BEJ Science Fair Creating a Science Fair Project

What is a Science Fair Project? “So what kind of a project is required? ” Allowable Projects: Experimental type projects that use the scientific method with a testable question. Ex. How does caffeine affect the growth rate of pea plants? Projects Not Allowed: Research projects (What is a hurricane? ) or models (a paper mache' volcano). These do not involve testing.

Choose a Topic Pick a topic that: w Will be interesting. w You will be able to complete in time. ( See handout for timeline. ) Example: The affect of caffeine on plant growth

Title w Choose a title that reflects your topic and is in the form a question. Example: How does caffeine affect the growth of a plant?

Research w Research should be designed to get background information about your topic before you begin your experiment. w Develop 3 questions that you want to answer about your topic. w Try to use various sources for your research. w Suggested sources: Books n Magazines n Newspapers n Internet Keep a record of all the places you find information. n

Hypothesis Make your guess ® Use your research to make an educated guess about how you think your experiment will turn out. ® Use the “ If I ____ then I think _____”format Example: If I pour 100 ml of coffee on four pea plants and pour 100 ml of water in another four pea plants, then I think the plants with coffee will grow taller because caffeine will stimulate the plants.

Variables Ü Independent Variable The variable you are “messing with”. Ü Dependent Variable The variable that you will record and measure. Its changes “depend” on the independent variable. Ü Control Variable All aspects of this variable must remain constant. “How Does Caffeine Affect the Growth Rate of Pea Plants? ” Dep. Ind. Cont. “What is the Effect of Coke on the Decay of Teeth? ” Ind. Dep. Cont.

Procedure w Design your experiment § Design your experiment so that they only test for one thing. w Make sure that you do the same things to all groups of objects being tested. Example: If you are testing plants… ë Use the same seeds. ë Plant all of them with the same soil. ë Put them all in the same amount of light for the same amount of time. ë The only thing that should be different about the plants is that one received coffee and the other water.

Procedure w To increase the validity of your experiment: n n n Make sure to keep a control group. Keep in mind sample size. l The more objects in your sample the more valid your experiment. Use multiple trials. (At least three. ) w Write down step-by-step directions on how to do your experiment. Do not leave anything out!

Procedure Example: 1. Get 8 pea plants (100 cm tall). 2. Place 4 pea plants on each tray. 3. Label one set of plants “Caffeine”. 4. Label the second set “Water”. 5. Pour 100 ml of coffee (with caffeine) onto the soil of each plant twice a week. 6. Pour 100 ml of water onto the soil of each plant twice a week. 7. Measure each plant with a metric ruler. 8. Record data in record book.

Materials § Make a complete list of everything you will use in your experiment. § Tell how many and how much of each object used. § Use metric measures only.

Materials Example: 8 pea plants (100 cm tall) 800 ml coffee with caffeine 800 ml water 1 Metric ruler 1 record book

Do Your Experiment. Recording accurate data is the KEY to a successful project! • Write down everything you do. • Keep it all in the same notebook. • Take photographs of each step to use with the display. • Be sure to repeat the experiment in order to confirm the results. • Save information carefully and always have a written copy of the information in your computer files. • Keep you files and charts organized. • Sources need to be written down correctly from the start. • Make sure that you give others credit for helping you with your research. • Do not procrastinate!

Make Charts and Graphs w Display data using charts, tables, and graphs. w Choose the correct graphs for your data. n n n Bar-comparison Pie-percentage Line-change/time

Results w Using your data, write a few sentences about how your experiment turned out. Example: From reading my charts and graphs, I know that Plant Group #1 grew an average of 40 cm with 100 ml of coffee. Plant Group #2 grew an average of 20 cm with 100 ml of water. The Plant Group that was given coffee grew 20 cm more on average than the Plant Group that was given water.

Conclusion w Write down why you think your experiment turned out the way it did. w Include if your hypothesis was supported or not. n n Be sure to use the term “ My hypothesis was/was not supported. ” Do not say I was right/wrong. Even when your hypothesis was not supported, you gain information about your topic. Use scientific reasoning for conclusion.

Conclusion Example: My hypothesis was supported. The plants that were watered with coffee (caffeine) grew taller than those that were given water. Therefore, caffeine has a positive effect on the growth of pea plants. This may be due the fact that caffeine is a stimulant. The caffeine could have stimulated the plant to grow.

Make Your Board w Start your information on the top left panel of the board, move down the left panel, across the middle panel, and from the top down on the right panel. w Place pictures of your experiment on your board.

Make your Board

Helpful Resources Science Fair Web Pages http: //www. sciencebuddies. org/index_A. htm Site for help throughout project http: //faculty. washington. edu/chudler/fair. html Site explaining the parts of a science fair project http: //edweb. tusd. k 12. az. us/jtindell/ Site for children to use in setting up their science fair project http: //school. discovery. com/sciencefaircentral Site that has info for parents, teachers, and students (project ideas, research tools, and tip sheets for all kinds of projects)

Bringing It Together Keys for success: §Stick to your timeline §Utilize parental and school support §Organize your project The BEJ Science Fair is Thursday, November 19 th

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