1. Science Fair Display Boards
Design for success

2. Display Board
The DISPLAY BOARD is probably the most familiar part of a Science Project. This tri-fold board will show off all your hard work so you want it to be professional. This powerpoint offers several tips for its design and construction.

3. Example 1 Borders (not necessary) Lettering (Neat)
Matting (adds color and fills “white space”)
Charts (large/full size)
Notice layout on sides
Use diagram on handout for
proper placement
Things this project is missing:
Subtitle
Pictures with captions
Proper placement of written parts
Aligning the papers in straight lines
Limited colors

4. What’s wrong with this picture?
Where does your eye go?
What is missing from this display?
How would you change this display?

5. The good, the bad, and the ugly

6. How long would you spend looking at this board?
Enough is enough!!!
How long would you spend looking at this board?

7. What Makes for a Good Display Board?
You Should Answer "Yes" to Every Question
Does your display board include:
Title & Subtitle
Question/Problem
Hypothesis
Materials list
Procedure
Data: table(s) & graph(s) & Pictures (all properly labeled)
Results
Conclusion
What it does not include
Name, school, teacher, etc…
Pictures with faces
Research report
Things hanging off

8. Text Size Suggestions for a Typical Science Project Display Board
Title 150+: You want your title to be visible
from across a room!
Subtitle 60+: Should be easily readable from five feet away by someone just walking by.
Headings 60+: This text is smaller than headings, but more noticeable than main text size.
Easy to read font
Main Body Text 16 – 18: This is a comfortable text size for someone who comes closer to read more.
Captions 12 – 16: It's OK to make these a bit smaller than the body text if necessary.

9. Text advice
Use a font size of at least 16 points for your main body text. Anything smaller is too hard to read. (See tables below for more information on text size.)
Stick with traditional fonts like Arial, Times New Roman, or similar typefaces.
Use italics or bold for emphasis, not for all your text.
Don't place your text on top of a picture; that makes it difficult to read.
Absolutely no ALL CAPS; THEY ARE MUCH HARDER TO READ.
Don't use more than two or three different fonts on your board. For example-Times New Roman for body copy and Arial for headings makes for a nice combination.

10. You can do better than this…samples

11. Using a color background board…samples