Parent Information Night Science Fair

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Parent Information NightScience Fair

• Presented by
• LAS Fifth Grade Team

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A Successful Science Fair Project is an
investigation and includes

• Starts with a question (not a yes or no
  answer)
• A clear hypothesis
• Research and documentation
• An experimental procedure that tests the
  hypothesis
• Data collecting and recording
• Data analysis
• Conclusions that refer to the hypothesis

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So, how to begin?

• Start with the students interests/hobbies
• WWW.SCIENCEBUDDIES.ORG, Science Fair Central,
  List of possible projects from your teacher, or
  other similar resource
• Write the problem or question
• Do some preliminary research on the topic
• Formulate a hypothesis
• Figure out the experimenthow are you going to
  TEST the hypothesis?

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Problem must be stated as a testable
question.(Should not be able to answer question
with a yes or no) Example Which particle
size will have the fastest reaction rate?
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Hypothesis Educated guess based on previous
research Example The powdered Alka-Selttzer
tablet will have the fastest reaction rate.
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• Research and documentation
• Students should research science concepts that
  tie to their project.
• Example Chemical reactions
• molecules
• reaction rate
• reactant
• chemicals
• chemical change
• product
• temperature
• Students will write a multiple paragraph research
  paper explaining these concepts and explaining
  their relevance to the real world.
• Typed research paper will use Times New Roman 12
  font and be double spaced
• Length should be at least 1 full page and not
  exceed 4 pages.
• Must be written in students own words(5th grade
  vocabulary). No Plagiarism !

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Chemical Reactions Chemical Reactions occur
when two or more substances combine to make a new
substance. Chemicals are made from molecules.
The rate of reaction is how fast the molecules
regroup. Chemical change happens when a reactant
transforms a substance into a new product.
Temperature may also affect chemical reactions
and the rate of reaction. Molecules consist of
more than one atom combined together. An atom is
the smallest particle of an element. They differ
in size and weight. Molecules are the smallest
particles of a compound. For example, oxygen is
a compound of two oxygen molecules, OOO2.
Another example is water. Water is a compound of
two hydrogen molecules and one oxygen molecule,
HHOH2O. Molecules make it possible for there
to be many different substances. Rate of
Reaction is the speed at which chemical change
happens. At a high rate, the chemical change can
take seconds. At a low rate, the speed of the
chemical reaction can take thousands of years.
The substance that you start with before a
chemical change occurs is the reactant. The
resulting substance is the product. When a
reactant undergoes a chemical change it becomes a
new product. A chemical change occurs when two
solutions come together to form some reaction.
For example, it can form a solid, gas, or a
temperature change. Sometimes it can create
energy to be released, a color change, or tarnish
can form. A product is the new substance in a
chemical change or chemical reaction. An example
of a chemical change is Alka-Seltzer that starts
out as aspirin, citric acid, and sodium
bicarbonate. After it goes through the process
of the chemical change, it then becomes sodium,
bicarbonate, carbon dioxide, and
water. Temperature is the warmth or coolness of
an object measured by a thermometer. Fahrenheit
and Celsius are scales of measurement shown on
thermometers. Heat is a form of energy created
by the movement of atoms and molecules. The
faster the movement, the more heat is
developed. Chemical reactions occur in many
different ways and can form many different
products. Chemical reactions are ongoing in our
bodies as well. Chemical reactions are constantly
occurring in the world around us. They help make
our planet and life itself exist.
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• Materials for Experiment
• List all materials used in experiment.
• Students must include specific amounts and
  measurements.
• Example
• 12 Alka Seltzer tablets
• 4 sheets of blank paper
• 1 hammer
• 4 thermometers
• 12 clear drinking cups
• 1 cup measuring cup
• 1 plastic spoon
• 12 cups of tap water (same temperature)
• 1 stop watch
• One person to keep time
• One person to drop tablet and observe and note
  time
• A log to fill in data and observations
• pen or pencil

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• Experimental Procedure
• Student will write step by step instructions
  explaining how to set up and conduct the
  experiment.
• Steps must be numbered
• Be Specific
• Example
• 1. Pour 8 ozs of water into 12 cups.
• 2. Label cups according to particle size.
• 3. Measure the temperature of the water and
  record in log.
• 4. Remove thermometer.
• 5. Prepare tablets by leaving four tablets
  whole break four tablets
• into halves break four tablets into
  quarters and pound four
• tablets into a powder. (fold tablets into a
  piece of paper before
• pounding with a hammer)
• 6. On the count of 3, timer starts while the
  volunteer drops a whole
• tablet into the first cup of water. Wait for
  tablet to completely
• dissolve and stop the watch. Note the time in
  the log. Repeat 3
• more times.
• 7. Repeat step 6 for the halved, quartered, and
  powdered tablets.

