September 22, 2014
Dear Parent or Guardian,
Soon, your son or daughter will begin a science project. The science project’s objective is to give every child hands-on experience using scientific processes. In addition, each student will have the opportunity to independently research a topic of his or her interest. The purpose of the Science Fair is to design and conduct an experiment in which students change ONE variable and then measure the effect of that change. Projects that are simply displays will not be approved. You can help motivate your son or daughter by taking an interest in the project, however, the project is to be completed by your child. Please keep in mind that the project is to be completed at home.
As an eighth grader, your student will participate in a school science fair. Students will be expected to display and orally present their projects to the class. This is a great opportunity for students to practice their communication skills, as well as to receive feedback for refinement of their projects. All students will submit their projects to our Summit Academy Science Fair open house in February. Students and parents are invited to check out the other projects at this open house- more details will follow. At the fair, students will receive feedback from judges who work in the field. Selected projects may advance to the district science fair. The emphasis on our project is not on winning, but on having positive learning experiences and having fun.
I am including with this letter a copy of a timeline for our project due dates and multiple resources to assist your child. Please review the science fair packet with your child. I encourage you to check your child’s science fair timeline on a regular basis. Please do not hesitate to call or email me with any questions or concerns.
Thank you for your help!
Sincerely,
Ms. Brittany Schreiber
480.472.3342
Science Fair Resource Website: www.mpsaz.org/summitclimb/staff/bjschreiber/sciencefair/
Summit Academy
SC20 Science Fair Information
As a student in the advanced science class, you are required to complete a science fair project. You will need to spend time out of class on your project. In class work time is limited; therefore, I encourage students/partners to attend help sessions regularly. You will be graded on each step of the project as it is completed. There are due dates throughout the year in which components of your project must be submitted. If you complete all steps of the project and have all required parts by the turn in date of January 28, 2015, your project will be entered for judging in the Summit Academy science fair open house. If your project places, then it may be entered into the Mesa Public Schools District Science Fair on Thursday, February 19, 2015. If your project places first for the district in its category, it will be entered into the Arizona State Science Fair. Your science fair project must adhere to the Arizona State Science Fair (AzSEF) and ISEF rules and regulations. If you are truly serious about placing, you must see the ISEF website for their rules and regulations. [https://student.societyforscience.org/international-rules-pre-college-science-research] If you do not adhere to their guidelines, your project cannot be entered in their fair.
The purpose of the Science Fair is to design and conduct an experiment in which you change ONE variable and then measure the effect of that change. As you think of possible topics, consider what it is you will be changing and what you will be measuring as a result of that change.
Topics that will NOT be approved:
· Most mold/bacteria projects
· Projects designed to kill vertebrate animals, toxicity studies using vertebrate animals, improper treatment of animals
***Projects using human subjects have very strict guidelines and will need to submit paperwork to the SRC prior to beginning the project. Please see the ISEF website above for details***
Notice: As a general rule in science, do not use personal pronouns for any part of the Science Fair.
Science Fair Due Dates
*Dates subject to change. I encourage all students to attend help sessions for additional assistance.
Monday, Sept. 29, 2014 / Project Ideas: 3 Testable Questions / Fill in template
Wednesday, Oct. 1, 2014 / Signed Partner and Safety Agreements / Signed Document
Wednesday, Oct. 22, 2014 / Background Research and Work Cited page / Typed
Wednesday, Oct. 29, 2014 / Testable Hypothesis, Experimental Design Chart, Materials, and Procedures with Parent Signature
(Testing may begin once Experiment Design and Procedures are returned and signed off by Ms. Schreiber) / Typed
Wednesday, Nov. 12, 2014 / Prior Research Paper / Typed
Monday, Dec. 8, 2014 / Completed Data Table(s) - all testing is completed! / Handwritten- will type in class
Thursday, Dec. 11, 2014 / Data Tables, Graph(s), and Data Analysis / Typed
Friday, Jan.9, 2015 / Conclusion and Future Research / Typed
Wednesday, Jan. 14, 2015 / Abstract / Typed
Wednesday, Jan. 28, 2015 / Project Display Boards and Logbooks DUE- begin oral presentations. / Everything is Typed- No Personal Pronouns!
Wednesday, Feb. 11, 2015 / Summit Academy Science Fair Open House
Thursday, Feb. 19, 2015 / MPS District Science Fair
***Help is available during weekly tutoring hours- Friday mornings from 7:30-7:55am, however, additional help times may be scheduled with me.***
Science Fair Required Elements
(All work is to be completed in your logbook!)
1. Logbook: folder with prongs so papers may be added or rearranged as needed.
All ideas, notes, and data collected should be recorded in the logbook. It must be handwritten, not typed. Logbooks serve as evidence that the students completed the project. Science fair projects cannot be submitted without a logbook. Students who choose to work in groups still need an individual logbook for each member.
All logged entries must include date, time, and topic of discussion for each session. Students should record all information, research, and data in the logbook. A logbook should also include a table of contents with three columns. The columns are the topic, page number, and date of completion. Each step of the science fair is to be recorded in the logbook. A safety contract or a reference to safety should be in your logbook.
2. Topic Approval
Students should submit a testable question and two back-up questions aligned with the topic category for each. Parents and students must both sign off on the topic. Students who decide to work with a partner must also include an agreement contract that outlines the responsibilities and work time. The Partner Agreement Contract form must be signed by parents of both students. Be sure to avoid any personal pronouns when writing the question.
