Science Fair



Students and Parents:

Middle School Science students are required to do a Science Fair or Engineering Project this year. Please see the teacher for more details. EXTRA CREDIT MAY BE AWARDED FOR SCIENCE FAIR PARTICIPATANTS (SARSEF). If, your project is chosen to represent the school at SARSEF and you will need to miss a day of school for the competition.

Step 1: Students will need to start a Journal to log all components of the Science Fair/Engineering Project.

Step 2: Students will submit a proposal form with all group members’ names.

Step 2: Students will submit a Materials and testing procedures form.

Step 3: Students will conduct Background Research.

Step 4: Once Science Fair proposal form is completed and group members determined, your science teacher will approve the project.

Step 5: Students will be allowed to complete the Science Fair/Engineering project by conducting the experiment, creating data/charts and doing a conclusion. A full size Science Fair Board will be required. Individual or groups of 2 or 3 people will be allowed. This Science Fair project will be submitted to the teacher and possibly selected to enter the SARSEF regional science fair.

• No topics will be allowed that involve humans, animals, or something that has a risk of harm (even simple surveys)!

• If you need more information, would like to read-up on good Project design, or want to learn about the SARSEF regional Science Fair please visit the following link at the SARSEF site .

• Project ideas:

• Rules and requirements:

|Due Dates: |For: |

|Due Date: __________________________  |Brainstorming |

| |Science Project Ideas Investigation, Signature page and |

|Due Date: ___________________________ |Journal to log all steps of the project. |

|Due Date: __________________________  |Background Research (and Journal Check) |

|Due Date: __________________________  |Materials and Experimental Procedures (Journal Check) |

|Due Date: __________________________  |Collect Data (The experiment is completed over a few weeks, |

| |but all data is completed and due on this date) |

|Due Date: __________________________  |Data tables –Competed (and Journal check) |

|Due Date: ___________________________ |Graphs- competed (and Journal check) |

|Due Date: __________________________  |Abstract (and Journal Check) |

|Due Date: __________________________  |Conclusion and Data Analysis |

|PROJECT DUE:____________________ |Middle School Science Fair/Engineering Project DUE |

| |(All parts on a display board) |

|SARSEF April 11-14, 2018- Judging day: APRIL 12, 2018  |SARSEF—Regional Science Fair (if your project is chosen) |

Student Signature: _________________________________________________________________

Parent/Guardian Signature: _____________________________________________________________

Steps to Prepare a Science Fair Project or Engineering project:

1. Get a Science Fair Journal

• Brainstorm ideas, chose topic, log all steps and parts of the experiment in detail.

2. Select a Topic

• A Science Fair Project or an Engineering project. Review criteria for each type of project. 3. Gather Background Information

• Gather information about your topic from books, magazines, the Internet, people and companies.

• Keep notes about where you got your info.

4. Scientific Method (This will vary depending if an Engineering project or Science Fair project)

• State the Purpose of your experiment: What are you trying to find out? This is your “Question” or “Problem” you are trying to solve.

• Select a variable (something you will change/vary) that will help you find your answer.

• State your Hypothesis—your guess about what the answer will be.

• Decide on and describe how you will change the thing you selected.

• Decide on and describe how you will measure your results.

5. Run Controlled Experiment and Record Data (This will vary depending if an Engineering project or Science Fair project)

• Do the experiment as described above.

• Keep notes in one place- THE JOURNAL. Write down everything you can think of, you might need it later.

6. Graphs and Charts (This will vary depending if an Engineering project or Science Fair project)

• What happened? Answer that question, and then put the results in graphs and charts.

7. Construct an Exhibit or Display

• It has to be neat, but it does not have to be typed.

• Make it fun, but be sure people can understand what you did.

• Show that you used the Scientific Method.

8. Write a short Report

• Tell the story of your project—tell what you did and exactly how you did it.

• Abstract

9. Practice Presentation to Judges

• Practice explaining your project to someone (parent, friend, grandparent, etc.)

• This will help you be calm on Science Fair Day. The judges are very nice and will be interested in what you did and what you learned.

The above is borrowed from a Minnesota school website entitled “Cyber-Fair”: isd77.k12.mn.us/resources/cf/steps.html, written by Yvonne Karsten (Parent and Science Fair Coordinator at Kennedy Elementary School 1994-1996).

