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Lakeview Science Fair
Science Enrichment
Page Content
This is an opportunity for students to explore the world around us and share that information with others. Science projects are displayed during the day and evening for viewing. Open to all grades.
- Science Fair Schedule
- Date: Spring 2012
- Location: Lakeview Elementary School Commons
Set-up 1:00- 2:00 pm
Classrooms visit exhibition 2:00 – 3:00 pm
Science Fair 5:30 - 7:00 pm
Take down posters 7:00 - 7:30 pm
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- Students will store their posters/materials in classrooms till setup time. Between 1:00-2:00pm, students will be called down to the Commons. There will be volunteers ready to help students set up their displays. Starting at 2 pm, students are expected to stand by their project and discuss work with visiting Lakeview classes.
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- Students will return at 5:30 pm to present to family, friends and judges. They are not expected to stand by their projects for the duration of the Fair – breaks will be given to explore the many other projects being displayed.
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- How to fill out the Registration Form
- Filling in the registration form is necessary to get feedback on your project. Once completed, your form can be handed in to your teacher or the front desk or emailed to us at lakptsascience@gmail.com Fill it out by March 4th and you will get an additional chance to win a prize during the Science Fair! Registration forms will be available in the flier slot box in the school entry, or here. The deadline for guaranteeing a $6 presentation backboard is March 11th.
Fill out your form using the guidelines below.
AFTER you have researched your topic; What questions do you have about your topic? What do you want to know?
Identify a Problem or Question
Ask a testable question - limit your question to one that you can answer by varying one or more variables.
Some examples of Questions:
Sport stacking is a sport where participants stack and un-stack plastic cups in a specific sequence. I would like to find out who would be better at this sport, individuals that are left-handed, right-handed or ambidextrous.
The Mozart effect is the theory that Mozart’s music can raise IQ scores, cut learning time, improve creativity, heal the body faster, etc. Some people think that rock or country music would work better than classical. My project will test whether different types of music will get a hamster to run faster through a maze.
Optional - State the Plan or purpose of your experiment - What are you trying to find out? Select the variable (something you will change/vary) that will help you find your answer.
Put different words in these blanks...
What is the effect of ____________ on the_______________________?
detergent ____________ germination of seeds
temperature ____________ volume of air
How/to what extent does _____________affect ___________________?
humidity ____________ growth of fungi
the color of a material ____________ its absorption of heat
Which/what __________________ (verb) __________________?
foods ____________ do ____________ gerbils prefer
rocks ____________ can be found ____________ in Kirkland?
ratio of vinegar/baking soda ____________ produces____________ the best chemical volcano eruption?
State your Prediction or Hypothesis. What do you think you will find when you answer your question? Guess at what will happen. You have educated yourself on the topic and by now you should be able to make a guess at the answer based on your learning. This is also called an "Educated Guess".
I believe that Palmolive will make the best bubbles because I have to wash longer than with other dishwashing liquids to remove the soap from my hands.
I predict that nylon will dry faster than cotton or polyester. Polyester looks and feels thinnest. Because of its thinness, less water will be absorbed. Thus, less water would need to evaporate. Also cotton, which appears to be the thickest material, would absorbs more water and take a longer time to evaporate and dry.
By modifying it’s design to allow more movement, either by placing the catapult on wheels or by using less rigid materials for the lever, a trebuchet can be made that throws projectiles further.
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- Choosing your topic is the most important aspect of your project. Choose something that you are truly interested in learning more about.
Useful websites:
http://www.edina.k12.mn.us/cornelia/students/sciencefair/index.htm
http://school.discovery.com/sciencefaircentral/index.html
http://www.sciencebuddies.org/index.htm
http://www.ipl.org/div/projectguide/
- http://www.cdli.ca/sciencefairs/
http://www.scifair.org/
http://www.all-science-fair-projects.com/
http://homeworkspot.com/sciencefair/
http://www.cyberbee.com/
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- What do I do? Where do I start?
