Science Fair Project List
Robert T. Hill Middle School
Your project should include all of the following items. All items should be kept in your
Science Fair Notebook (folder or binder). Be sure that each of these items are completed
before the checkpoints/due dates. Each item will be a part of the final product, your
display board.
□ 1. Project Topic & Title
Due on: Sept. 26, 2016
Describe what your project is
about. Give your project a
title: a catchy phrase for your
project or your experimental
question.
□ 2. Purpose / Statement
Due on: Oct. 3, 2016
Tell what your purpose is for
conducting this experiment.
What are you trying to
discover or test?
□ 4. Hypothesis statement
Due on: Oct. 17, 2016
This is an educated guess, written in the form
of “if…then”: if I do ____ then ____ will
happen.
Example: “If I add fertilizer to the soil of some
tomato seedlings, but not others, then the
seedlings that got fertilizer will grow taller and
have more leaves than the non-fertilized ones.”
A good hypothesis should:
-be based on the information from your
research
-predict the result of the experiment
□ 3. Research & Bibliography
Due on: Oct. 10, 2016
Research your topic. List
information found. Document
your sources (where you
found your information). This
may include websites, books,
magazines, or even people.
Science Fair
Categories:
Please visit the
website below for
category ideas:
https://goo.gl/b
qNXdp
□ 5. Procedures
Due on: Oct. 24, 2016
A. Materials – List what you used to perform your experiment
B. Instructions – Describe exactly what you did, step-by-step. (each
experiment must have at least 3 trials to be a valid experiment)
C. Variables
Controlled Variable(s) - parts of the experiment that remain the
same/don’t change
Independent Variable(s) – the part of the experiment that you are
testing, and should show change in the experiment
Dependent Variable(s) – parts of the experiment that you measure or
observe in the experiment; these are the effects/results of what you
are testing
-include the independent variable and the
dependent variable in the statement
□ 6. Results/Data
Due on: Oct. 31, 2016
A. Written Information –
record in detailed sentences
what happened during each
trial of the experiment. List
only the facts.
B. Visual Information – use
graphs, tables, charts,
illustrations or pictures to
explain/display the results.
(pictures should exclude
peoples’ faces)
□ 7. Data Analysis/Conclusion
Due on: Nov. 7, 2016
State whether your results
support or do not support your
hypothesis (it is okay if your
hypothesis is not supported,
just state the facts). Explain
what you learned from the
experiment. Compare and
contrast your data. This is the
most important part of your
project, because it summarizes
all information.
□ 8. Abstract
Due on: Nov. 14, 2016
An abstract is a summary of your science project in
the 1st page of your notebook. It should include the
purpose, procedures, data and conclusion.
□ 9. Project Notebook
Due on: Nov. 21, 2016
This includes all of your
information from the
experiment: Steps 1-8. These
items can be kept in a folder or
a binder with your project title,
name, teacher, and period.
□ 10. Display
Board
Due on: Nov. 28,
2016
Please see the
Display Board
Checklist for
expectations.
Project Notebook:
The remaining sections in the journal are steps in the order needed to design and develop your
own project.
1. Topic & Title. This section should include the categories and topics you are interested in. You
might make a list of these, then narrow down the topic list to one specific topic. Include
information about all the resources you used-magazines, books, online sources, etc.
2. Purpose / Statement. Tell what your purpose is for conducting this experiment. What are
you trying to discover or test? Record all your ideas. Include all your revisions and the final
Question Stated.
3. Project research & bibliography. This is research to help you understand the project topic. It
will be helpful in expressing the project problem, proposing your hypothesis, and designing
your project experiment. This information will be needed for the bibliography in your project
report. Document your sources (where you found your information). This may include websites,
books, magazines, or even people.
4. Project hypothesis Record all your hypothesis ideas with final Hypothesis stated.
5. Project experiment. This experiment is to answer the project question and test your
hypothesis. Record the materials used as well as the procedure steps. Do record all changes.
6. Project results/data. This section includes all the data collected from experimental
observations. It is important to date your entries. Include a time if it is needed. This information
can be recorded in tables, diagrams, graphs, written descriptions, etc. It is very important to
record detailed descriptions of your observations.
7. Data Analysis/Conclusion. This is your analysis of the experimental data. This means that you
study the data graphs and charts and determine what they mean. Use the data to answer the
project question. Determine if the data supports your hypothesis. Remember that your data
does not necessarily prove or disprove your hypothesis. Instead, it either does or doesn’t
support your hypothesis. This section should contain all your ideas for the completed
conclusion as well as your final copy.
8. Project Abstract. An abstract is a summary of your science project in the 1st page of your
notebook. It should include the purpose, procedures, data and conclusion. See the next page
for abstract details.
Abstract Checklist:
An abstract is an abbreviated version of your science fair project final report. It is limited to a maximum
of 250 words. The science fair project abstract appears at the beginning of the report as well as on your
display board. The abstract should have the following five pieces:
1. Introduction. This is where you describe the purpose for doing your science fair project or invention.
Why should anyone care about the work you did? You have to tell them why. Did you explain
something that should cause people to change the way they go about their daily business? If you
made an invention or developed a new procedure how is it better, faster, or cheaper than what is
already out there? Motivate the reader to finish the abstract and read the entire paper or display
board.
2. Problem Statement. Identify the problem you solved or the hypothesis you investigated.
3. Procedures. What was your approach for investigating the problem? Don't go into detail about
materials unless they were critical to your success. Do describe the most important variables if you
have room.
4. Results. What answer did you obtain? List the most important facts and e specific by using numbers
to describe your results. Do not use vague terms like "most" or "some."
5. Conclusions. State what your science fair project contributes; what do your results mean? Did you
meet your objectives? Do they give your ideas for research in the future?
Sample Abstract:
Advertisers are always touting more powerful and longer lasting batteries, but which batteries
really do last longer, and is battery life impacted by the speed of the current drain? This project
looks at which AA battery maintains its voltage for the longest period of time in low, medium,
and high current drain devices. The batteries were tested in a CD player (low drain device), a
flashlight (medium drain device), and a camera flash (high drain device) by measuring the
battery voltage (dependent variable) at different time intervals (independent variable) for each
of the battery types in each of the devices. My hypothesis was that Energizer would last the
longest in all of the devices tested. The experimental results supported my hypothesis by
showing that the Energizer performs with increasing superiority, the higher the current drain of
the device. The experiment also showed that the heavy-duty non-alkaline batteries do not
maintain their voltage as long as either alkaline battery at any level of current drain.
Display Board Checklist:
What Makes for a Good Science Fair Project Display Board?
For a Good Science Fair Project Display Board, You Should Answer "Yes"
to Every Question
Does your display board include:
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Yes /
No
Title
Abstract
Question
Variables and hypothesis
Background research
Materials list
Experimental procedure
Data analysis and discussion including data chart(s) & graph(s)
Conclusions (including ideas for future research)
Acknowledgments
Bibliography
Are the sections on your display board organized like a newspaper so that they are
easy to follow?
Is the text font large enough to be read easily (at least 16 points)?
Does the title catch people's attention, and is the title font large enough to be read from
across the room?
Did you use pictures and diagrams to effectively convey information about your science
fair project?
Have you constructed your display board as neatly as possible?
Did you proofread your display board?
Did you follow all of the rules pertaining to display boards for your particular science
fair?
Yes /
No
Yes /
No
Yes /
No
Yes /
No
Yes /
No
Yes /
No
Yes /
No