March 20, 2012
By Blog Editor Susan Wells
A few weeks ago, I was asked to be a judge at a local middle school’s 8th grade science fair. I was so excited to volunteer to take on title of Science Fair Judge for the first time.
I had no idea what to really expect or how to perform my judging duties as I drove to the school that morning.
This science fair consisted of honor science students’ projects. The two science teachers picked the top 20 projects out of their classes for the judges to interview, but the gym was full of project boards.
Before we began, I really enjoyed wandering around and looking at all of the projects. There were so many creative and unique ideas and all of the kids did a great job. I was glad we didn’t have to narrow the field based on the boards. That was a tough decision.
Judges were given sample questions, a few instructions and were then broken into groups of three to interview students
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February 3, 2012
Guest Blogger: Dr, Maille Lyons, The Science Fair Coach
Most of the time, when you don’t win, a science fair there isn’t any feedback on why your project was not selected as one of the best. Here is a list of the 5 most common reasons a project, that might otherwise seem like a “winner” does not even place in the top tier.
1. Violation: Gadgeteering
Explanation: Projects that do not follow the scientific method to solve a problem will usually be dismissed as a demonstration or a gadget. This is particularly common with a new technology. For example, a project that demonstrates how a solar cell (or DNA extraction kit or hover-craft etc.) works is not sufficient for a competitive science fair project because there is no experimentation. The project might win at school level for the “wow” factor, but will not be considered for awards at higher levels. HOWEVER, the exception to this violation is for science fairs with a specific category for Engineering and/or Technology. In this case, learn and follow the engineering design principles, which are similar to scientific method.
2. Violation: Failure to follow scientific method
Explanation: The most common errors that fall under this violation are:
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