Parent Info | Helping Your Child | K-3 Sample Projects | G4-6 Sample Projects
Choosing a Project Type
Help your child assess his grade level, abilities, interest and time to choose one of the following:
- Scientific experiment
- Engineering invention
- Demonstration or model
- Collection/observation
A scientific experiment uses the scientific method to answer a question or solve a problem. It involves formulating a hypothesis and analyzing data. Most fifth and sixth graders (and many in the lower grades) should be able to handle a scientific experiment.
An engineering invention is the design of a new device, machine, tool or process--or the improvement of one that already exists--that performs a practical function including, but not limited to, tools that mend, make life easier or safer in some way, entertain or solve everyday problems.
A demonstration or model shows how something works, either an object such as the heart or a scientific principle such as osmosis. It lacks a hypothesis and analysis and is easier for the lower grade student to accomplish.
A collection/observation is another simple project for a lower grade student. In a collection, groups of objects such as shells or rocks are displayed in ways that allow easy comparisons. An observation might include groupings of leaf rubbings or fingerprints.
Other Ways to Help:
- Help your child understand that science is not just a subject, it is a way of looking at the world. Learning is foremost.
- Your child might not have been taught all the steps of an experiment yet. Give encouragement, support and guidance. Be positive. Make sure your child feels this is HIS/HER project.
- If he or she does a demonstration or observation, encourage him to predict what will happen or what he will find. By predicting, the student will have more of himself invested in the project.
- Scientist parents beware: it's OK if your child decides not to participate this year. There will be many opportunities in the years to come. RESIST the urge to take over the project. It's OK if your first-grader's display looks like it was done by a first grader.
- Non-scientists take heart: get help from other parents. Read the Science Fair Handbook and reference books; visit Web sites.
- Help your child stay on a timeline to avoid a last-minute scramble to complete the display.
- Realize that a good project doesn't have to be elaborate or cost a lot of money. A simple project that is finished and well executed is better than a complex one that was not completed.
Student Information
The Science Fair gives you an opportunity to share with others something you have learned about science. You will be able to display a special science project that you have been working on at home.
There are several types of projects to choose from:
- A Collection. A collection might be of seashells, rocks or seeds.
- A Model, such as a model of the solar system or a clay model of an ant.
- A Demonstration. For instance, you could demonstrate how a simple machine like a lever or pulley works.
- A Display of Illustrations about a science subject. An example of this kind of project would be illustrations of animal homes or an illustration of the life cycle of a butterfly.
- An Experiment where you ask a question and then try to answer it by planning and doing an experiment.
- An Invention that solves some problem.
Collections, models, demonstrations and displays. To begin your project, find a subject that interests you. Gather information about your subject by reading a book or magazine article about your subject. Then you are ready to decide what you would like to put in your display to share with other children. For example, you may want to read about animal homes in a magazine or a book. You could make a display of some of the animal homes you read about. You could draw some of the homes. Other pictures could be cut out of magazines and added to your display. You should neatly print the name of each animal that builds each kind of home on your display. Parents and older brothers and sisters can help you with this. You could even include a model of an animal home that you made yourself. For instance, you could gather materials outside that a bird might use to build a home. Then you could build your own bird's nest. Whatever you decide to do, remember to make your display neat and attractive.
Experiments. You might decide to do an experiment for your science fair project. If you do, be sure to state a problem that you plan to solve by doing your experiment. The problem should be in the form of a question. Some examples are: Which materials are magnetic and non-magnetic? What does a plant need to grow? You must state a hypothesis (scientific guess) as to the possible solution of your problem. Next you must include a list of all the materials you used to solve your problem. This is followed by a list of the procedures or steps you followed to solve your problem. The most important part of your display for an experiment are the observations. You must write down or draw everything you saw and measured during the experiment. Finally, you must write a conclusion, or report of what you found. This is where you state whether your hypothesis was correct or incorrect. You should answer the original question stated as the problem. Explain how you arrived at your conclusion.
