1. Think.
Think about what you're interested in! You may want to browse the science section at the library, look through a science textbook for ideas, or, with a grownup, use the internet.
2. Get a notebook.
Write down your ideas in a notebook. Keep this notebook to record information, data, resources, and other information.
3. Research.
You can find information about your topic by asking parents, teachers, or others, by using the internet, or by reading about it in an encyclopedia, dictionary, or another book or periodical (magazine) from the library. Use your notebook to write down your resources (the website address, or name and author of the book, periodical, or person) and a summary of what you learned.
You will need to have at least two sources.
You could also make observations (in nature, or of the thing you're interested in) and record them in your notebook. Be sure to include the date with each observation, and any other information that may be important in your notebook. You may want to use a table to record observations made over time. If you collect items as you're making observations, be sure to write down the time and place that you collected them.
4. Think some more.
Think about what you would like to do for your project. Write your ideas down in your notebook. Then choose the one you like best.
You will want to reference the review form so you will know what the reviewer will be looking for and asking on the day of the science fair.
- You could make a model or diagram of a scientific process, principle, or system, such as electrical currents, earth/moon system, molecules, volcano, water cycle, etc.
- You could do an experiment in which the scientific method* is used to investigate the effects of a controlled variable.
- You could do a demonstration of a scientific principle, or an "experiment" in which the outcome is known.
- You could do a report in which you explain the things you've learned, or analyze the observations you've made.
- You could compile (collect) a collection of items, such as rocks, leaves, insects, seeds, or fossils.
5. Make a plan.
Plan for the project. Use the review form for your type of project on the homepage. If you're doing an experiment, write down the Question/Purpose of the experiment and the Hypothesis (what you think will happen) in your notebook. Make a list of supplies and write down the procedure (what you will do). If appropriate, make a table to record the data.
Plan a time or times when you will carry out your plan.
Be sure to leave enough time to put together an interesting, appealing display after you carry out your plan, and leave some time to practice presenting your project like you will do on Science Fair Day.
6. Do it!
Take notes and record data in your notebook as you carry out your plan. Also, take some pictures! You can download pictures on the home page.
7. Make a display.
Make a science fair project display that is organized, interesting, and appealing (looks nice). Your display should include the title of the project, your name, and your teacher's name, among other things.
Find the review form on the homepage for what to include on your poster.
Many students find it helpful to use a tri-fold display board which can be purchased at WalMart, Target, and other retailers. Even if you're not doing an "experiment", it may be helpful to organize your display according to the Scientific Method*, in which you list the purpose, and the expected outcome, along with procedure, data (if any), analysis, and conclusion. (See more info on the scientific method below.)
**Remember, Washington is a Latex Free School.**
Please do
not bring latex balloons, gloves or other materials to school as part of your display. If you use them when doing your project, you may take pictures, and include them in your display.
8. Prepare for the Interview
Think about the questions you will be asked during the interview on Science Fair Day, and be prepared to answer them. Use the review form on the homepage to help guide you. Be sure to bring your notebook on Science Fair Day, since it will have all of your original information/data/resources.
The Scientific Method
*The Scientific Method is an organized way of figuring something out. There are usually seven parts to it.
- Purpose/Question- What do you want to learn? An example would be, "What doorknob in school has the most germs ?" or "Do girls have faster reflexes than boys?" or "Does the color of a light bulb affect the growth of grass seeds?"
- Research- Find out as much as you can. Look for information in books, on the internet, and by talking with teachers to get the most information you can before you start experimenting.
- Hypothesis- After doing your research, try to predict the answer to the problem. Another term for hypothesis is 'educated guess'. This is usually stated like " If I...(do something) then...(this will occur)"
An example would be, "If I grow grass seeds under green light bulbs, then they will grow faster than plants growing under red light bulbs."
- Experiment- The fun part! Design a test or procedure to find out if your hypothesis is correct. In our example, you would set up grass seeds under a green light bulb and seeds under a red light and observe each for a couple of weeks. You would also set up grass seeds under regular white light so that you can compare it with the others. If you are doing this for a science fair, you will probably have to write down exactly what you did for your experiment step by step.
- Results- Record what happened during the experiment. Also known as 'data'.
- Analysis- A discussion of the data or results. This sometimes includes possible sources of errors.
- Conclusion- Review the data and check to see if your hypothesis was correct. If the grass under the green light bulb grew faster, then you proved your hypothesis, if not, your hypothesis was wrong. It is not "bad" if your hypothesis was wrong, because you still discovered something!
A few other terms you may need to know:
- Independent Variable
This is the part of your experiment that you will test (vary) to answer your hypothesis. In the example above, the independent variable would be the different colors of the light bulbs.
- Dependent Variable
This is what occurs in response to the changing independent variable. In our example the Dependent Variable is how much the grass seeds grow.
- Control
The control should be the part of the experiment where you do not include the Independent Variable. In our example, grass seed that is growing under the white (uncolored) bulb would be your control. The control lets you compare your results in the experiment.
Resource: https://sciencebob.com/science-fair-ideas/the-scientific-method/