For Parents

Parent Volunteer Opportunities

We are looking for parent volunteers in all  areas of the Science Fair ecoystem! Sign up here.  From setup (a.k.a. “structural engineering”) to mentoring (“hypothesis-boosting”) to Family Night crowd-wrangling (“advanced chaos management”), it truly takes a whole scientific community. We’d love your support in this experiment!

Science Fair Parent Volunteer Roles

Volunteer Requirements

While no science experience or background is necessary, we do require that all parent volunteers complete the MPCSD Volunteer Registration Request process.  Click here for information on how to get fingerprinted.

Table Setup (Feb 25 early morning)

Students will be dropping off their Science Fair experiment boards on their way to school before morning bell. Come join in the fun as we roll up our sleeves and setup tables, organize the display of boards and decorate the Big Gym!

Mentoring (Feb 25 and Feb 26 snack/recess)

Parent volunteers will serve as Mentors, to whom students/teams will present their project. It's also a great chance to meet some of your child's schoolmates and talk science with them. You may find you learn something interesting!

To be an Mentor, sign up here. No background or experience is necessary! You will meet several scientists or teams and ask them to present their project. You can ask whatever questions come to mind. You will write some short, encouraging feedback. You might engage them in a discussion about next steps and follow-up scientific questions. You don't need to be a scientist, just a curious and engaged parent.

This is a great way for students to accomplish the last step of the scientific method (communication of findings), receive feedback, and get inspired for future science endeavors!

Family Night (Feb 25 and Feb 26 evening)

We need volunteers to help with the final touches that will make Family Night a success! We’re looking for parents to set up the welcome table, hand out lab coats and participation gifts, and ensure the lab coats are returned at the end of the evening. We also need volunteers to help distribute Family Night pizza (yum!).

Participating with Your Child

The goal of the Oak Knoll Science Fair is to allow our students to follow their natural curiosity, develop confidence and interest in science, and learn the power of the scientific method in a supportive and non-competitive environment. 

No parent-done projects, please. That being said, they may need or want your guidance.  Ask them questions to help them clarify their own thinking, but let them make their own decisions and their own mistakes. 

1. Build on their ideas. The idea should come from the students. Guide them by asking questions about their interests and observations of the world around them

2. Be a sanity check. Ask them to think through the logistics of the experiment. Is it feasible? Is there enough time? 

3. Remember the scientific method. Help them develop the question and hypothesis so that the scientific method can be used. Is the hypothesis testable? What variable will they change and how will they measure the result?

4. Talk with them about their conclusions. Your questions can help them understand the implications of their experiment. If their experiment does not support their hypothesis, remind them that it is still an important finding. 

5. Be available, as needed. Think of yourself as a resource or an interested observer, rather than a project manager. 

6. Remind them of the big picture: Experiments almost never go the way we imagine. We learn important things from every experiment, especially when they go sideways. Remind your scientists that science is an iterative process, and the goal is not to prove their hypothesis right - it's to find the truth! Perfection is not the goal. 

Thank you for your participation, and we welcome your feedback.