Science fair project ideas ~ 2012 • Does music have an effect on animal behaviour? • Does the color of food or drinks affect whether or not we like them? • Where are the most germs in your school? • Which kinds of food do dogs (or any animal) prefer? • Which paper towel brand is the strongest? • What is the best way to keep an ice cube from melting? • Can the food we eat affect our heart rate? • How effective are childproof containers and locks? • Can background noise levels affect how well we concentrate? • What is the best way to keep cut flowers fresh the longest? • Does the color of light used on plants affect how well they grow? • Does the color of hair affect how much • Use seedlings started from seed with three types of soil and different rates of fertilization • Effectiveness of antiseptics and soaps on household bacteria • Effect of air pollution on algae, protozoa, fish, insects or mosses and lichens • Best conditions for mushroom production or growth of ferns • Microbial antagonism • Observation of conditioned responses in different animals • A study of animal phosphorescence and other bioluminescence • Learning and perception in animals and humans • Studies of memory span and memory retention • Effect of age on learning ability • A study of the relation between physical exercise and learning ability • Is audio or visual information better remembered? static electricity it can carry? (test with • Effect of bleaching and dyeing on hair balloons) • Factors affecting plant flowering • How much weight can the surface tension of water support? • Can some people really read other people's thoughts? • Which soda pop decays teeth the most? • Does the color of birdseed affect how much of it birds will eat? • Which works better: natural or chemical fertilizers? • Effects of electric fields on plants • Effects of magnetic fields on plant growth • Effects of magnetism on the size and frequency of blooms and fruits • Does magnetizing seeds before planting affect growth? • Effects of x-ray and other radiation on plants • Can mice learn? (You can pick any animal) • Which brands of bubble gum produce the biggest bubbles? • Does age affect human reaction times? • What is the effect of salt on the boiling temperature of water? • Does shoe design really affect an athlete's jumping height? • Which type of grass seed grows the fastest? • Can animals see in the dark better than humans can? • Effect of sound on plants • A study of propeller designs for wind generators • Effect of music of varying types and duration on plants • Organic fertilizer versus chemical fertilizer • Study of population fluctuations in insects • Toxicity of insecticides at different Temperatures • A study of stimuli that attract mosquitoes • The factors affecting the rate at which a cricket chirps • Growth of plant and animal cells by cloning • Design considerations for solar-heated homes • Study of efficient home insulation • Effects of weather on human emotions • Comparing insulating properties of • Changes in snow density and other various natural and commercial insulators • Effect of landscaping and architecture on energy consumption characteristics over time • The factors affecting ice patterns on glass • An ecological study of the animal and • Structure versus strength in dams plant populations occupying the same • Testing and comparing consumer tree products • Effects of crowding (with the same or • Study of accuracy of calculators other species) on a specific plant • The mathematics of snowflakes • Variations in the ecology of a body of • Observational orbit determination of water comets, meteors or other minor planets • A study of the relation between soil type • Experimental exploration of the photoelectric effect • Experimenting with electron diffraction • A study of radiation patterns from different antenna types • Factors affecting scent propagation and vegetation • A study of the relation between vegetation and insects • Efficient methods of breaking down crude oil in seawater • Find an ink that will decompose for • Factors affecting sound propagation • Crystal growth rates versus solution recycling paper • Studies of storage/retrieval techniques strengths, temperature, etc. • Observation of freezing rates of water for for computer systems • Handling of data transfer between 1/0 different starting temperatures • The physics of ski waves devices • Applications in education using the • Comparison of the load-bearing strength of different soils • Observations of fluctuations in stream flow following rain • Study of air tides: phases of the moon computer as an education tool • Compiler design • Statistics and random number problems • Develop a video game • Write a computer program versus barometric pressure Remember that an idea is just a starting point! Encourage students to think SIDEWAYS! Studying a roller coaster is a great idea. Examining centripetal acceleration is a good place to start, but why stop there? What effect would the number of cars have on acceleration? Test several materials that the cars could be made from. Why not look at varying the number of passengers in each car? Always think about what else could be tested or studied Scientific method The Scientific Method is an organized way of figuring something out. There are usually 6 parts to it, however, these 6 parts DO NOT have to be done in order. It is best to go back and forth through them in the way that makes the most sense relating to your project. 1. Purpose What do you want to learn? An example would be, "Do plants grow faster under different colored lights?" or "Do girls have faster reflexes than boys?" 2. 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. 3. Hypothesis After doing your research, try to predict the answer to the problem. Another term for hypothesis is “educated guess.” A hypothesis is usually expressed something like this: "If I [do something], then [some consequence] will take place." (Never change your hypothesis to fit your experimental findings! Your findings will either confirm or contradict it.) An example of a hypothesis would be, "If I grow plants under green light bulbs, then they will grow faster than plants growing under red light bulbs" 4. Experiment The fun part! Design a test or procedure to confirm or disprove your hypothesis. In our example, you might set up one plant under a green light bulb and another plant under a red light, then observe each for a couple of weeks. You would also set up a plant under regular white light so that you can compare it with the others. You will have to write down exactly what you did for your experiment, step by step. 5. Analysis Examine what happened during the experiment (your “data”). 