Science Fair Handbook for Parents and Students - Sevier County Schools
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Sevier County Schools
Science Fair Handbook
for
Parents and StudentsGuidelines for County Science Fair
1. Winning projects from school science fair may be submitted as entries to the county science fair by the school science fair
coordinator, with a maximum of 20 entries.
2. Projects will be classified as follows:
Intermediate division (grades 3-5) includes biological or physical. They are judged based on grade level and
category. Grade 3-5 are not eligible for the SASEF; therefore, they are judged only at the school and county level.
Junior division (grades 6-8) and Senior division (grades 9-12) categories are the Intel ISEF (listed on page 2). They
are judged by division and category. Teams are allowed for Junior and Senior divisions only. These two divisions
compete at the SASEF in Knoxville at the University of Tennessee at Knoxville.
3. All projects must utilize the procedures of the scientific method. See page 4 .
4. Projects must be the work of the student, with parents, teachers, or other adults serving only as advisors.
5. Displays must not be larger than 30 inches deep (front to back), 48 inches wide (side to side), and 108 inches high (floor to
top).
6. Safety Regulations are followed using the Intel ISEF guidelines at
http://www.societyforscience.org/page.aspx?pid=314#maxsiz.
Some of the guidelines are:
No live animals will be permitted at the science fair; however, photographs or drawings of animals used in
experiments are permissible. Photographic and any other visual presentations of laboratory techniques depicting
vertebrate animals in other than normal conditions may not be displayed, but may be contained in an
accompanying notebook or shown during judging.
Dangerous chemicals, open flames, explosives, poisonous retiles, microbial cultures (live or dead), or starvations
experiments on animals must not be exhibited. http://www.societyforscience.org/page.aspx?pid=314#maxsiz
7. Live plants or plant materials may not be displayed as part of the exhibit at the county science fair.
8. Each school science fair coordinator will be responsible for the presentation of winning projects from school events.
He/she should also coordinate with parents, the transportation of projects to and from the county exhibit location. All
projects not picked up the night of the county science fair will be destroyed due to lack of space for storage.
9. Students must complete and submit their county form to their school science fair coordinator. The school coordinator must
submit the entries least one week prior to the fair date.
10. Students must not place their names, the names of their schools, or any other identifying marks on the exhibits until
judging is completed. Each entry will be assigned a number by the fair director.
11. The judges may orally question any student about their project.
12. Decisions of the judges will be final.
1Intel ISEF Categories and Subcategories
The categories have been established with the goal of better aligning judges and student project for the judging at the Intel ISEF. Local, regional,
state and country fairs may or may not choose to use these categories, dependent upon the needs of their area. Please check with your affiliated fair(s)
Please visit our website at http://www.societyforscience.org/isef/project_categories for a full description and definition of the Intel ISEF categories.
.
ANIMAL SCIENCES (Code: AS) EARTH AND PLANETARY SCIENCE MATHEMATICAL SCIENCES (Code: MA)
Animal Behavior (Code: EA) Algebra
Development Climatology, Weather Analysis
Ecology Geochemistry, Mineralogy Computer Mathematics
Genetics Historical Paleontology Combinatorics, Graph Theory, and Game Theory
Nutrition and growth Geophysics Geometry and Topology
Pathology Planetary Science Number Theory
Physiology Tectonics Probability and Statistics
Systematics and evolution Other Other
Other
ENGINEERING: Electrical and Mechanical MEDICINE & HEALTH SCIENCES
BEHAVIORAL AND SOCIAL SCIENCES (Code: EE) (Code: ME)
(Code: BE) Disease Diagnosis and Treatment
Electrical Engineering, Computer Engineering, Epidemiology
Clinical & Developmental Psychology Controls Genetics
Cognitive Psychology Mechanical Engineering Molecular Biology of Diseases
Physiological Psychology Robotics Physiology and Pathophysiology
Sociology Thermodynamics, Solar Other
Other Other
MICROBIOLOGY (Code: MI)
BIOCHEMISTRY (Code: BI) ENGINEERING: Materials and Bioengineering
(Code: EN) Antimicrobial agents
Analytical Biochemistry Applied Microbiology
General Biochemistry Bioengineering Bacterial Microbiology
Medicinal Biochemistry Civil Engineering, Construction Engineering Environmental Microbiology
Structural Biochemistry Chemical Engineering Microbial Genetics
Other Industrial Engineering, Processing Virology
Material Science Other
CELLULAR AND MOLECULAR BIOLOGY Other
(Code: CB) PHYSICS AND ASTRONOMY
ENERGY & TRANSPORTATION (Code: PH)
Cellular Biology (Code: ET)
Cellular and Molecular Genetics Atomic, Molecular, and Optical Physics
Immunology Aerospace and Aeronautical Engineering, Astronomy and Cosmology
