1. STEM Fair Information Night
Presented by:
James Ryder Randall ScienceTeam
No notes.
Courtesy of Science Buddies: Providing free science fair project ideas, answers, and tools for serious students. Visit us online at
April 7, 2008
Copyright ©2008 Kenneth Lafferty Hess Family Charitable Foundation. All rights reserved.

2. Welcome! ¡Bienvenidos!
Take this time to thank the parents for coming, introduce yourself, and briefly explain the history of science fairs in your school. Encourage parents to take notes on their outlines and to ask you any questions as you go along.

3. Display board with all parts of scientific method
Digital presentation with all parts of scientific method
Research Paper (3rd -5th grades)

4. Your STEM fair project will be graded as an assessment for science.
The research paper will be graded and part of your written communication grade.
You must stick to the timeline set out by your teacher so you can finish on time.
No late projects will be accepted into the fair!

5. Interesting to you!
Something you have a question about that is related to science
Pick a topic that you can answer only through an experiment

6. Guidelines for choosing a topic

7. Biology
Physical Science
Earth/Space Science
Chemistry
Technology
Engineering
Mathmatics

8. Models do not allow you to collect data
Such as
Volcanoes Or
The Solar System

9. Procedure
Question
Hypothesis
Written
Explanation
Variables
Materials
Graph*
Data Chart*
Conclusion
*All Part of Results

10. Courtesy of Science Buddies: Providing free science fair project ideas, answers, and tools for serious students. Visit us online at
April 7, 2008
Copyright ©2008 Kenneth Lafferty Hess Family Charitable Foundation. All rights reserved

11. Sink or Float STEM Fair Project

12. Topic/Question, Tema/Pregunta
Does the orange with the peel still on it have enough buoyancy to float or will it sink?
Does the orange with the peel OFF have enough buoyancy to float or will it sink?

13. Prediction/Hypothesis, Predicción/Hipóesis
If I place an UNPEELED orange in a water-filled container, then the orange will sink because the orange is a solid object and heavy.
If I place an PEELED orange in a water-filled container, then the orange will sink because the orange is a solid object and heavy.

14. Variables Independent Variable The orange unpeeled and peeled.
The sinking or floating of the orange.
Controlled Variable
The amount of water in the container.

15. Materials, Materiales Clear, plastic container Paper towels
3 UNPEELED oranges
3 PEELED oranges
Clear, plastic container
Water
Paper towels
Sink/Float T-Chart

16. Procedures, Procedimientos
Gather materials.
Carefully fill up the container up to 2 inches from the top edge.
Carefully and slowly place the first PEELED orange in water- filled container.
Observe the peeled orange to see if it will float. or sink.
Record results on T-Chart.
Remove the first npeeled orange and repeat steps 2 though 5 for each variable.
Repeat steps steps 3-6 for the three unpeeled oranges.
Carefully clean up experiment.

17. Data Collection Tool, Herramiento de recopilación de datos
Float (yes) Float (no)

18. Results/Actual Investigstion, Investigatión de resultados/real
After each orange with the peel still on it was placed in a water-filled container, each orange floated in the water.
???

19. Conclusion, Conclusión
In conclusion, these items sank in the water-filled container: the rock, paper clip, and marble. These items floated in the water-filled container: the sheet of paper, sponge, and plastic straw. The hypothesis was incorrect that the oranges would sink. If an item is denser than water, it will sink. Items that are less dense than water will float. This information is helpful to us as we may need to know what sort of items we may or may not use during activities involving water. A child would certainly not want to take a toy to a pool that would sink. Perhaps, fishing companies may want to produce special types of bait that float. A boating company would need to know what materials might be used to safely construct a boat. This experiment did not present any difficulties. If we were to conduct this experiment again, it may be exciting to try it again with various fishing or boating equipment. Our findings can be connected and applied to real-world scenarios, as these types of experiments are essential to engineering scientists who must know what materials will sink or float when placed in water.

20. Research Paper, Investigación papel
This will be viewed as a word document.

21. Resources Science Buddies
Discovery Education
Easy Bib
Use these sites to help with research or project activity.

22. February 13th Hypothesis/Prediction February 20th Variables
Timeline for STEM FAIR Project
Date Due Components
February 6th Question
February 13th Hypothesis/Prediction
February 20th Variables
February 27th Materials and Procedures
March 6th Data Collection Tools
March 13th Actual Results
March 15th Graph of Results
March 19th Written Explanation and Conclusion
March 26th Research Paper
April 3rd STEM Fair Projects due at school
April 8th STEM Fair Project Judging

24. Some students will be interviewed and scored by a judge
Students at each grade level will be awarded first, second and third place

25. This is the end of the show.
Thank you for watching!