6. Conclusion Review the data and check to see if your hypothesis was correct. If the plant 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 learned something! From school and regional fairs, you could go on to… Canada-Wide Science Fair http://cwsf.youthscience.ca/ Charlottetown, PEI May 12-18, 2012 The Canada-Wide Science Fair is the largest extra-curricular youth activity related to science and technology in Canada, bringing together our best young minds. Each year, some 450 top young scientists are chosen to compete from the top ranks of approximately 25,000 competitors at over 100 regional science and technology fairs staged across the country. These elite participants compete in 9 divisions and 3 age categories for medals and other prizes totaling over $900,000. For more information on New Brunswick regional science fairs, please visit: www.exposciencesnb.ca. Page 4 Science fair assignment worksheet 1 This worksheet will help you determine when each assignment should be due. Teachers may want to add due dates for rough drafts of key assignments. Assignment Regional Science Fair Application Question Research Plan & Bibliography Variables and Hypothesis Materials and Procedures Conducting the Experiment Data Analysis and Graphs Conclusions Final Report Display Board School Science Fair Regional Science Fair Assignment description (Note: Students should have at least 12 weeks to do their projects) You will want to encourage your students to enter and attend the local city/county science fair if one exists in your area. Check when applications are due, then move this item to the appropriate place in the schedule. Late applications will not be accepted! The specific question the student will be investigating in the project. They must be testing or studying something. The Research Plan is a roadmap of the research questions that need to be answered. The Bibliography is a list of the sources used to answer the research questions. An explanation of which factors will change while conducting the experiment and a hypothesis on the resulting impact of the change. A detailed list of the materials that will be used to conduct the experiment and the detailed steps that will be followed while conduct the experiment There should be a minimum of two weeks here to allow the students to do multiple runs of their experiments. Minimum Trials: 3 runs of experiment. If students are working with plants, they should have 3 plants for each variable tested. The analysis of the experimental data, this is a summary of the findings of the experiment. This is the most important aspect of the science fair display. Encourage a lot of data representation. An explanation of the results of the experiment. A report that collects all the above written assignments in one place plus a short abstract of the project The final project board that will be displayed at the science fair The date the students must turn in their projects to the teacher or to the school science fair Make sure this date is after your own school’s fair date Suggested time to complete this step In-class due date (where applicable) 7 days 7 days 7 days 7 days 14 days 7 days 3 days 7 days 3 days Adapted from http://www.sciencebuddies.org/science-fair-projects/teacher_resources.shtml Tips for hosting a school science fair The following tips, ideas and suggestions will help make your science fair a success for both you and your students: • Select your judges at least 8 weeks in advance of the science fair. Provide them with copies of the judging form so they can be prepared ahead of time. • Invite students to send letters of invitation to the judges. Thank- you letters after the fair would also be appropriate. • Judges can be recruited from different parts of the community (college professors, high school teachers, business people, shopkeepers, parents, etc.). Including people from different walks of life will help ensure extended community involvement. • Set up the science fair (gymnasium, auditorium, or classroom) approximately 48 hours in advance of the actual fair. Walk a group of students through the exhibits to "test" for traffic patterns, loose cords, safety problems, etc. • Organize the room according to science topics: place all the Biotechnology/Health/Life Science projects in one area, all the Physical Science projects in another, Earth/Environmental Science in a third, and Physical/Mathematical Science in a fourth area. • Projects requiring electricity should be placed on tables against walls. • Arrange to have student monitors in attendance during any viewing times. Provide them with badges or appropriate ribbons. • Invite a reporter and photographer from the local newspaper to cover the event. • Schedule one or more evening sessions for parents and community members to view the exhibits and displays. • Take photographs or a videotape of the entire science fair. Use it in your preparations for next year's science fair, to provide students with ideas for exhibits and displays. Students may also want to use this photographic record to create a special notebook or diary for inclusion in the school library. • Be sure to advertise the science fair throughout the school and throughout the community. • Invite teachers and other school personnel to contribute projects to the science fair, too. This modeling can be a stimulus for increased student participation. • Schedule a special post-fair ceremony that recognizes every entrant. • Keep an on-going journal of all the preparations done prior to the fair. Record both positive and negative events. This journal can be extremely helpful in planning future events. Science fair resources for teachers BBC Learn about how to handle data on this interactive website. Activities teach how to collect, record, and represent data with information pages, activities, and tests. http://www.bbc.co.uk/schools/ks3bitesize/maths/handling_data/ National Centre for Education Statistics – NCES Kids Use this interactive tool to help create a number of types of graphs. Sidebars give explanations and definitions to help students through the process. Examples are given and graphs can be printed or saved. http://nces.ed.gov/nceskids/createagraph/default.aspx Pete’s Power Point Station Free PowerPoint presentations and printable templates, with lots of information about graphic organizers. Many links made to Language Studies, but the principles of communication still apply in Science. http://themes.pppst.com/graphic-organizers.html Holt Online Learning - Holt, Rinehart, and Winston An excellent website with interactive graphic organizers to download as PDFs. Information can be typed into these organizers, then printed. An excellent resource for teachers as well as students, it includes teaching notes with lessons and tips. http://my.hrw.com/nsmedia/intgos/html/igo.htm Interactive Science Teacher This website has a link to download a power point presentation specifically about line graphs, bar graphs, and circle graphs. Each slide is created bit-by-bit so you, the teacher, can set the pace. Each slide has at the bottom with tips and information for teaching each slide. http://www.interactivescienceteacher.com/3-graphs.asp Science Buddies An excellent resource with tons of links to help teachers work their way through science fairs. Includes a teacher’s guide to science fair projects, grading rubrics, judging guide, and much more. http://www.sciencebuddies.org/science-fair-projects/teacher_resources.shtml Neat sheets Great handouts that would be fabulous for science fair preparations. Click on the link for the library (you do not have to register). Next, go to “Steps to Inquiry Kindergarten to Grade 6” to find K-6 Steps to Inquiry Handouts. These are great for any grade K-12, not just K-6 as indicated. www.smarterscience.ca