Phase 1: Brainstorming Questions
Due date:17 January 2018
Intro: Choosing the right question to research can be the hardest part of the science fair process. Don’t worry about thinking of the perfect question right away. Start by brainstorming topics that interest you, then think of questions you could research within that topic. For phase 1, you will choose three topics that interest you and brainstorm three questions you could research for each topic.
Tips:
●Keep all your brainstorming and notes in your science fair notebook.
●Choose topics that are interesting to you. Do you really care which brand of paper towel is strongest? Probably not! Again, choose something you want to spend several months thinking about.
●Be realistic about what you can do. Think about the time and materials a project will require.
●Make your questions specific. “How does oil affect aquatic plant growth?” is a better question than “How does oil affect a marine ecosystem?”
●Avoid using the words “best” or “good” in your question. For example, “which plant food increases plant height most rapidly?” is a better question than “which plant food is the best?”
●Topics that require the use of vertebrate animals (with a backbone) will not be allowed.
●Ideas for finding a topic:
- Scan the non-fiction section of the library for books that interest you
- Looking through the list of potential topics available in class
3. Visit the “Topic Selection Wizard” and “Project Ideas” links
Requirement checklist:
□All my questions are testable. I can answer the question by doing an experiment.
□None of my questions include the words best, better, or good.
□I have at least two different topics, with 5 total questions.
□All my brainstorming was included in my project notebook and is listed in the table of contents.
□Example:
Topic 1 – Oil spills
Question 1: Which dish soap brand most effectively cleans oil out of bird feathers?
Question 2: Does oil in water impact the rate of photosynthesis in aquatic plants?
Question 3: Does oil break down more rapidly in salt water, pond water, or tap water?
Grading: Total 20 points
●Notebook is neatly organized and formatted - 5 points
●Write 5 testable questions for the science fair project. - 15 points
oQuestions will be graded as follows:
▪1 point - question is not testable or is not written as a question
▪2 points - question is testable but not within the parameters of the science fair time frame and rules.
▪3 points - question is testable within the parameters of the science fair time frame and rules.
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