Find Your Topic
Begin with your own interests. Do you like cooking? Do you like nature? Are you interested in how kids get along with each other? Have you ever wondered if a brand of product you use works better than its competitors? What do YOU wonder about?
You will have the most fun doing a science fair project if the topic is something that interests you!
For your topic, you need two things:
A QUESTION about something that interests you
A HYPOTHESIS: a proposed answer to your question that you can test
When coming up with your question, make sure you can use the scientific method to run experiments that test if your hypothesis is correct. What is the "scientific method"? It's the process that all scientists use to make discoveries:
You ask a question and propose an answer (your hypothesis) based on what you've already observed or studied
You conduct an experiment to test your hypothesis
You collect the data from the experiment and study (or analyze) it
You draw a conclusion from the data about whether your hypothesis was correct, and maybe...
You ask another question that is raised by the data from your experiment...and the process starts all over again!
Tip: When using the scientific method, the best questions allow you to change one variable (a factor, a trait, or a condition) and measure the impact of that change. For example, how does [changing something] affect [what you're measuring]? Some examples of questions that can be tested via the scientific method are listed below. Perhaps some of these ideas will help you think of questions you would like to investigate.
Ideas: Questions you can test
How do different types of insulation affect temperature change?
How much water do different types of soil hold?
Which brand/type of glue holds the most weight?
What brand/type of cleanser cleans with the fewest scrubs?
Does water temperature affect the activity level of microscopic organisms?
What type of Frisbee flies the farthest?
What effect does light have on seed germination?
How do different colors of light affect mold growth?
Does the depth of planting a seed affect its growth?
Which kind of boat will support the most weight?
Which kinds of bridges hold the most weight?
What design of paper airplane flies the farthest?
Does the type of material used to make a kite affect its ability to fly? What about its shape?
Does warm water or cold water freeze faster?Will bananas turn brown faster in the refrigerator or on the counter?
Do all objects fall to the ground at the same speed?
Does sugar prolong the life of cut flowers?
Does temperature affect the growth of plants?
Do different types of cheese (or fruit) grow mold at different rates?
Does a baseball go farther when hit with a wooden or a metal bat?
Does heart rate increase with increasing sound volume?
How does the color of material affect its absorption of heat?
Do boys or girls have higher resting heart rates?
Does a certain material make a better (worse) conductor or insulator than other materials?
What colors of light have the longest/shortest wavelengths?
How does omitting an ingredient affect the taste of a cookie (or other food)?
Do suction cups stick equally well to different surfaces?
Do preservatives prevent bread mold from growing?
More ideas: Online lists
Here are some websites that can give you lots of ideas about projects.