- All the information you need to participate in the Lakeview Science Fair can be found in the Lakeview Science Fair Handbook, Steps necessary to prepare your project are gone over in detail. Even better, I recommend a fun science fair website that also goes over these steps. Science fair projects must follow the scientific method, which include: Research Problem/Question, Prediction or Hypothesis, Project Experimentation, and Project Conclusion.
After you've finished your project you will make a display that you'll bring to the Science Fair. At the Fair you'll present your project and get to see what other students have done.-
Not sure what you are interested in? There are so many ways to get started!
Do some online experiments, or
Leaf through a magazine like Popular Science, or
Watch YouTube (parental guidance advised), or
Visit science websites that explain how things work (How Stuff Works or How Things Work)
Try the topic selection wizard at Science Buddies - They also have some great ideas for projects
How to write the procedure and materials list
Procedure
The planning of the experimental activity, also known as the procedure, is very important. The procedure must be a detailed step-by-step set of actions or activities to be performed.
In this section describe how you will: - Construct your model
- Measure results
- Change one variable
You also might diagram your model/experiment or refer to illustrations from reference material.
You must be careful in designing the procedure. You must not change more than one variable in the experiment. An example of changing more than one variable is: if testing fertilizers on tomatoes you have different pots, different soils, and different amounts of water. This experiment would be called an uncontrolled experiment because we would not know what variable might have caused a change in the tomatoes. Was it the pots? Soil? Water? Or a combination of all?
Materials
What materials and tools will I need to complete my experiment? Make a list.
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- Record Data and Results. Write a conclusion.
- Do the experiment described in the procedure. Keep notes in one place. Write down everything you can think of, you might need it later.
It is important for an experiment to be a fair test. A fair test is conducted by making sure that one factor at a time is changed, while keeping all other conditions the same. For example, imagine that we want to measure which is the fastest toy car to coast down a sloping ramp. If we gently release the first car, but give the second car a push start, did we do a fair test of which car was fastest? No! We gave the second car an unfair advantage by pushing it to start. That's not a fair test! The only thing that should change between the two tests is the car; we should start them down the ramp in exactly the same way.
Results
In this section you should: - Collect data, neatly organize it into tables and/or graphs
- Describe what happened during the experiment, what you observed
- Note any errors or unexpected variables that occurred
Conclusions
Compare what you thought would happen and what actually did happen. Was your Hypothesis correct or not? Why?
What did you learn?
Extra Credit: Future Direction
Did doing the project, or reading or seeing what happened make you think of other questions that you are curious about? Propose what you would do next.-
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- Preparing the Project for Presentation
- Text can be handwritten or typed (it's okay for someone else to help type). Neatness counts! It should be a student's best effort and be clearly written. Backboard (large display posterboard) can be ordered on the registration form.
- Titles and subtitles should be LARGE enough to see from a distance
- Use subtitles (like these) to make your project tell a story:
- Question, Hypothesis, Materials, Procedure, Data, Results, Gathering Information, Conclusion
- Write clear explanations, use charts, graphs, tables, or photographs
- Include the title of the project and student's name, grade and teacher
- Acknowledge everyone who helped! e.g. Photographs by Brother. Graphs made with Dad. Typing by Mom. Poster prepared with help from Grandma.
- Rules
- All participants in the science fair must follow these important rules:
- Project must not hurt anyone
- Project must not hurt animals
- Dangerous chemicals are not allowed
- No open flames are allowed
- Live animals cannot come to the fair
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Help WantedOn the day of the event:
Setting up/cleaning up (3)
Organizing students (4)
Mentors/Judges (6) Prizes are back! Email us with prize ideas.As in previous years, there will be prizes at the Science Fair. All participants with poster presentations of their project or invention will be given a ticket for a random drawing of prizes. You can earn an additional ticket just by submitting your registration form by March 4th. Interested in going to the WSSEF?Those students who are interested in presenting at the 2011 Washington State Science and Engineering Fair should look at their website before starting their projects. The state science fair has specific requirements (e.g. journal, abstract submission) and regulations. Familiarize yourselves with the judges criteria for a successful science fair project! Registration deadline for the state fair is still TBD. The event takes place on April 1 and 2 in Bremerton.
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