Science Fair

Dear Parents,

It is Science Fair Time! The Science Fair is an important part of your student(s) education and required school-wide project. Students must complete a scientific experiment and NOT just a simple demonstration. An experiment usually occurs over time and takes multiple trials to complete. A big component of the Science Fair Projects is the display. Students should have a standard size tri-fold display board. This can be purchased at any teacher or office supply store. All components must be typed and displayed on the board along with pictures and charts.  Students are required to have a written report that includes title page, acknowledgement, abstract, safety sheet, scientific method, review of literature and reference list. 

Following the attached timeline will keep your student(s) on tract and insure that your students have correctly completed the necessary steps and can move forward to the next component. Middle School students are urged to put effort into their idea and hypothesis formation, because it is the basis to create a workable experiment. 

• All science fair projects are due on October 17, 2016.
• Classroom presentations begin October 18, 2016.
• The School-Wide Science Fair is held on October 28, 2016.

Winners will move forward. We encourage all students to be committed to their Science Fair Projects and do their very best. They are the future inventors and scientists. Attached are some helpful documents that will help when completing the project.

COMPONENTS	DUE DATE	DATE
PART 1
Topic Selection	9/19/16
Hypothesis	9/19/16
PART 2
Material List	9/26/16
Procedures	9/26/16
Reference List (Bibliography)	10/03/16
PART 3
Construction of Display	10/11/16
Classroom Presentation	10/18/16

As needed, please give yourself enough time to retest your data.  It is important to test the experiment at least three times before developing a conclusion. 

The Scientific Method

The Scientific Method is an organized way of figuring something out. There are usually six 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.

Analysis- Record what happened during the experiment. Also known as 'data'.

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.

Note: Student must follow this format below.  Abstract and safety sheet must be visible on the board along with the variables.

Checklist for the Physical Arrangement of the Science Fair Project Paper

___Abstract

• Paper and copy must be displayed on front of display board
• Three (3) paragraphs with heading: Purpose, Procedure and Conclusion
• Typed single space, 200 words or less
• Check appropriate box either Experimental or Degree Investigation

___Safety Sheet

• Paper and copy must be displayed on the front of the display board
• List possible hazards, precautions described
• If no hazards were possible a statement indicating this is included

___Title Page of Research Summary

• Indicate type of investigation either Experimental or Design

___Table Contents

• Project title and exhibitor’s last name typed at the top left corner 
• Pagination is accurate

___Acknowledgements

• Credit is given to those who have helped with the research

___Purpose And Hypothesis

• State precisely what the investigation was attempting to discover
• Hypothesis is present

___Review of Literature

• Provide information that supports the hypothesis and if necessary, the procedure
• Provide adequate background information about the topic
• Use of third person is evident

___Materials and Methods of Procedure

• All equipment and material are listed
• Step by step, chronological procedures are present and replicable
• A control or comparison group is present and appropriate
• Number of trials within each test group is adequate
• Control of variables is evident

Thank You,

Junior High Team