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• Data Collecting and Recording
• Create a hand drawn or computer generated chart.
• Enter data as you conduct experiment. Data must
  be a measurement. (height, weight, temperature,
  etc.)
• Data must be recorded by hand in pen or pencil.
• Data must be recorded from at least 3
  trials(experiment repeated at least 3 times)
• Data must be recorded as decimals not fractions
• Written observations describing what occurs
  during experiment must be recorded as well.

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Log
Particle Size Temperature(F) Reaction Time(s) Reaction Time(s) Reaction Time(s) Average Reaction Time(s) Observations
Particle Size Temperature(F) Trial 1 Trial 2 Trial 3 Average Reaction Time(s) Observations
Whole Tablet          
Tablet Broken in Half          
Tablet Broken in Quarters          
Powdered Tablet          
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• Data Analysis and Reporting Results
• Create a hand drawn or computer generated chart
  of data taken directly form log.
• Calculate the average measurement for each of the
  3 trials, and include this in you data chart.
• Using the final averaged data, create a graph to
  show results visually.
• Take the final averaged data from the chart, and
  write out the final results in complete
  sentences. Just state the results, no
  explanations.

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Data Chart
Particle Size Temperature(F) Reaction Time(s) Reaction Time(s) Reaction Time(s) Average Reaction Time(s)
Particle Size Temperature(F) Trial 1 Trial 2 Trial 3 Average Reaction Time(s)
Whole Tablet          
Tablet Broken in Half          
Tablet Broken in Quarters          
Powdered Tablet          
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Graph
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Results The powdered tablet dissolved the
fastest at an average of 41.5 seconds The
quartered tablet dissolved at an average of 43
seconds. The halved tablet dissolved at an
average of 44.5 seconds. The whole tablet
dissolved the slowest at an average of 47 seconds.
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• Conclusion and Discussion
• State whether or not the results supported the
  hypothesis.
• Using knowledge gained from research explain why
  you think your results occurred.
• Also explain any problems that arose that may
  have influenced your results.
• What would you do differently if you were to
  conduct this experiment again?
• What suggestions do you have for further
  experimentation on this topic?
• For example

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Conclusion My hypothesis was correct. The
powdered Alka-Seltzer tablet dissolved the
fastest. This conclusion goes along with my
research that states, if a solid reactant is
broken into smaller pieces or ground into a
powder, then its surface area is increased, and
more particles are exposed to the other reactant.
This increases the rate at which the particles
collide with each other, which in turn increases
the reaction rate. The results of my experiment
may have been affected by the fact that the
powdered Alka-Seltzer tablet stuck to the paper
that it was crushed on, so that not all the
powder made it into the water. Only a miniscule
amount stuck to the paper. Also, it was more
difficult to tell when the powdered Alka-Seltzer
was done reacting, than with the other particle
sizes, because the reaction was so bubbly. For
further experimentation I would test whether
stirring at a faster rate affects reaction time.
Another alternative would be, I could use bottles
of soda and Mentos broken into different particle
sizes. I could also test if different liquids
cause a faster reaction time. Another idea would
be to test whether the temperature of the water
would affect reaction rate? In conclusion, maybe
medicines should be sold in powder form, so that
they can dissolve quickly and start taking effect
sooner.      
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• Annotated Bibliography
• A list of ALL resources students used to conduct
  research written in ALA or MLA format. (See
  Student handouts provided by teacher)
• Sources must be in alphabetical order
• Must have at least 3 sources
• Annotation Each entry must have a 1-3 sentence
  summary of the information found.