Molecular Biology Aerodynamics Biological Physics
Other Alternative Fuels Condensed Matter and Materials
Fossil Fuel Energy Instrumentation and Electronics
CHEMISTRY (Code: CH) Vehicle Development Magnetics, Electromagnetics and Plasmas
Renewable Energies Mechanics
Analytical Chemistry Other Nuclear and Particle Physics
Environmental Chemistry Optics, Lasers, Masers
Inorganic Chemistry ENVIRONMENTAL MANAGEMENT Theoretical Physics
Materials Chemistry (Code: EM) Other
Organic Chemistry
Physical Chemistry Bioremediation PLANT SCIENCES (Code: PS)
Other Ecosystems Management Agronomy
Environmental Engineering Development and Growth
COMPUTER SCIENCE (Code: CS) Land Resource Management, Forestry Ecology
Recycling, Waste Management Genetics/Breeding
Algorithms, Data Bases Other Pathology
Artificial Intelligence Physiology
Networking and Communications Systematics and Evolution
ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCES (Code: EV)
Computational Science, Computer Graphics Other
Air Pollution and Air Quality
Software Engineering, Programming Languages Soil Contamination and Soil Quality
Computer System, Operating System Water Pollution and Water Quality
Other Other
2Display of Project
Your display should include the following:
your title
the question or purpose for your project
your hypothesis
the materials you used
the procedure you followed
the results of your experiment (graph, table, data)
your conclusion
research paper (grades 6-12 only)
Example Display:
PROCEDURES
PURPOSE DATA
6
HYPOTHESIS 4 Group RESULTS
2 A
0 Group
DataData B
MATERIALS 1 3 CONCLUSIONS
3Scientific Method Process
1. Choose a Topic and Category
Ask yourself "What am I interested in?" or "What subject do I want to learn about?"
Example topics are plants, solar electricity, and Mars.
2. Identify a Problem, Question, or Purpose
What questions do you have about your topic? What do you want to know? State the problem as a question.
In some cases you may want to research your topic before you identify an exact problem.
Examples:
o How does amount of water affect plant growth?
o Can solar panels supply electricity to anything?
o How fast does Mars orbit the Sun?
3. Research the Problem and your Topic
What do you need to learn about so that you can solve your problem or answer your question? Where can you
search for information?
Learn as much as you can about your topic and problem. Research can be from many different sources including
people, books, magazines, the internet, or your own experience.
After you do your research you may want to restate your question in a better way.
Examples:
o Does the amount of food given to a certain plant affect the growth of that plant?
o Can one size solar panel do the work of any batteries?
4. Develop a Hypothesis
Now that you have done your research, develop a hypothesis.
A hypothesis is a prediction. What is your prediction of the answer to your question? What do you think will
happen?
Guess at what the answer to your question will be. This is not a mystery. You have educated yourself on the
topic and by now you should be able to make a guess at the answer based on your learning. This is also called
an "Educated Guess".
Examples of hypothesis statements:
o I predict that a plant that does not get enough water will die.
o I predict that the same one solar panel can be used to replace AA and C cell batteries but not D cell
batteries.
5. Design the Experiments
How will you test your hypothesis? What tests will answer your question? You must test enough samples to
prove your point.
Define the variables that will change from one experiment to the next. Amount of water? Amount of plant
food?
Plan the tests you want to perform so that you have a good idea how much time you will need to complete
them in the time allotted for your project. How long will you have to grow your plants to get good data?
Example experiments:
4o 9 plants total
3 tested with low amount of water
3 tested with the recommended amount of water (control group)
3 tested with too much water
o 9 battery operated items total tested with a solar panel
3 that use 2 AA cell batteries
3 that use 2 C cell batteries
3 that use 2 D cell batteries
6. Test your hypothesis
Test your hypothesis by executing your experiments. Be sure to keep good records of your experiments so that
you can analyze your results and present your data to others. Ask your teacher about the format for a journal or
data collection.
7. Analyze the data and results
What do your results tell you? Look at your experimental data. Organize it. Do you see any trends or information
that proves or disproves your hypothesis?
Develop a graph(s). Graphs not only help you understand your data but they will also help others to
quickly understand what you did.
8. Formulate and Report your Conclusions and make recommendations.
Was your hypothesis right or wrong? It is OK to be wrong. The objective of the scientific method is to investigate a
problem and work toward a solution. Sometimes you will end an experiment and have new questions. If so, those
new questions are part of your conclusions. Sometimes a conclusion proposes a new hypothesis and new
experiments with recommendations for further study.
