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The project you are about to pursue will give you an opportunity to explore an area of science that you find especially interesting and to share the results of your investigation with others. This project requires a combination of research and creativity. The information that follows shows you some specific steps you can do to make a unique science project.
All science projects for the Science and Fine Arts Fair have the same basic structure, but they can be used to investigate any area of science. The structure of the project is based on the scientific methods. Scientific methods give a step-by-step approach to help scientists find solutions to problems and explain things they don't understand. Scientific methods are not a technique for always getting the right answer to a question, but they are a way of thinking about and investigating a question using skills in an orderly way.
You will be doing an Experimental Research science project. Simply stated, you will be answering the following questions:
What do I want to find out?
What is already known about the topic?
What should happen?
What should I do to find an answer?
What happened?
Did I find out what I wanted to know?
For this project, you will develop a probing question, research what scientists already know about your question, form an answer to your question called a hypothesis, design and perform an experiment, analyze the results, and draw inferences and conclusions from your work. You will keep a daily journal of all your activities. Finally, you will write a formal detailed report, and assemble an exhibit to display your work.
A science journal is required for each exhibit. It is an informal recording of what happened each day your worked on your project. It should remain in its original form (not recopied). In your daily journal you should record all of the details of your project including what you did, where you did it, and what you observed. Each entry of your daily journal must include the date, time, and materials used. If your project involves watching something change over several days or weeks, you should make frequent observations, possibly every day. The notes in your daily journal will help you prepare your exhibit and your detailed report.
Stimulating questions might come from reading an article, observing an interesting object or event firsthand, or watching an exciting TV or video segment. Quite often a probing question can come from another experiment. As you work on your probing question, use the following guidelines as a checklist, checking off each item as you review it:
State the probing question as one question. Keep the question specific and focused. A general question is hard to answer.
Rewrite your question until it says exactly what you want it to say.
When your question is finished, be sure it makes sense. Will it help you learn more about something? Does it help you find a reason or explanation for something?
Be sure your question allows you to find enough research materials to answer it. Why, How, and When questions usually lead to good probing questions. A good probing question will not be able to be answered with a Yes or No.
In your detailed report, note the challenges your probing question may present.
Here are some examples of probing questions:
"Why do some coyotes live alone and others live in packs?"
"How stable are different bridge designs?"
"How is bacteria killed in drinking water, yet people aren't harmed?"
"What affects the ability to remove stains?"
"How is plant growth affected by different amounts of light?"
Investigation and inquiry are critical to your project. A study of different resources will help you in forming your hypothesis. You should begin your research by investigating these and other sources:
Written materials - books, pamphlets, articles, etc. that deal with the topic.
Experts--you should consider contacting an expert by phone or email. You might even be able to arrange a personal interview.
Conferences or lectures - watch your local newspaper for events that coincide with the topic.
Libraries affiliated with laboratories, universities, or companies that might be involved with manufacturing materials related to the topic.
Present a thorough and correct account of what is already known about the topic. Supply information that may not be commonly known, but is significant. Share the information from a Christian perspective, and refute unchristian ideas wherever possible.
When comparing one product with another, use consumer magazines that have already done some testing and may be able to give you ideas.
Record each of your resources in a bibliography. Alphabetize all resources by author's last name. The bibliography becomes the last page of your detailed report. Your teacher may have a specific method for you to use, or use the following format to list your books:
Author (last name, first). "Article Title." Title of Encyclopedia. Copyright date. (Encyclopedia Article)
Author (last name, first) Title. City Published: Publisher, Copyright date. Pages used. (Book)
Author (last name, first). "Title of Article." Title of Magazine. Date (day, month, year): Page numbers
or article. (Magazine)
A hypothesis is sometimes called an "educated guess," because it is one possible answer to a probing question and it is based on knowledge and information. After you've conducted thorough research, you can now form a possible answer for your probing question based on your knowledge and research. There are probably many hypotheses that could be based on your probing question, but for this project, you should choose only one on which to focus.
Your hypothesis should deal directly with the probing question and show that you understand the problem. The hypothesis should fit with the facts, concepts, or principles used in your probing question. The hypothesis must be a statement you can demonstrate in order to prove or disprove.
