or THE SIX MONTH
METHOD TO ACCOMPLISH A SCIENCE PROJECT
Compiled by Dr. D Lyles
Overview of Science
Projects
THREE BASIC
TYPES OF SCIENCE PROJECTS
TYPE ONE--AN INVESTIGATION
(Most of the best grades will be from this Investigation group.)
*Can a machine really teach?
*How long does it take the heart to
return to normal after exercise?
*What is the most electricity you can
make with a magnet coil?
*How rapidly does a plant make starch?
The questions in this area make the news from time to time. A
sixth grade girl checked a can of beans for lead and found it was far over the
FDA’s limit. Canning companies had to change the way they made cans because of
her findings.
A high school girl caught a flea jumping; something professional
photographers had not been able to do. Every year a student sees a common item,
develops a question and figures out how to solve it. Usually,
quite easily using items around the house.
Many of the questions in the list further down the page could
become a science project. Just follow the scientific method:
TYPE TWO--CONSTRUCTION of a model, or Putting
together a Collection.
*A model of a solar home
*A telegraph system
*An ecology terrarium
*A model of a recycling plant
*Styles of handwritting
*Insulation materials and their uses
You could use any one of these as a project title. It would be
better if you could form a question. For instance: How can a
model of a solar home show storage of solar energy? How does a telegraph
system work? Follow the scientific method. Make it part of your project.
TYPE THREE--DEMONSTRATION of a Scientific Principle.
*Measuring lung capacity
*Faraday's famous ice pail experiment
*An oil-drop model of a splitting atom
*An electrical smoke trap
Any of these demonstrations could be turned into a science fair
project. Think in terms of a question to help you get at important ideas. For
instance: "Why should lung capacity be measured?" To have a guideline
for the project, follow the scientific method.
For instance: to find out if solar energy can be stored within a
home.
The previous material comes
from www.eduzone.com, a source I can no longer find online.
OTHER ONLINE SOURCES TO HELP YOU UNDERSTAND THE DETAILS OF A
GOOD SCIENCE PROJECT.
What Makes a Good
Science Project?
What
Makes a Good Project?
The Virtual Science Fair
Getting
Started with Your Science Project
Steps to Prepare a
Science Fair Project.
Inportant Dates for your Science Project: It is assumed you will pick an
Investigation.
Faith Christian Science Fair
Project Dates
http://www.diduask.com/100sci.htm
The purpose of doing a science project over the course of the year is to never
have to cram or hurry. If you do a little bit each day or a small chunk each
week your project should collect dust the last two weeks before the science
fair on March 06.
First Quarter,
Choose, Learn and Write Science Report
The purpose of a Science Report is to learn background information and fill out
your knowledge of your project. This typed report will be seen by everyone
attending the science Fair. on March 06, 2007.
July 31, 2008, First Day of School
TUESDAY
Aug 12, Directions, begin picking science topic for the year. Use the library
and Internet to make sure you have the topic for you.
Aug 15, Chosen topic for the year with parents, students, and teachers three
signatures on a 3x5 card
Aug 19, 10 cards held together by a steel spring
Aug 26, 10 cards (turn in all 20 cards) Manditory Wednesday
School on Aug 23, if not up-to-date on science cards. This is your notice for
Aug 27, Wednesday School
Sept 02, 10 cards (turn in all 30 cards)
Sept 09, Intro and first page (total of two pages in class)
Sept 10, Wednesday School
Sep 13, Saturday School will be available to students who need extra help.
Sept 16, finish body of paper, conclusion and bibliography (minimum of four
pages in class)
Sep 19, Friday, Science typed, Rough Draft due or Saturday school Make sure you
save it at least two ways in your computer for final draft.
Sep 20, Saturday School for those who need help completing report. Please turn
report in on
Upper
Division will be writing a
You will do a "hands-on" project with regular and
repetitious experiments after Thanksgiving. (Some will need to begin
before Thanksgiving to get results by the Science Fair.)