Even if you have disproved your hypothesis you have still done a good job if you correctly applied the scientific
method.
http://www.makeitsolar.com/science-fair-information/01-the-scientific-method.htm
5Elements of a Successful Project
(Grades 6-12 Only)
1. Project Data Book:
A project data book is your most treasured piece of work. Accurate and detailed notes make a logical and
winning project. Good notes show consistency and thoroughness to the judges and will help you when writing
your research paper. Data tables are also helpful. They may be a little ‘messy’ but be sure the quantitative data
recorded is accurate and that units are included in the data tables. Make sure you date each entry.
2. Research Paper:
A research paper should be prepared and available along with the project data book and any necessary forms or
relevant written materials. A research paper helps organize data as well as thoughts. A good paper includes the
following sections.
Title Page and Table of Contents: The title page and table of contents allows the reader to follow the
organization of the paper quickly.
Introduction: The introduction sets the scene for your report. The introduction includes the purpose, your
hypothesis, problem or engineering goals, an explanation of what prompted your research, and what you
hoped to achieve.
Materials and Methods: Describe in detail the methodology you used to collect data, make observations,
design apparatus, etc. Your research paper should be detailed enough so that someone would be able to
repeat the experiment from the information in your paper. Include detailed photographs or drawings of self-
designed equipment. Only include this year’s work.
Results: The results include data and analysis. This should include statistics, graphs, pages with your raw
collected data, etc.
Discussion: This is the essence of your paper. Compare your results with theoretical values, published data,
commonly held beliefs, and/or expected results. Include a discussion of possible errors. How did the data
vary between repeated observations of similar events? How were your results affected by uncontrolled
events? What would you do differently if you repeated this project? What other experiments should be
conducted?
Conclusions: Briefly summarize your results. State your findings in relationships of one variable with the
other. Support those statements with empirical data (one average compared to the other average, for
example). Be specific, do not generalize. Never introduce anything in the conclusion that has not already
been discussed. Also mention practical applications.
6 References/Bibliography: Your reference list should include any documentation that is not your own (i.e.
books, journal articles, websites, etc.). See an appropriate reference in your discipline for format or refer to
the Instructions to Authors of the appropriate publication.
3. Abstract:
After finishing research and experimentation, you need to write an abstract. The abstract needs to be a
maximum of 250 words on one page. An abstract should include the a) purpose of the experiment, b)
procedures used, c) data, and conclusions. It also may include any possible research applications. Only minimal
reference to previous work may be included. The abstract must focus on work done in the current year and
should not include a) acknowledgments, or b) work or procedures done by the mentor.
http://www.societyforscience.org/document.doc?id=12
7Judges Criteria
1. Creative Ability (30 pts.)
Does the project show creative ability and originality in the questions asked?
Creative research should support an investigation and help answer a question in an original way.
Does the creativity promotes an efficient and reliable method for solving a problem.
2. Scientific Thought (30 pts.) – see engineering goals if applicable
Is the problem stated clearly?
Was there a procedural plan for obtaining a solution?
Are the variables clearly recognized and defined?
Are there adequate data to support the conclusions?
Engineering Goals
Does the project have a clear objective?
Is the objective relevant to the potential user’s needs?
Is the solution workable? Acceptable to the potential user? Economically feasible?
Could the solution be utilized successfully in design or construction of an end product?
Is the solution a significant improvement over previous alternatives?
Has the solution been tested for performance under the conditions of use?
3. Thoroughness (15 pts.)
Was the purpose carried out to completion within the scope of the original intent?
How completely was the problem covered?
Are the conclusions based on a single experiment or replication?
How complete are the project notes?
Is the finalist/team aware of other approaches or theories?
How much time did the finalist or team spend on the project?
Is the finalist/team familiar with scientific literature in the studied field?
4. Skill (15 pts.)
Does the finalist/team have the required laboratory, computation, observational and design skills to obtain
supporting data?
Where was the project performed? (i.e., home, school laboratory, university laboratory) Did the student or
team receive assistance from parents, teachers, scientists or engineers?
Was the project completed under adult supervision, or did the student/team work largely alone?
Where did the equipment come from? Was it built independently by the finalist or team? Was it obtained on
loan? Was it part of a laboratory where the finalist or team worked?
5. Clarity (10 pts)
How clear is the project?
Is the written material clear?
Is the project presented in an orderly manner?
How clearly is the data and results presented?
How well does the project display explain the project?
8Web Resources
Intel International Science and Engineering Fair Science Fair Tips and Advice
http://www.societyforscience.org/page.aspx?pid=355
ISEF Student Handbook http://www.societyforscience.org/document.doc?id=12
Science Buddies http://www.sciencebuddies.org/
Education.com Science Fair Project Ideas http://www.education.com/science-fair/
Fun Science Project Ideas http://www.fun-science-project-ideas.com/
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