FAQ

• While we welcome the contribution of parents, only sponsors will be allowed in the project hall from 8:00-9:00. We will make an announcement when it is time for sponsors to exit. Judging will be from 9:00-12:00, and only students, ESC staff, and judges will be allowed in the project hall.

• If there is a special circumstance where parents need to attend, arrangements can be made with the child's sponsor ahead of time. Parents attending may await their child's arrival in the holding room in 3rd  Floor Conference Center with their student's sponsor. Ultimately, parents should seek prior approval from their child's school district before attending.

• Due to time constraints, there will not be an open viewing of the project hall. However, we will send out a project overview video link for districts to distribute. 

• We will also send districts a link to the LIVE awards show on Friday, February 9th, by 9:00 AM. There will be a separate and permanent link for viewing after the LIVE viewing window has ended.

• Students should answer these questions:

  • What is your project about?

  • Did you follow the Scientific Method? Explain.

  • What data did you collect, and what did it tell you?

  • Explain how your finding relate to your hypothesis.

  • What did you learn from your experiment?

• You are not limited to only these questions. If it is something that a student feels it is important to mention, include it! Personalization makes projects fun! Above all, have fun!

• During judging, students must remain with their projects until they are dismissed by the judges.  No sponsors, parents, or guests will be allowed with students during the judging.

• Live animals, live bacteria, and/or fungi will not be permitted at the Science Fair. Pictures, video, and/or drawings may be used.

• Please make sure the student, campus, and/or district name are not displayed on student projects. We will give them a specific number when they arrive.

• Chemical/Physical

• Behavioral/Biological

• Inventions

  • Depending on the number of Invention projects registered, we generally will group grade levels as follows: 4-5, 6-8, High School. If there are less than 2 entries per grade band in Elementary or Middle School, we may combine with other grade levels. However, High School will stay separate.

• A description of all categories is listed below, for your convenience.

Campus Science Fair Leaders: Please try to have 1 person register all students for your campus. This helps us out so much when we are sending out pertinent information. Thank you in advance!

• There is a link to the registration form at the top of this page. 

• Students in grades 4-12 may participate.

• 1 registration form per student project. 

• Please ensure that the information you enter is correct before submitting. This is what we will use to identify your students. We enter what YOU enter.

  • If you submit, and realize that there needs to be a correction, please email Michelle Raymond mraymond@reg8.net .

• Remember, no more than 4 students per grade level may be entered. No matter the combination of categories. 

  • If you are in a district that has multiple campuses, only 4 students per grade level may be entered. 

  • This is to keep competition equitable among all districts - small and large.

• High School students will only compete with other High School students. We will have all 3 categories for HS, but will not separate by grade level.

• Sponsors must attend and monitor their students while at the science fair.

• A holding room will be designated for sponsors, parents, and students to remain in until every project has been judged.

• Region 8 Staff will be available to direct you to this room (3rd Floor Conference)

• Students are not allowed to roam the building. 

• There will be a movie playing, bathrooms are near, and there will be a concession stand just outside the holding room.

• Once all judging is finished (we will announce), sponsors may take their students to collect student projects. Once all of your students have their belongings, buses may be boarded, and may leave to go back to your district.

• LIVE and Virtual 

• We will post the link to the LIVE Feed on this page.

• Friday, January 31st at 10:00 AM

• You can watch this as a class or in front of the whole school! 

• Check with your Administrators for whole campus viewing.

• We will also send districts a link to the LIVE awards show on Friday, January 31st, by 9:00 AM. There will be a separate and permanent link for viewing after the LIVE viewing window has ended. We will post that permanent link on the home page of this site.

• Creativity & Originality 0-10 points

• Follows Scientific Method 0-10 points

• Graphs, Tables, Charts 0-10 points

• Skills/Overall Presentation 0-10 points

• Neat/Organized 0-10 points

We are very fortunate to have a long-lasting partnership with NTCC Bio Chem Club. Every year, we schedule them to come out and be our judges. This is the very same framework that they use to judge each project.

On the day of the Science Fair at Region 8, two NTCC college students will go around to each project, judging as a team. Students will have 4-5 minutes to present their project to the judges. During that time, judges may ask students prompting questions to seek clarification or gain further insight. 

It may be very beneficial to students to practice their presentations at home, at school with their teacher, or even with their peers before entering competition. 

Teachers/Sponsors will video their students presenting their science project just as they would in person to the judges.  Videos will then be submitted using the registration link sent to the sponsor in an email.  These videos are sorted by grade, category, and then assigned a number.  Judges will view and score each video.  Scores are then ranked from highest to lowest to determine the top six projects.  In the case of ties, the judges review the videos a second time to determine a new placement.

For more detailed information, please view the Region 8 Science Fair Basic Rules.