Once turned in this will be your topic for the year, consider it
carefully, go to the library and find both books and adequate Internet
information.
I give you from August to February to complete this project, I expect quality academics, a good looking paper
turned in on time. Most of the Science Fair winners talk to their teacher
frequently.
Don't be a lone ranger, Ask
your teacher questions. He has been doing this longer than you, and he
made up many of these questions and he has a good idea how to help you.
Pray, ask lots of questions, once picked this will be your topic
this school year.
Pick a Topic
So where does one look for Science
Projects?
You can also use the list directly below this paragraph. This is a list I
update several times a year. I have had so many requests I have put it on the
web. Feel free to use some or all of this list. Any
suggestions of topics that are projects, not reports? I.e. no
whales without reproducing Jonah's experiment. No volcanoes without
reproducing Joe's experiment.
Astronomy and Physics Projects and Experiments
1.
Is there a relationship between sunspots and distant (DX) radio
stations?(lots of work, but fun if you enjoy listening
to the radio)
2.
Are there more Sun spots in August, September, October, November,
December, January, or February? (observational skills)
3.
Is the earth turning? (pendulum, wind)
4.
How many objects can I see on Mars? (Observational Skills)
5.
How many objects can I see on Jupiter? (Observational Skills)
6.
Can I measure the distance to Mars and Jupiter? (Parallax, High
math skills required)
7.
How far can you and half-dozen friends hear "C", octave
by octave. Which one can be heard the farthest? Can
you hear farther in fog, or on a clear day, clear night? Why?
8.
Why can't you see around a corner, but you can hear around a
corner? (Harder than it looks. Light/sound, AM/FM)
9.
How fast does a pound of lead and a pound of feathers fall?
(Gravity)
10.
What color of light will show the farthest at night? (Angstroms of
light, eye)
11.
Not available this year without special permission. What will
happen when I flash a laser through (pick 10 different mediums) prism, pool
full of water, vacuum, dance ball mirror, 10 mirrors, etc.
12.
What is resonance? Can I make an object resonate?
13.
Can I graph the night of a meteor shower?
14.
How strong is the gravitational pull of the moon?
15.
Can you tell time using the moon?
16.
Not available this year without special permission. How do sailors
use the stars for navigation?
17.
What is the best design for a paper airplane in order to keep it
in the air the longest? To make it fly the farthest? VCR of
experiments.
18.
Can I take a strong magnet along the road and find a small
meteorite? There are about 400 tons of dust that hits
the earth each day. This may take a whole bunch of work, but you will have a
piece of another world, if you find it.
19.
Can I make a VCR tape of the 1000 yard model of the solar system?
(I save this project for late enrolling, new students.)
20.
Can I build a SETI station? Needs lots of $,
lots of time, a dedicated computer and short-wave radio. See Internet at
Stanford U.
Radio Experiments and Projects
21.
Can I send information over a laser?
22.
Can I hear a distant FM/ 2 meter station when there is a meteor
shower? (very difficult but rewarding.)
23.
Using wire and glass jar, make a working
incandescent lamp. (Lots of parent help)
24.
Not available this year without special permission. Can I make a car alternator make electricity, without a car? Magnetism,
Eddie currents, electricity
25.
What are the fewest parts necessary to build an AM radio
(receiver)? What do the parts of a radio do? (No kits! Need to spend lots of
time with an interested Amateur Radio person)
26.
Can you build a radio with gum, razor blades and stuff around the
house? How do radio's work? (No kits!)
27.
Can I find a non-commercial satellite over my home and get a tape
recording?
28.
Can I get an Amateur Radio (HAM ) License
and build a simple transmitter and put it on the air, before the Science Fair? (Very difficult, but rewarding for right individual.)
Electromagnetic Experiments and Projects
29. Can I build a motor and
then improve it.
30.
Can I make an electromagnet? Can I make a permanent magnet from
something that is not now a magnet?
