Types of Projects
Students
in grades 4-5 may enter:
1. Experiments.
2. Non-experimental projects such as:
| • |
three-dimensional
displays (i.e. the solar system, structures of atoms)
or collections based on research |
| • |
models
demonstrating a scientific principle or technology
(i.e. what causes erosion or how to build a homemade
seismograph) |
| • |
observations
of the environment (i.e. how plants disperse seeds,
what lives in a drop of pond water) |
| • |
data
collection projects (i.e. how do the number of seeds
in different fruits compare, how fast do bean plants
grow) |
For
students in grades 6-12, judging criteria will favor experiments
and observational studies over non-experimental
demonstrations and displays.
Students in these grades must follow good scientific methodology.
Original,
innovative research will be judged higher than projects
simply following experiments printed in textbooks or
found in other sources for
science fair projects.
Team
Efforts
- Students
in all grades may work on a project individually or in
a group of up to two students.
- Team
projects may be entered in any category. There is no
separate category
for team projects.
- It
is important to note, however, that 1) criteria for judging
projects in this category
will include
evidence of
equal contribution by all students, 2) each student
working on the project MUST have his/her own logbook,
3) if students
are of different ages, the project will be entered
in the grade level of the eldest child.
Two-Year Projects
- Two-year
projects will be admissible only if a new question is
asked
or an extension beyond the previous
year’s
work is apparent.
- The
logbook from the original project must be displayed.
- The
project must be prominently labeled “Two-Year
Project” and first year results must be indicated
separately from second year results.
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