Science Fair Categories
Behavioral and Social Sciences
Cellular and Molecular Biology
Chemistry
Computer Science
Earth and Planetary Science
Engineering
Environmental Science
Mathematical Science
Medicine and Health
Physics and Astronomy
Plant Sciences
3. Background Research and Work Cited
What research did you do to better understand your topic? You may use books, magazines, and online resources to find your information. All information must be cited correctly. I suggest using the MPS databases for information and using NoodleTools.com to create your work cited page. Cite your sources as you use them. Do not wait until the end of the project to start your work cited page. Use the provided template to complete this portion of your science fair project.
4. Testable Hypothesis
A hypothesis should be your prediction about the independent and dependent variable. It will often be written in the “If…then…” format. It should include both variables and should answer your scientific question.
5. Experimental Design Chart
The chart must include the independent variable, control and experimental groups, dependent variable, and any controlled variables (min. 3). (Template provided). You need to clearly identify each on your display board.
6. Procedures and Materials List
Describe the procedures that you will follow to complete your experiment. Use the correct format for writing procedures, (steps numbered on the left side, start each step with a verb, avoid transition words, do not use personal pronouns, etc.) These steps must be followed exactly during your experiment. You must record any necessary changes. List all materials in a bulleted form. Include safety rules to follow during your experimentation. The Procedures and Materials section must be signed off by your parent before you turn it in to me, and must be signed off by me before you begin any testing!
7. Prior Research Paper
Explains why your project is interesting and relevant. Explains what you found in your research and how it is related to your experiment. An additional paper will be provided to outline this section of your project.
8. Data Table and Graph
All data should be measured in metric. Data that does not follow this criteria will not be accepted. Be sure to use a data table to organize your data. Create a graph to best represent your data. Remember to properly label your data table and graph.
9. Data Analysis
You will describe and explain your results. You need to explain the relationship between the IV and DV. Interpret your data- what does the data mean? Compare the data to the control(s) and explain any outlying data (extraneous variables). Discuss sources of uncertainty or unexpected results. Also, add anything else pertinent to the experiment that is being conducted.
10. Conclusion and Future Research
Restate your hypothesis and whether it was supported or not supported by the results. Explain what evidence shows whether the hypothesis was supported or not. We will be formatting the conclusion using the RERUN format. Be sure to include any practical application- why is this experiment important to society? Lastly, include your future research- what would be the next thing to test based on the data collected? What questions came up during your investigation that might lead you to continue your research?
11. Abstract
An abstract provides an overview or summary of the project. It should emphasize why this experiment is important for others to be aware. The abstract must be typed and should describe the student’s conclusions in 250 words or less. The abstract will be attached to the display board. It will be the first component of your display board.
12. Display Board
The display should contain all parts of the scientific process. Use of a commercially available display board is strongly recommended. Displays are limited to 30in deep, 48in wide, and 108in high. Most are considerably smaller. Your display should stand on its own. Lettering should be neat and uniform and spelling should be accurate. The attractiveness of the display is important. Use of personal pronouns anywhere on the display board is not permitted. Please be sure to follow this rule from the beginning to avoid major edits later on. Some class time will be spent in class covering what a display board should look like and techniques for properly putting a display board together. Additional help after school will be available for students who wish to have additional support when building their display.
*Sample set-up
13. Conventions
Did you proof read your work? Did you run a spell check and grammar check? No personal pronouns are allowed on your board!
14. Oral Presentation
You will have a brief period of time to present your project to your class. Practice, practice, practice! Use flashcards if needed.
15. Science Fair
Set-up instructions will be provided by your teacher before the fair.
*This project is to be completed at home. I strongly encourage students to attend help sessions for additional assistance.
Background Research
Making a Background Research Plan: How to Know What to Look For
Background research is necessary so that you know how to design and understand your experiment. To make abackground research plan-- a roadmap of the research questions you need to answer -- follow these steps:
1. Identify the keywords in the question for your science fair project. Brainstorm additional keywords and concepts.
2. Use a table with the "question words" (why, how, who, what, when, where) to generate research questions from your keywords. For example:
Throw out irrelevant questions. You can always find more information to research, but some questions just don't have anything to do with the experiment you will define and perform. Questions thatwillhelp you design and understand your experiment are calledrelevant. Questions thatwill nothelp you design and understand your experiment are called irrelevant. Our table of question words is a great way to generate ideas for your background research, but some of them will be irrelevant and we just throw those out. Some of those irrelevant questions might be very interesting to you; they just don't belong as part of your science fair project. We have to focus our efforts on what we feel is most important, or another way of looking at it, let's not spend time researching anything we don't need to. (I'm sure you have other things you'd like to do, too!)
3. Add to your background research plan a list of mathematical formulas or equations (if any) that you will need to describe the results of your experiment.
4. You should also plan to do background research on the history of similar experiments or inventions.
5. Network with other people with more experience than yourself: your mentors, parents, and teachers. Ask them: "What science concepts should I study to better understand my science fair project?" and "What area of science covers my project?" Better yet, ask even more specific questions.
Identifying Keywords
The place to start building your background research plan is with the question for your science fair project (see, we did that first for a reason). Let's imagine that you have asked this one:
Question:Does drinking milk help decrease spiciness better than water or Pepsi?
Begin by identifying the keywords and main concepts in your question. In this case keywords would be:
· Milk
· Spiciness
· Pepsi
· Water
Question Words Table
Filling in a little table can help. Let's do it for our keyword spiciness: