Science Fair Projects

Background Research Paper  Your background research paper must be 1 – 2 pages typed, double spaced, in Arial or Times New Roman 12 point font. Your research paper should include research that pertains to your project. All facts need to be cited. Be sure to include the name and location of each source you use.  Your research paper must include an introduction stating what the paper is going to discuss. The research paper must include facts from a minimum of 3 sources. Facts should be located in the body of the paper. The research paper must also include a conclusion that sums up your research.

Tri-Fold Presentation Board  Students will be required to have a display board; a tri- fold is preferred. Work on the display board should begin three weeks prior to the Science Fair. The board size should be approximately 36″ high and 48″ wide. An example of a display board is shown at the top of the page. Science fair boards can be purchased at Wal-Mart, Target, Office Depot or most office supply stores.

Requirements on Board:  Title: Short statement of what the investigation is about. (This should be informative and creative)  Problem/Question: Ask a question that you plan to try and answer through your investigation.  Hypothesis: Your prediction of what will happen during the investigation (If… Then format)  Materials: List of materials needed for investigation.  Procedures: A planned set of steps to test your hypothesis.  Data and Results: Collect information from the experiment in an organized format. What does the data determine? (must include chart/table or graph)  Conclusion: Answering the original question from the hypothesis. Must answer the questions we discussed in class.  Background info: highlight some of the background information that you learned researching your paper  REFERENCES- INCLUDE ALL REFERENCES FROM RESEARCH AND YES YOU NEED TO HAVE THEM!!  Hint graphics, diagrams and models really add to the presentation

Your Science Project Notebook should include  Name  Problem/ Question (what you are testing)  Background Research (why you chose this project, where you got the idea, etc…)  Hypothesis (prediction of what you think will happen)  List of Materials used in the investigation (experiment)  Procedure (step-by-step directions of how to do the experiment)  Daily Log (dated journal entries) with notes on the progress of your project- what you’re doing, problems you have, things you’d change if you were doing this experiment again, and to share your thinking.  Variable and Control List  Data/ Results: Tables, charts, graphs, and pictures- each well labeled and explained  Conclusion: What you learned from the experiment, whether your hypothesis was correct/incorrect and why, what you learned, what you would do different, and real world uses of your experiment  Reference Page (Cited sources)