Elementary School Science Fair Ideas
Elementary school science fairs are often the first experience children have with hands-on experiments. Choosing and preparing for a science fair exhibit familiarizes grade-schoolers with the scientific method and helps build planning and presentation skills, as well as academic confidence. Finding an idea for a science fair project can be challenging. Once a student finds a topic of interest, he should research the topic carefully and design an experiment that will answer the problem or question posed.
Insect Behavior
Conduct a project observing the different stages of butterfly development. You will need a butterfly habitat kit and larvae, a camera, ruler and thermometer. Purchase the Butterfly Pavilion kit (see Resources below), which includes a coupon to send off for 10 Painted Butterfly larvae. Get the kits in advance, because you must send away for the butterfly larvae.
Measure and record the length of the caterpillars. Put five of the caterpillars in one caterpillar cup, and five more in another. Put one in a high location and one in a cooler place. Record the temperatures of both areas (must be two degrees or more difference).
Check both cups daily, noting changes in size and appearance. Take pictures. Note the date and time when the caterpillars become chrysalises, and when they become butterflies. Follow kit instructions regarding their care. Repeat the experiment and record, graph and compare your results.
Human Behavior
This project shows how different genres of music affect heartbeat. You will need a computer, a PASPORT Heart Rate Sensor kit and USB Link kit (see Resources) or other methods to measure and record heart rate. You also need a music player, music from different genres, a stopwatch and several human participants.
List your materials and the songs you will play. If using the kits, install the EZscreen software with heart sensor kit. The computer will record your data. Create a playlist with the songs representing different kinds of music. Connect a participant to the heart sensor. Let her sit calmly for one minute, then record her heart rate for one minute. Notate resting heart rate.
Play the first song for two minutes, stop the music, then take and record her heart rate again. Repeat this step for the remainder of the songs. Record each step on paper or save the file using the participant's name.
Repeat the procedure for the rest of your test subjects. Analyze your data. Chart the average heart rate for each participant, and record the resting heart rate for each subject during each song. Write a summary of your findings.
Electricity
Which fruits work best as a battery? You will need a Two Potato Clock kit (see Resources), a lemon, apple, orange and tomato. Record the materials in your kit. Roll the lemon to loosen juices and follow the kit instructions to connect the probes to the fruit. Once the clock begins to work, note on paper how long it runs before it stops. Repeat these steps with the apple, orange and tomato. Repeat the experiment two times more and record the results.
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