who have been doing the tech fair since third grade and are now in high school,” she said.

Scholarships are awarded to the highest-placing high school senior in every category.

It costs $10 for each student to enter January’s competition. However, businesses, schools or parent teacher associations can sponsor a school.

By paying $200, students who register at their school will have the $10 fee waived, and the sponsor’s logo will be displayed on the county and state tech fair website.

For more information or to register, visit techfair.forsyth.k12.ga.us.