31.
Can you find two ways to make electricity with a fruit or
vegetable?
32.
Does magnetism affect plant growth?
33.
Can I make a solar motor? Solar Power
34.
Can I build a working telephone system from parts, showing how all
parts work?
35.
How does light, infrared and microwaves cook food? Can I cook
dinner with the Sun? Lots of Experiments
36.
Can I build a working electric car I or my parents can drive? (No
kits! Expensive)
37.
How much hotter do objects get behind red sunglasses get than blue
sun-blockers? Why?
38.
How would you In the summer Sun, why do
we feel hotter in clothes of a dark color than in clothes lighter in color?
Computer Experiments and Projects
39.
Can you build a web
page from scratch using only HTML? (I want to see each step and finished
code and a finished project on Internet. This is one of the few reports I
allow. You will not win science fair, but can achieve a good grade)
40.
How does a computer work? I.e. how does an either/or, 0/1 switch
work? Build the switches.
41.
Can you develop a computer program that will locate a day and date
from 0001 to 2100. When is September 3? First Friday
in September 2000? Needs more than Dad or Mom, needs to be researched,
purchased or downloaded programs not allowed.
42.
Can I see an image of a sine wave and my voice on my home
computer? (this IS turning your computer into a
oscilloscope, it is NOT a voice recognition program)
43.
Can I build my own 3-D computer graphics program?
44.
Can I give my computer intelligence? (This should be experiments
in Artificial Intelligence, not any one installed program.)
Sun, Weather and Seasons Experiments and Projects
45.
Is there a relationship between sunspots and the weather?
46.
Can I plot the Sun on the ground? Seasons.
(September-March project).
47.
Can you cool a home or model with solar energy?
48.
Can you build a solar-heated greenhouse and grow a plant in
winter?
49.
How is a simple solar collector constructed? Build one.
50.
Build your own weather instruments and plot the weather for a
month.
Botany and Light Experiments and Projects
51.
Does a flower grow best in dark or light? Why? Photosynthesis
52.
Can you get flowers to grow sideways?
53.
How fast does (pick a variety) of weed grow? Do they grow a foot a
day, define and grow. Measure. Is there a difference
between fall and spring?
54.
How do different wavelengths of light affect photosynthesis? Does
a flower grow best in sunlight or electric light, purple light, etc.
55.
Can color's help or hinder preference of
fruit juices?
56.
Do all materials absorb the sun equally? Infared rays
57.
Can you grow fruit and vegetables only in water?
58.
Can a plant grow from a leaf?
59.
Does sound affect plant growth?
60.
Can you starch a piece of cloth with the starch in weeds?
61.
What effect does cigarette smoke have on plants? (You must have a
parent that smokes)
62.
Not available without special permission. in
2002-3. How do insect-eating plants catch and digest their food?
63.
If a tomato plant is grafted onto a potato plant what do you get?
(Research new foods in Brentwood and other
places)
64.
What conditions affect the rate of growth of bread mold?
Animal Experiments and Projects
65.
Can a mouse learn to go to through a maze? Can you train a mouse
to do anything else?
66.
Can mice live on junk food? Can you live on only junk food?
67.
Can I observe and find if cows do or do not need sleep? (Lots of
late night drives on back roads)
68.
How much weight can (pick three and identify) types of spider webs
hold before breaking?
69.
Not available without special permission. in
2002-3. How do the webs of various spiders differ? Does each spider spin just
one kind of web? What is spider silk composed?
70.
Are fish affected by magnetism?
71.
Can beetles hear?
72.
Are the activities of nocturnal animals affected by the moon? Why
does your cat act that way?
Chemistry Experiments and Projects
73.
How much lead is in your house?
74.
Can you make oxygen from rocks?
75.
What factors slow the rate at which substances dissolve in water?
76.
What chemical elements are found in seawater? Find and solve, not
a report.
77.
What is the salinity (salt content) of tears?