Due Date: _____________________

Each student will submit the following information for their Science Project. This cannot be a duplication of someone else’s, please! Topics MUST be at a middle school level or POINTS WILL BE REDUCED. The most important aspect of a Science Project is that the student chooses a testable question that they are truly interested in! I will be working:

____ by myself.

____ with approved partner(s): ________________________________________.

1. The testable and engaging question I/we will be investigating is:___________________________________________________________________________________

2. Is this project an Engineering project or a Science Fair project? ________________

3. My hypotheses for the outcome of the investigation or Describe the Engineering project:_________________________________________________________________________________

4. The manipulated variable (independent variable) is or how am I going to build the item different ways? ________________________________________________________________________________________

5. The responding variable is (dependent variable): ___________________________________________

6. Collected data will be:

____ Quantitative only

____ Qualitative only

____ Both Quantitative and Qualitative

7. In one or more paragraph(s), explain why you chose this topic or subject of question—why does this interest you? What about it intrigues and engages you? Be specific!!!-WRITE THIS ON A SPEPERATE SHEET OF PAPER!

8. If you had to “dive deeper” into this subject, what would you choose to concentrate on? What could you do to further study or research this topic?

9. Does your investigation involve the use of any of the following: human subjects, vertebrate animals, animal tissues, recombinant DNA, pathogenic organisms, or controlled substances?

____ No. ____ Yes—Then you cannot do this topic!!

Before signing below, make sure you have completed each step above.

Student Signature: ___________________________________________________

Parent/Guardian Signature: ____________________________________________

Each student will submit the following information for their Science Project. This cannot be a duplication of some one else’s, please! You may attach additional sheets to this if necessary.

Due Date: ________________________

1. Partner(s) (if applicable): _____________________________________________________

2. Question for investigation:

3. List all the materials you would need for testing your scientific problem/hypothesis. Include the amount needed, if applicable.

4. Create a list of detailed procedures you would follow for testing your question. Include information that shows how your inquiry will follow good experimental design (only changing one variable at a time; number of trials; adequate sample size, etc.). Be clear and put the procedures in a logical and numbered list.

5. Draw a diagram (or diagrams) explaining your experimental (On back of handout if more room is needed)

6. Are any of the materials or steps in the procedure problematic (cost, difficulty to get or do, dangerous). If so, how are you going to deal with this?

7. Include a sample data table (On back of handout):

Before signing below, make sure you have completed each step above.

Student Signature: ___________________________________________________

Parent/Guardian Signature: _____________________________________________

Each student will submit the following information for their Science Project. You may attach additional sheets to this if necessary.

Due Date: __________________

1. Partner(s) (if applicable): _____________________________________________________________

2. Identify a Question for investigation: ______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Research 3 resources to support your topic (You may want to printout the articles for future use):

3. Title of resource #1: ______________________________________________________

Date of resource & Website: ______________________________________________________

Brief summary of importance of this source to project: ____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

4. Title of resource #2: ______________________________________________________

Date of resource & Website: ______________________________________________________

Brief summary of importance of this source to project: ____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

5. Title of resource #3: ______________________________________________________

Date of resource & Website: ______________________________________________________

Brief summary of importance of this source to project: ____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

7. Has this project been done before? If so…..how will you do it differently?

9. Brainstorm ways you can test your question (Think about is it affordable and realistic)

10. Make a plan for how you will find out the answer to your question.

11. TYPE UP 1-3 PARAGRAPH SUMMARY EXPLAINING HOW YOUR BACKGROUND INFORMAITON IS SUPPORTING YOUR QUESTION/HYPOTHESES. SAVE THIS FOR YOUR PROJECT BOARD.

ABSTRACT

Write a 250 word abstract (this will be typed and put on your project):

Due Date:________________

• Write using complete sentences and in paragraph form.

• Brief Summary of project

• Analysis of results and the why

• Problems you encountered

• Extensions and real world applications

• Use your notes as a guide.

• Use your own words—don’t plagiarize!

• Add connective words to make your writing clear.

• You will need to cite your sources.

RESULTS/CONCLUSION:

(This should be typed and formatted to fit on your board)

• Summaries your data/results

o Review hypothesis

▪ 1-2 sentences

o Use data to say if correct or not

▪ Use data to support interpretation and conclusion of hypothesis

• 1-2 sentences

o Review data table and graph results (explain what the numbers mean)

▪ Appropriate application of mathematical methods for comparison

• 2-3 sentences explaining data table

• 2-3 sentences explaining graph

o Use a science to explain your results

▪ 2-3 sentences

• Discuss any trends you noticed in your data.

o 1-3 sentences depending on what you noticed

• Engineering: why is one proto-type better than the other?

o 3-5 sentences

o You should have a graph that shows why one proto-type is better

▪ Explain what the findings mean.

• 2-3 sentences

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Science Project

Packet

Name:

Names:

Grade:

AFT/Period:

Science Project

Investigation Proposal

Name:

Due Date:

Period:

N

Science Project

Materials and Testing Procedures

Background Research

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