Science Fair Information

Information Covered o Science Fair Overview o Choosing A Topic o Introduction (Research) o Writing A Question o Writing A Hypothesis o Gathering & Listing Materials

Information Covered o Looking at Experimental Design o Writing A Procedure o Conducting An Experiment o Data / Results o Conclusion o Display & Binder

A Science Fair Project Seeing the Big Picture

Science Fair Overview The science fair is a wonderful way for your child to learn and apply the scientific method, as well as peak their interest in questioning their surroundings. All fifth graders must participate in the science fair.

Helps develop time management A SCIENCE FAIR PROJECT… Provides another great opportunity for students to work on their own ability level.

A SCIENCE FAIR PROJECT… Builds public- speaking skills Boosts pride by displaying hard work

Choosing A Topic That’s Right For You Due Date: November 29 th

Choosing A Topic Pick something you have an interest in and know a little about already.

Choosing A Topic A science fair project must involve making a change and then looking for the impact of that change. A science fair project cannot be just a MODEL. We are becoming scientists and we actually have to TEST something.

Choosing A Topic Model: Papiér Mache / Baking Soda Volcano Experiment: Changing the amount of baking soda you add to the volcano to make it erupt.

Choosing A Topic Topics that won’t work: Things you (or another family member) have already experimented with Anything that may harm or interfere with an animal’s normal diet or behavior. Anything that is dangerous or involves unapproved chemicals or materials.

Part 1: Introduction and Research DUE DATE: December 11 th

Part 1 - Introduction (Research) 1.Rationale 1.Research your topic for background information 2.Why do you plan to conduct the experiment? 2.Purpose 1.What will you officially test and look for? 3.Hypothesis 1.What do you think will happen?

Why a Rationale? Scientists can never do an experiment without knowing a little bit about their topic. That’s why the next step, the HYPOTHESIS, is called an “educated” guess.

Writing the Rationale When you write the rationale, you will write two paragraphs: 1 st paragraph – use computers and the library to conduct research on your topic. You will list facts about your topic and information that will be critical to you setting up a fair experiment 2 nd paragraph – explain why you chose this topic and what you hope to learn as a result of the experiment

What is the effect of _______________________ on ________________________? Writing A Question Amount of baking soda rate of a volcano’s eruption Independent Variable Dependent Variable

Writing A Hypothesis A hypothesis is your “guess” as to what is going to happen in an experiment. You should base your hypothesis on what you already know about your topic or anything you may have learned from doing research.

Writing A Hypothesis Usually, we write a hypothesis in this format: If ___________________________ _________, then _________________ _______________________. This will occur because _____________. the amount of baking soda was increasedthe rate at which the volcano erupts will be faster (Add your research)

Writing A Hypothesis Your hypothesis is YOUR guess. It may or may not be “right” at the end.

Writing A Hypothesis A hypothesis is never wrong, so please don’t go back and change it at the end if your experiment doesn’t produce the results you expected. Often, we learn even more if it turns out differently than we expected.

Part 2: Experiment Set up and EDD DUE DATE: December 18 th

Part 2: 1. Materials 2. Experimental Design Diagram (EDD) 3. Procedure Due Date: December 18 th

Gathering & Listing Materials It’s important to list and gather your materials before you start your experiment. This will ensure you have everything that you need.

Gathering & Listing Materials You must be SPECIFIC with listing your materials. Water 1 Liter Water

Gathering & Listing Materials All materials must be listed in METRIC units. The metric system is the universal science language.

Metric Units Include: Length: Meters, Centimeters, Millimeters Temperature: Celsius Volume: Liters, Milliliters Weight: Kilograms, Grams

Metric Units Include: If you don’t have these methods of measurement, we will help you with converting our system of measurement to Metric.

Experimental Design Independent Variable: What YOU change in the experiment. Sometimes this is called the “manipulated variable.” In an experiment, you can only test ONE change. This helps you make sure you are observing the result of that one change. Dependent Variable: What changes as a result of the independent variable. You are only looking at ONE specific response, although more may occur. Sometimes this is called the “responding variable.”

Experimental Design CONSTANTS: What does NOT change during an experiment. This will usually be everything else in your materials besides the independent and dependent variable. “Steady as a rock”

Experimental Design CONTROL: –Your experiment may or may not have one of these. –Usually, this is the “normal” conditions. –Ex: A Control involves things like plants. If you were testing different liquids to water a plant with, a control would be watering a plant with water.

Finding Variables What is the effect of _______________________ on ________________________? rate of a volcano’s eruption Independent VariableDependent Variable amount of baking soda

Procedure A procedure is similar to the steps in a recipe. Someone should easily be able to conduct your experiment by following the steps in your procedure.

Are In Sentence Form Are Numbered Are specific Are Sequential (In Order) The Steps In A Procedure:

Procedure Step one should NOT be gather your materials. You will have already done this in the “materials” step.

COMPLETED BY: January 10 th Conducting An Experiment

Your experiment should have at least three trials.

Conducting An Experiment For example: For our volcano experiment, we were changing the amount of baking soda we added to: (For Example) 15 ml 30 ml 45 ml

Conducting An Experiment Each of these amounts would be tested three times. That means you would do a total of 9 “eruptions.”

Conducting An Experiment Something to keep in mind: If you are conducting an experiment with plants, you will need 9 of the same type / size plants.

Data & Results Due Date: January 17th

Data & Results This part of the scientific process shows the information you measured / observed in your experiment.

Ways to display data / results: Charts / Tables Graphs Pictures / Photographs Observations

Data & Results In this step, you also want to provide a written summary of your results. This should include your independent and dependent variables.

The Conclusion Due Date: January 24 th

Conclusion The conclusion is written in paragraph form. Here’s a helpful format for writing your conclusion:

Conclusion Think of the acronym RERUN R = Recall: describe procedure E = Explain: restate purpose R = Results: state results and if hypothesis was supported U = Uncertainty: describe any errors N = New: write 2 new things you learned and 2 questions for further investigation

Display & Binder Due Date: January 31 st

Display & Binder Your display is the first thing that people will see when looking at your project.

“Must-Haves” On Your Display Title (Center) Purpose (Left) Hypothesis (Left) Materials (Left) EDD (Center) Procedure (Center) Photos / Data / Graphs (Center) Results (Right) Conclusion (Right) The board should “flow” from one part to another. We don’t put a conclusion first, or a question last… it just wouldn’t make sense!

Make It The Best Take your time and think about how you want to decorate your board. It should be neatly typed and glued Decorations and “extras” should add to and not take away from the science part.

Display “No-No’s” Do not display or bring in the following, even if they are part of your project. Take pictures of them or illustrate them personally.  Pets  Food Items  Chemicals  Tools

Binder A binder collects all of the individual parts of the project, and puts them neatly into one place.

Binder Included in the binder: –Title page –Table of Contents –Purpose –Rationale –Hypothesis –Materials –Experimental Design Diagram (EDD) –Procedure –Data Collection –Results –Conclusion

THE SCIENCE FAIR: The Science Fair is scheduled: DURING SCHOOL HOURS On February 7 th, 2012

THE SCIENCE FAIR: Parents are invited to view projects: FROM 6 - 7:00pm On February 7 th, 2012

Your child will receive all of this information in class and will see sample projects. If you have any questions at all, please follow up with your child’s teacher. Mrs. Dyas – Mrs. Lombardo – Mr. Vaughan –