78.
What are the differences between butter and margarine?
79.
Not available without special permission. in
2002-3. How is blood type determined? What is the most common type? How do the
types differ? Can you type your own blood?
Earth Science Experiments and Projects
80.
Can you prove the earth is moving? Plate
tectonics. (Lots of visits to Red
Top Road
81.
Learn about clouds and fog and reproduce it in a five gallon
plastic jug.
82.
What are the most common kinds of rocks in your area? (Find and
correctly identify many rocks.)
83.
Is it possible to create a cloud? If so, how?
What type? If not, why not?
84.
What are the water currents in the Bay? (need
a parent, boat and lots of time).
85.
Can I make a penny float?
Surface tension
Pure Mathematics Experiments
86.
Build a working version of Pythagorean' Theorem I can use in class
for the next 10 years.
87.
Using 12 knots, can you make a 3-4-5 triangle with 90 degrees?
World Book, P, pg 813
Non-assorted Experiments and Projects
88.
Can prejudice be decreased with knowledge/education? (takes many people)
89.
Can I make natural insecticides?
90.
Not available without special permission. in
2002-3. Can I make paste and glue from household products?
91.
Not available without special permission. in
2002-3. What causes a ring on your bathtub?
92.
Do all golf balls/rockets go the same distance? How far can you
hit/shoot it into and away from 5 and 10 mile wind?
93.
Using a two liter bottle as a rocket, how much water is the
optimum amount to get the rocket to go the highest elevation?
94.
Can I build a robot car? (No kits!)
95.
Can I make a working exoskeleton (Robocop) for myself?
96.
Can I locate and build four types of water wheels?
97.
Can I build a working windmill?
98.
Can people remember things in early life by drawing pictures with
their non-dominant hand?
99.
How does Aspirin affect the Body? (Need willing parents for
experiments)
100.
Does Coke or Pepsi taste better?(takes a
number of large groups)
101.
How does Alcohol affect the nerves? (Must have a
parent that drinks alcohol.)
102.
Gotta convince me
in 2002-3.
Scientifically show how three magic tricks work, using correct laws.
103.
What factors increase the rate at which milk sours?
104.
How fast does human hair grow? Must check black,
brown, blond and redhead.
105.
Not available without special permission. in
2002-3. How fast does human fingernails grow?
106.
How much cooler is it usually in the shade than in the sun? What
factors affect this difference?
107.
Why do objects float higher in salt water than fresh water?
108.
How do cameras work? Build a simple camera using ASA 400 film. (No
kits!)
109.
How high can a balloon go before it pops? Study Atmosphere and
pressure.
110.
What makes heavier than water things float?
New Ideas I haven't had time to develop after going to another
science fair.
· Http://members.tripod.com/simplemotor/myself.htm
· Hovercraft using leaf blowers
· How much air is needed for a fire?
· What color holds the heat the longest?
Try your theory on black / white clothes.
Why do we feel hoter in dark clothes but coler in lgith clothes in the
summer sun?
Plot sunrise and sunset and tell why the changes
Tap vs. bottled water which is better?
Design and make a working electric light
Solar water heater/oven. Can I be able to heat water to 212 degrees F
using solar energy?
What will make a flower grow sideways
Teach a snake or rodent tricks with a complete guide on how it did
/ didn’t work. Can I teach a corn snake
how to go through a maze to find its food?
Build an airplane wing that will fly. Can I make an airplane wing out of balsa wood
and make it work?
Which is warmer, blue or red glass?
Will soap melt in the microwave?
How many things can I see on Mars?
Do people remember audio or audio-visual information better?
Can I make a working windmill?
What color of light will show the farthest at night?
Can I make an electric motor?
What materials can be charged with static electricity?
Can I build a working robot car?
Can a magnetic field affect the growth of radishes?
Can a car move off of one rubber band?
Can I make a working wind tunnel?
Which types of lightbulbs produces the
most light?