Your hypothesis should include what you are comparing and what you expect as an outcome. Your hypothesis might sound something like these:
"Homemade strawberry jam tastes better than store-bought jam."
"A sponge absorbs sound better than a brick."
"If I mark my shadow position on Monday and again on Friday, the position of the shadow will have changed."
Your experiment is a fair test you do in order to prove or disprove your hypothesis. You must design the experiment. In your design, you must limit the number of things you are testing. This is called a controlled experiment because you'll be keeping all variables the same but one. This means that you must keep all things in your experiment identical except the one thing you're testing in order to make it fair.
A major goal of your experiment is to provide complete and accurate data. You get complete and accurate data by carefully observing, measuring, and recording the results of your experiment. Many experiments must be performed several times, each time collecting data from the experiment and comparing it to data from other trials. Repeating your experiment three to five times usually gives good results.
Use the following guidelines as a checklist, checking off items as you consider them:
Be sure to design and perform an experiment, not just a demonstration of someone else's experiment.
Decide which variables should be controlled. For example, when testing to see which dish soap works best, use the same amount of soap, the same temperature of water, and the same type of stains. All things in your experiment must be identical except the brand of soap you use.
Use instruments that measure, like a balance, thermometer, stop watch, meter stick, measuring cups, and any other instruments appropriate for your experiment. Use metric units in all measurements. Measure precisely--too much or too little could change all the results and make them inaccurate.
Be a good observer--if you don't pay attention to the entire experiment, you might miss something important. Your observations can be things you've measured with instruments (quantitative observations) or things you sense by seeing, touching, hearing, smelling, and tasting (qualitative observations). Be extra cautious with those things you smell or taste. Record your observations--they will be extremely important when you analyze your experiment.
Observations might look like these statements: The goldfish in the aquarium grew larger than the goldfish in the bowl. The bulb in socket 3 glowed when I connected the battery, but the bulb in socket 2 did not. The rubber ball bounced 14 cm, while the metal ball bounced 3 cm.
Incorporate replication--The results must be repeatable if they are to be trusted. This means that you should be able to follow the same procedure and get similar results.
Establish the length of the experiment. How long should it last or how long should you perform it? How do you know when to stop?
Remember to record your data. One useful way of recording and organizing your data is in a table. Here's an example:
|
Today's Date |
Time |
Container |
Location |
Water Given |
Seeds Sprouted |
|
4/12/98 |
9:14 a.m. |
1 |
window sill |
10 ml |
5 |
|
4/12/98 |
9:16 a.m. |
2 |
refrigerator |
10 ml |
0 |
|
4/12/98 |
9:20 a.m. |
3 |
closet |
10 ml |
3 |
An analysis is an examination of what happened. Look at your observations and make inferences from them. Inferences are statements that attempt to explain or make sense of observations. Here are some examples of observations with several possible inferences:
|
Observation |
Inference |
|
Rena had a perfect score on her math test. |
Rena has a gift for dividing fractions. |
|
|
Rena spent extra time studying the material. |
|
|
Rena memorized all possible problems and their solutions. |
|
|
|
|
Taller trees have larger leaves than shorter trees. |
Taller trees have deeper root systems than shorter trees. |
|
|
Taller trees get more rain than shorter trees. |
|
|
Taller trees get more sunlight than shorter trees. |
Often it's easier to understand what happened by looking at your data in the form of a graph. Consider putting your data in a bar or line graph. There are many other types of graphs to choose from, so if another form is more appropriate, go ahead and use it. Once your data is in a graph format, it will be easier for you to interpret patterns, tendencies, and trends. Those patterns that are important to your probing question and hypothesis are the ones for you to focus on.
Remember to clearly state information from a Christian perspective when it's appropriate.
Here is your chance to tell what was learned from the experiment. The following questions will help you understand what your experiment taught you and help guide you in writing your detailed report:
Why did I investigate this problem?
What information did I know before working on this project?
Did the results of the experiment confirm or deny my hypothesis? Why or why not?