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Annotated Bibliography   Chemical Reactions.
Raders CHEM4KIDS.COM. www.chem4kids.com.
9/16/2012 This website helped me understand what
a reaction and chemical reaction are.   Fallon,
L. Fleming. "Thermometer." Gale Encyclopedia of
Surgery A Guide for Patients and
Caregivers. 2004. Encyclopedia.com. 26 Sep. 2013
lthttp//www.encyclopedia.comgt. This
encyclopedia explained what a thermometer is, and
that it is used to measure temperature in
Fareheit (F) and Celsius (C).   Hacket, Dr. Jay
K. California Science. New York. 2008. Macmillan
McGraw-Hill From this science text I learned the
definitions for molecule and atom. I also
learned that a chemical reaction starts with a
reactant and ends with a product.   Heat and
Thermal Energy. Raders CHEM4KIDS.COM.
www.chem4kids.com. 9/16/12 This article
explained how heat is energy caused by the
movement of atoms and molecules.   Rate of
Reaction. Raders CHEM4KIDS.COM.
www.chem4kids.com. 9/16/2012 This article
explained what a reaction rate is. It also helped
me understand how temperature effects reaction
rate.   What are the active ingredients in
Alka-Seltzer?. Answers.www.answers.com.
9/26/13 This site gave me the ingredients and
chemical name for Alka-Seltzer, and explained
what happens when it dissolves in water.  
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• Abstract
• Four paragraph summary of the project.
• See format handout supplied by teacher.
• I conducted an experiment using Alka-Seltzer and
  water. I wanted to find out how fast chemical
  reactions occur. I wanted to discover which size
  particle had the fastest reaction rate. My
  hypothesis was that the powdered Alka-Seltzer
  tablet would react the fastest.
• I dissolved different sized particles of
  Alka-Seltzer into glasses of water. There were
  many tasks involved such as, mixing, dropping the
  tablets or pieces, recording the temperature and
  time, and making written observations in order to
  conduct the experiment accurately. It was
  important to drop the particles, start the time,
  and end the time once the particles dissolved.
  Then the data and results were recorded on the
  log.
• My results showed that the whole tablet
  dissolved the slowest and the powdered tablet
  dissolved the fastest. As I recorded, I made
  observations. For example, the particles usually
  dropped to the bottom of the cup then floated to
  the top. The stirring motion should have been
  more constant, and we should have dropped the
  tablets from the same height all the time. Some
  of the powdered particles did not make it into
  the cup. The powdered particles did not drop to
  the bottom but bubbled more than the other
  samples.
• The data and results supported my hypothesis
  that the powdered Alka- Seltzer tablet would
  dissolve the quickest. My experiment concluded
  that by crushing the tablet into a powder, it
  will dissolve in water much faster than a whole
  tablet, half tablet or quarter tablet. This
  information helps me to understand that the
  particle size of some substances affects its
  reaction rate.

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Please note

• Proving the hypothesis true
• is NOT the purpose
• of a science fair project
• A well-supported answer based on research to a
  problem IS the purpose

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For our fifth graders, inappropriate projects
include experiments using

• Mold
• Blood or other bodily fluids
• Tissue (animal or human)
• If human subjects or animals are used, a form
  explaining how they will be used MUST be
  completed and approved BEFORE the experiment
  begins.

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Other inappropriate projects include

• Displays or models without an investigation
• Experiments done without a scientific concept
• Experiments with more than one variable
• Experiments that dont test the hypothesis
• Models of sciencevolcanoes exploding, mixtures
  that have no connection to the hypothesis, etc.

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CNUSD Science Fair Judging Criteria

• Originality/creativity
• Comprehension
• Organization completeness
• Effort Motivation
• Clarity

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Originality/Creativity

• Original problem or an unique approach to an old
  one
• Interpretation of data shows original
  thinking/creativity
• Student shows understanding of how their results
  can have real life applications

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Originality/Creativity

• Does the project show creativity in
• The hypothesis or questions asked?
• The approach to solving the problem?
• Analysis or data?
• Use of equipment?
• Construction and/or design of new equipment?

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Effort Motivation

• Time allowed to complete the experiment is
  appropriate to test hypothesis and make
  observations
• Time spent on background reading/research is
  appropriate
• Student learned considerable amount about the
  subject during the project
• The display is informative, complete, clear, well
  organized and attractive

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Clarity

• The notebook is well-organized and accurate
• The purpose, procedures, results and conclusions
  are clear
• The title accurately reflects the project
• The abstract is clear and concise