Can I build a working Van de Graff?
Can I extract DNA then see it, touch it and feel it?
Can a person have genetically inherited tasting ability?
Can I make a cake with soda (coke) instead of milk and eggs and
butter? How important are the
ingredients in a recipe?
What is the best design for a paper airplane in order to keep it
in the air the longest or fly the farthest?
Can I make a solution that will make bigger bubbles than store
bought bubble solution?
Can I build a strong bridge out of pasta?
How does a telegraph work and what as it used for?
How far is the nearest fault line moving in six months?
Learn about clouds and fog and reproduce it in a five-gallon
plastic jug.
Can I build a working Jacob ’s ladder?
Can I build a solar battery charger that works?
What color lure is the best to catch a salmon?
Measuring the brightness of an Incandescent light bulb
At what angle will a catapult fling a one ounce object the
farthest?
C. Science Report
Science
Fair Paper
A. All papers will be at least 1200 words AND six pages in the Sixth
grade! (As a rule of thumb, 200 words or one page per year.)
B. All papers will be typed!
C. All papers will be double spaced
D. All papers will be "Times New Roman or Arial," 12 point font
E. One inch margins all the way around your paper.
F. Make sure you use typing rules like two spaces after the end of a sentence. Then the next sentence.
G. Any papers using Proper Pronouns, such as "I", "You",
"We" will be returned with no grade to be rewritten. This is a REPORT
on what you have learned from your research NOT a preview of your science
project~!
H. Copying or plagerism will not be tolerated. It is
stealing and lying. It is against the law. I will return papers with plagerism without a grade, to be rewritten.
D. Experiment including Log Book (repetitive and scientific)
A written report documenting the procedures and materials
used including the date and time working on the project. Part of the log
should also indicate the length of time involved in the project/experiment.
Logbook entries would be things such as: "04/11/2003: 18:00. [or 6:00 pm] My project will be an experiment based on a
variety of testing at different times during the date and night." Or
"04/11/2003: 20:00. Today I tried to see different colors, as the sun was
going down. It was hard to see the difference between the red and the blue.
Tomorrow I will try it again at 20:15 [8:15 pm]
E.
Backboard (artistic according to requirements)
The backboard should be standard three fold cardboard or white board like
OFFICE MAX or STAPLES might stock.
A good portion of the backboard grade will be based on artistic beauty and
clarity.
|
Backboard |
||
|
|
||
|
Left Panel |
Center Panel |
Right Panel |
|
Purpose in form of a Question |
Title |
Results |
|
Hypothesis |
Student Name |
Conclusion |
|
Procedure |
Materials used |
Spritiual Application/Verse |
|
|
Graphs and charts |
|
Illustrations and photos
Considerations (Redundant, but probably necessary)
Around August 10, you need to have three science
books in class. The books must be on the topic of your science fair project.
This is the only day you can get credit for this assignment. We will be working
with these books in class. I would suggest you get books, magazines, Internet
articles, before you determine you are going to choose your topic.
You will be writing a minimum of 1200 word paper
on the topic you pick. This paper must have a correctly formatted Bibliography
as the last page.
You will do a "hands-on" project with regular
and repetitious experiments after Christmas. (Some will need to begin
before Chrsitmas to get results by the Science Fair.)
Once turned in this will be your topic for the
year, consider it carefully, go to the library and find both books and adequate
Internet information.
I give you from August to March to complete this project, I expect quality academics, a good looking paper
turned in on time. Most of the Science Fair winners talk to their teacher
frequently.
Don't be a lone ranger, Ask
your teacher questions. He has been doing this longer than you have and
made up many of these questions and has a good idea how to help you.
Pray, ask lots of questions, once picked this will
be your topic this school year.
Things that don't fit anywhere but you would like to know
--Steady work wins the day. Those that do their work day by day or weekend by
weekend were the clear winners. Remeber the rabbit
was faster but lost to the turtle that stayed at the race until he won.