What new knowledge did I gain from this project?
How was this experiment important to me?
Clearly explain logical connections between the information, observations, and interpretations. Pay close attention to details. Refer to the evidence of God's wisdom, power, or majesty when it's appropriate to do so.
This is where you assemble your ideas in a form that will help you share them with others. Your exhibit should be a self-explanatory display that appeals to many senses. Make an exhibit for your project that includes:
Your poster or display board
contains your identification slip (ask your teacher for this), your probing question, a summary of your procedures and conclusion, and any charts, graphs, diagrams, photographs, or drawings you think will help others better understand your project. To help people understand your project, your display should have many graphics, but few words--use phrases that summarize instead of complete sentences. If a display takes longer than a minute to understand, it often doesn't get read. Do not reproduce your report and hang it on your display.
Your daily journal (in its original form)
Your detailed report
Write a detailed report of your project. It must have a title page including your full name, grade, school and city, and probing question. The detailed report is based on the notes in your daily journal and should have one section devoted to each of the following areas (check them off as you finish them):
Probing Question
Presentation of Research Information
Experimental Procedures
Presentation of Data
Observations and Inferences
Conclusion and Summary
Acknowledgements
Bibliography
The acknowledgements portion of the detailed report gives a detailed explanation of any help that was given, whether it came from parents, brothers or sisters, teachers, or anyone else.
Your display and detailed report can be hand written, typewritten, or printed from a computer, but should be free from errors in grammar, spelling, capitalization, and punctuation.
Goals of Science Exhibits
The science fair grants you opportunities to study the evidences of God's wisdom, power, and majesty in the field of science.
The science fair provides a channel for you to develop and use your God-given abilities of critical thinking and investigative skills.
The science fair empowers you with the freedom and flexibility to develop a science project directed toward your individual interests.
Responsibility
The Science and Fine Arts Fair Committee, judges, host school(s), individual schools or individual teachers are not responsible for loss or damage of science exhibits. Exhibits are entered at the exhibitor's own risk.
Eligibility
Fifth through eighth grade students enrolled in a WELS school which is currently participating in the Science & Fine Arts Fair are eligible to exhibit science projects.
Projects may be completed by individuals or groups of up to three students.
If students from one group are in different grades, the project is entered at the highest grade level.
Materials
Exhibitors provide any equipment needed for their project, including, but not limited to: batteries, lamps, easel, tape recorder, containers, display materials.
All electrical apparatus must be of UL approved variety. Exhibitors needing household current must provide their own heavy duty extension cord with parallel plug.
Exhibits must be durable. Movable parts must be firmly attached. Push buttons and levers must be securely mounted and may not be attached to tables or walls.
Special Requirements
Only projects meeting all requirements are eligible for first, second, or third place awards. Projects missing any significant components (display, journal, or detailed report) will not be exhibited or judged.
Exhibit size is limited to 1 meter wide, 1 meter high, and 0.5 meter deep.
Projects involving animals should be reviewed in advance of the start of work by a qualified adult supervisor. Humane treatment of animal subjects is expected and required.
In projects involving living organisms, plants, bacteria, fungi, protozoa, worms, snails, insects, and other invertebrate animals should be used whenever possible.
For safety reasons, exhibits which include any food items (human or animal), live animals, preserved vertebrate animals or parts (including embryos), human parts, mold, fungi, microbial cultures, open flames, syringes, hazardous chemicals, highly combustible materials, or lasers are prohibited. Photographs and sketches are preferred alternatives to the actual objects.
Set-Up, Judging, and Pick-Up Information
All projects are to be set up at Luther High School between 4 and 5:30 p.m. the evening before the fair. Projects brought at any other time will not be accepted.
Public viewing is not permitted at the time of set-up. When setting up, do not touch any other exhibit, and please leave the building as soon as your exhibit is set up.
Judging begins promptly at 6 p.m. the evening before the fair. Judging of the exhibits is closed to exhibitors and the public.
All projects are to remain on display until 11:30 a.m. on Saturday (the day of the fair). They may be picked up between the hours of 11:30 a.m. and 1:30 p.m.