Inventions. You might decide to invent something for your science fair project. Inventions help make our lives better by solving problems, making us safer or entertaining us. Begin by thinking about problems in your everyday life that could be solved by an invention. Ask other family members if they have any problems. Make a list of problems and how you could solve them. What materials would you need for each one? What obstacles might you have to overcome? How will the invention work? Choose one problem to work on. Now it's time to build a prototype of your invention. Make sure you draw pictures or diagrams of how it's supposed to work and include them in your project display. Try out your invention. Can you find ways to make it better? Most inventions are changed many times before they are sold in stores.
Observations
| Fingerprints | How animals hide and defend |
| Shadows | Animals tracks |
| Crystals | Raising finches (or rabbits, gerbils, etc.) |
| Properties of solids, liquids and gases | Fish prints |
| Objects that block and pass light | What makes a bird a bird |
| Gravity | The crayfish |
| Shapes of magnetic fields | All about crickets (or bees, beetles, ants, etc.) |
| Parts of a flame (candle observation) | Earthworms |
| Rocks and minerals | Spider webs |
| The moon | Watching an ant colony |
| Planets you can see | How insects change |
| Our sun | Living things in my yard |
| Spring constellations | Trees near my home |
| Local weather | Leaf prints |
| How to read a weather map | Parts of a flower |
| Clouds | Roots of different plants |
| All about horses (or dogs, frogs, fish, birds, etc.) | Inside the egg |
| A beaver home | Teeth |
| Local wildlife | Seashells |
Collections
| Chemical elements (carbon, lead, iron, sulfur, etc.) |
| Solids, liquids and gases |
| Rocks |
| Rocks from two beaches (or areas) |
| Different varieties of sand |
| Different types of soil |
| Fossils |
| Bones |
| Seashells |
| Leaves (indoor or outdoor plants) |
| Seeds |
| Bark rubbings |
| Insects |
| Feathers |
Models and Demonstrations
| How a bicycle works | Evaporation |
| How a generator (or motor) works | How are sounds produced? |
| Simple machines | Why things float |
| Levers | Why elevators have counterweights |
| Pulleys | A boomerang can |
| Open and closed circuits | How things move on movie film |
| How a switch works | Why the wind blows |
| How fuses work | What makes hail? |
| How a flashlight works | What is ground water? |
| How light reflects | Inside our earth (model) |
| Mixing colors | The earth's surface features (model) |
| How magnets work | Volcanoes (model) |
| An electromagnet | Features of the sea floor (model) |
| Friction | Our solar system (model) |
| Newton's 3rd law | Galaxies and our milky way (model) |
| How thermometers work | Optical illusions |
| Heat and air (convection mobile) | How the ear works (model) |
| Does fire give off water? | The ant (clay model) |
| Does fire use something in air? | How seeds travel |
| Does air have weight? | Do plants give off water? |
| Does air exert pressure? | Tree rings |
Experiments
| Magnetic and nonmagnetic materials | Do plants prefer tap water or distilled water? |
| Which magnet is strongest? | How temperature affects plant growth |
| Which materials conduct electricity best? | Do plants give off water? |
| Which materials conduct heat best? | In which soil do plants grow best? |
| Sounds from different rubberbands (or glasses of water) | Growing potatoes at different locations |
| Which toy car rolls furthest? | How fast do kidney beans grow? |
| Which materials dissolve in water? | Do large apples have more seeds than small ones? |
| Which paper towel absorbs the most water? | Do different kinds of apples have different amounts of seeds? |
| Will an ice cube melt faster when crushed up? | What conditions do pill bugs prefer (light or dark, moist or dry)? |
| Do coins corrode more in salt or fresh water? | Can an earthworm detect light and darkness? |
| How vinegar affects egg shells | How far does a mealworm (or snail) travel in one minute? |
| How a shadow changes throughout the day | What is the best condition for the growth of mold? |
| Measuring rainfall with a rain gauge | Which bread molds most quickly? |
| Depth of snow at ten different locations | Which color liquid do hummingbirds prefer? |
| Testing a sundial with a clock | What food does a hamster prefer? |
| Which brand of raisin bran has the most raisins? | Can people identify flavors of Kool-Aid when blindfolded? |
| What a plant needs to grow |
Websites and More Project Ideas
Go to Science Resources for Science Fair related web sites and project ideas.