Science Research Project Getting Started

Science Research Grade Sheet O Keep track of due dates on your own O I will announce any extensions or changed dates O Each check point counts for 5 points out of a 50 point test grade O The project exhibit (tri-board) is another 50 point test grade O The research paper is a 100 point test grade

Log Book O Must be a composition notebook O Must have IN CLASS on Tuesday 8/9/16. Remember, no late work is accepted O Leave room for Table of contents O Number all pages O Include metric measurements O Must use pen, never tear out pages, or scribble out wiritng O Write date and time of observations O Take pictures, record date, time and location, glue them in O Keep track of materials and their cost O Once you’ve settled on a topic, write, write, write!

Choosing a Topic O Official topics must be approved by me on a topic approval sheet (found on my webpage) O Due 8/16 O Review “Science Project Topics to Avoid” hand out O Any topic that includes anything on this list will not be approved O Start out broad O What general area of science is most interesting to you? O Narrow in on a specific topic from there by following your interests O and-subcategories (ISEF Categories) and-subcategories

Choosing a Topic O Come up with a minimum of 3 potential research questions by 8/5 (use notebook paper) O Be ambitious O Your project should be challenging and relevant O Be realistic O Set high goals but know your limitations O Be detailed O Write the question, then elaborate. Explain exactly what it is you want to research O I will be reading your ideas outside of class. I need to clearly understand what you’ve written without you being present to explain it to me.

Getting your topic approved O Work hard O Choosing a good topic that you are interested in will take some thought O I will not choose a project for you! O Expect to revise O I will provide feedback on your topics and you should plan to adjust accordingly and resubmit O Be patient O For many students, topic approval is a long back and forth process O Do not get discouraged if many of your ideas are not approved. Think about why they weren’t accepted and take that into consideration in the future

After your topic is approved O Record your research question in your log book O It does not have to be perfect O You may slightly adjust or add to your question as you move through the experiment O Begin conducting background research O Be sure to write where you found the information so you can include it in your bibliography

Research Plan O Question O Should already have a solid, well-written question at this point O Hypothesis O Detailed sentence explaining what you predict will be the result of your experiment. It should be a strong, direct statement. O Ex: Seagrass fragmentation has a negative effect on the abundance of organisms that inhabit seagrass beds; the more fragmented the seagrass bed, the fewer the organisms. O Null Hypothesis O No relationship between two measured phenomenon O Ex: Seagrass fragmentation has no effect on the abundance of organisms that inhabit a seagrass bed.

Research Plan O Procedure O Plan out every single little detail you can think of in your logbook O When you actually conduct the experiment you will write out the procedure as you do it, even if it ends up being exactly the same (although that is highly unlikely) O Risks and Safety O Identify all risks and precautions that should be taken O Data analysis O What will you do with the data you collect?

Research Plan O Bibliography O I am requiring at least 5 peer reviewed journal articles in your bibliography O You may also use books and credible websites O I recommend using Google Scholar or Galileo to find such articles O Read the abstract first to see if the article will be useful to you O Look for “full text” versions so you can read the whole thing O If there is an article you want but cannot access the full text, let me know O I suggest printing them out so you can highlight important information or bring it to me with questions O Much of the information from these articles will be useful in writing a detailed introduction in your final paper O Be sure to write a citation for each article in your lab notebook and take notes / write summaries of each in it as well