What should I share at the Birchwood Learning Fair?
Here are some ways to plan and websites to help you decide what you'd like to focus on presenting at Birchwood's Learning Fair!
Steps to Inquiry Learning:
Wonder:
The first step in doing a Learning Fair project is choosing a topic you want to learn more about! Choose something you are wondering about, something that is new to you and you can become an expert at! Don't choose something you know a lot about already, as that won't be much fun!
Think about what your question will be. Try to focus on one thing.
What is too broad or too narrow?
Ex. Ocean Life is Broad- there will be too much to cover.
Plankton is narrow- you may not find enough information.
Investigate:
Think about where you will gather your information. Try to use different types of resources such as books, movies, people, databases, web resources. Don't forget to check out your library!!
Synthesize:
How will you combine all the information from different resources? Start thinking about how you will put everything together!
Express:
Think about your audience! How will you show everyone what you have learned?
Reflect:
Did you become an expert on your topic? What did you like about this project? What do you wish you had done differently?
Links for some project ideas:
Science
Easy Science Fair: http://www.easy-science-fair-projects.net
Science Buddies: http://www.sciencebuddies.org/
Discovery Science: http://school.discoveryeducation.com/sciencefaircentral/
History & Biography
Great Websites for Kids: http://gws.ala.org/category/history-biography
Museum of Natural History: http://www.amnh.org/explore/kids-guide-to-the-museum/
Math
Kid SItes: http://www.kidsites.com/sites-edu/math.htm
Art &Music
Art and Music section of Kids.gov https://kids.usa.gov/art-and-music/index.shtml
Niskayuna Local History
Town Historian: http://www.niskayuna.org/town-historian/pages/history
Page created and maintained kkirkpatrick@niskyschools.org 1/2015