--There is little relationship between GPA grades and Science Fair winners.
Frequently, "poor" students in class can excel at hands on like the
Science Fair Project. "Excellent" students frequently find school
easy and are not excited about having to do real work.
--Most of the best backboards were three fold, black boards. Not sure why, but
it is true. For sure, the best looking boards were the painted from the factory
boards.
--Never use tape, always use glue, preferably a glue stick or other neat way to
have a permanent stick without "wilting" the paper.
--Make sure you have the Project Title and your name on the top, middle of the
board.
--Typed work always gets a better grade.
--If I get pictures of Science Fair projects, I will post them here.
BIBLIOGRAPHY, Bible or book /
graph or writing.
Bibliography has come to mean
a book list.
MLA Format: Single
author in a
bibliography entry. When only a single author is listed for a text, typical
bibliography entries will appear as follows:
Kasson, John F. Civilizing the Machine: Technology and Republican Values in
America 1776-1900. York
Penguin, 1976.
Martin, Emily. The Woman in the Body: A Cultural Analysis of Reproduction.
Boston
MLA Format: Multiple
authors in a
bibliography. When more than one person has authored a text, typical
bibliography entries will appear as follows:
Ehrenreich, Barbara, and John Ehrenreich,
eds. The American Health Empire: Power, Profits,
and Politics. New York
Vintage, 1971.
Fee, Elizabeth Berkeley :
University of California
Grossberg,
Lawrence, Cary New York
Routeledge, 1992.
Hall, Stewart, Ed al. Policing the Crisis.Basingstoke:
Macmillian, 1979.
MLA Format: Newspapers The
following isa sample entry for an article in a
newspaper.
Perez-Pena, Richard, “CUNY and California New York
Times, 13 May 1998, Late Ed.: B8.
(The phrase "late ed." refers to "late edition" since some
papers like the Times publish several editions
daily. The San Francisco Chronicle use stars, "two, three, four or
five star editon"
MLA Format: Encyclopedia articles in a bibliography
entry. To cite an article in an encyclopedia, use the same format as if it were
an item in an anthology (see above), the only difference being that the editor
should not be cited. If the passage designates a particular author (sometimes
this is done with abbreviations of the author's name - find the entire name of
that author elsewhere in the work), give the name of the author first. If there
is no explicit author, then give the title first. If the encyclopedia arranges
its articles alphabetically, volume and page numbers may be omitted. If the encyclopedia is very familiar and frequently appears in new
additions, only the edition and the year of publication.
Mealworm, "Encyclopedia Britannica. 1987 ed.
Garvey, Lawrence El Paso
MLA Format: Webpage or Website in a bibliography.
Format: Author, Author. Editor. Date. Institution. Access Date. URL.
Examples:
Student Initiated Drinking and Driving Prevention. 4 Oct. 2000. National GRADD. 16 Feb. 2001
Various contributions. How to be Popular In High School. Jeff Marx Books.
16 Feb. 2001
Science Fair Grading
|
Science Fair Grading (by Scientist on Fair Day) |
|||||
|
|
|||||
|
Student Name |
. |
School |
. |
Grade Division |
. |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Project Title |
. |
Project Number |
. |
Judge's Initials |
. |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Criteria |
|
Excellent |
Good |
Fair |
Points |
|
Origionality and Creativity |
10-9 |
8-7-6 |
5-4-3 |
2-1-0 |
. |
|
Effective Use of Scientific Method |
15-14-13-12 |
11-10-9 |
8-7-6-5 |
4-3-2-1-0 |
. |
|
Knowledge Achieved |
10-9 |
8-7-6 |
5-4-3 |
2-1-0 |
. |
|
Clarity of Expression |
10-9 |
8-7-6 |
5-4-3 |
2-1-0 |
. |
|
Biblical Application |
5 |
4-3 |
2 |
1-0 |
. |
|
Rating: |
. |
. |
. |
. |
Total Points: |