Student Timeline and Assignments
For Completing School Math and Science Fair
Dear Parent or Guardian,
We will be holding our school science and math fair on _______________________________.
Participating in a science and math fair is an enjoyable way for students to learn how to conduct
experiments to solve problems. Students will make displays that show how they went about
conducting their experiments.
This science fair is not quite like the science fairs you may have experienced. While models
and modeling are important to science, we are not encouraging students to display models of such
things as volcanoes and the solar system. Instead, we are encouraging them to ask questions and then
to set up experiments to answer those questions. In this way, they learn to approach science as
scientists do.
There are three (3) assignments, to help your child begin planning their investigation, “My
Testable Question, My Hypothesis, and My Materials and Procedure.” I will explain them to your
child, and will need your support in having them complete each assignment and turning them in on
time. A calendar of due dates is included to keep them on track.
1) Help your child select a math or science topic that they are interested in learning more about.
2) Work together with them to formulate a testable question, which they can answer (test) by
doing an experiment.
3) Take them to the library or help them search online for more information about their
question. Then read more about it to learn what is already known about the topic.
4) Next, help your child plan an experiment that will test their question. Identify what they should look
for, observe, and record, as they are conducting their experiment. Help them gather and list, in
quantity, all the materials they will need to do their experiment. Write a list of the procedural steps, in
the order they will follow them, to do their experiment.
5) Once their procedure is approved, help them observe and ask questions as they carry out their
experiment, but be careful not to do the experiment for them. Have them repeat their experimental
test three (3) times. Guide the process and mentor their progress, do not do the work for them.
6) Last, help them gather the supplies they will need to make a display of their projects results.
Allow them to put the display together themselves - only offer encouragement not assistance.
Obviously, the project investigation and display should be your child’s own work. This is a
good time for you to mentor, encourage, and assist them in completing these assignments. Attached
please find a guide to completing a successful project, a timeline of due dates, and the assignments
your child needs to complete. If you have any questions, contact me anytime.
Respectfully,
Participating in School Science
and Math Fair
A Guide to Successfully Completing a Project
Project Types and Divisions
Students may choose between two types of projects, science and/or math. From kindergarten to grade 5 there
are three Divisions; Class, Team, and Individual. In grades K, 1, and 2, teachers can facilitate Class Projects.
Class projects involve all the students in one classroom, in predicting, investigating, collecting data, analyzing
results and drawing conclusions in one project. Or in grade 2, students may choose to do an Individual project
rather than a Class project. In grades 3, 4, and 5 students can choose to participate in Team projects of 2 to 4
students collaborating in a small group to complete one project board. Or students in grades 3, 4, and 5 can
choose to do an Individual project, done by just one student with support from their teacher or other adult
mentor.
Grade Level Categories
Students and classes may enter projects in up to four different categories; Regular Students, Exceptional
Students, English Language Learners, or Gifted Learners. Each division is judged separately to determine a
first, second, and third place winning project in the School Fair. Then the first and second place School Fair
winners advance to the District Fair competition, the final level of competition for elementary students.
Successful Results
The key to success is deciding what to investigate and carefully planning accordingly on a desired outcome.
The resulting science or math project board will display the steps used to test the hypothesis through
experimentation, recorded observations, data collection, and the conclusions drawn using the data.
Step 1: Selecting a Testable Question
Students begin by selecting a question that can be tested by planning and doing an experiment. The question
needs to be answered by collecting and recording data. The data should be both observable and measureable.
Measurement tools should be used precisely to record accurate amounts of any changes that take place during
the experiment. Therefore, selecting the correct question is very important. Questions that ask for an opinion or
belief are not testable. Opinion questions are used to survey how someone feels or what someone thinks.
Testable questions are different in that they are answered by evidence. Evidence can be observed and validated.
Validity is demonstrating that by following the same steps, you will always get the same results. To show their
results are valid, students should repeat their experiment a minimum of three (3) times. All the data from each
trial should be included. Teachers, parents, and mentors should assist students by suggesting ideas and
providing access to resources, like library books or Internet sites. (See Math Fair and Science Fair Project
Ideas, pp. 9-11 in the 2013 Coordinating Teacher Handbook)
 The testable question should be recorded under the Purpose label on the display board.
Step 2: Writing a Hypothesis
A hypothesis is a statement that predicts what you think the outcome of an experiment will be. The goal of a
hypothesis is cause and effect. The statement is usually written in “If …, then” format. For example: If a
magnet attracts a material, then that material will be a metal. This statement is a hypothesis because a magnet
can be used to test each material and observe if it only attracts metals. Students will be asked to write and
submit a testable question and hypothesis to their teacher for approval before doing any experiments. They
should write their own hypothesis, in their own words, with minimal parental or mentor support.
 The hypothesis should be recorded under the Hypothesis label on the display board.
Step 3: Planning a Safe Experiment
Planning the experimental procedure that will be followed to test a hypothesis is important for several reasons.
First and foremost is the safety of the student investigator. The safety of every student is our primary goal. For
this reason, each student will be asked to write and submit a list of the materials they are using to and the steps
of their experimental procedure. Students should plan the materials, tools, and procedure with minimal parental
or mentor support. Their plan will be reviewed and approved by their teacher. Once approved, any additions or
deletions should also be submitted before beginning any investigation.
 The experimental procedure should be recorded under the Procedure label on the display board.
Step 4: Observing and Recording Data
Once their experimental procedure is approved, the students can begin their experimental trials. Every effort
should be made to provide them with the space and time they need to complete their experiments. A data log or
science notebook should be used to record the observations and measurements collected during each
experiment. All procedures should be repeated a minimum of three separate times (or three separate, identical
samples should be tested). The data from all three trials should then be organized into charts or tables. Any
analysis or synthesis of the data including arithmetic computations, comparing or contrasting, or graphing
should also be recorded in the data log or notebook. Students should do the data collection, analysis and
synthesis with minimal parental or mentor support.
 All the data and analysis should be recorded under the Data label on the display board.
Relationship to Math
All math project boards also need an additional label entitled Relationship to Math. Under this label, the
student should write an explanation that identifies all the math processes they used to analyze their data and the
relationship those processes have to the conclusions of their investigation.
Step 5: Drawing Conclusions
Conclusions are an explanation of the results of an investigation. Any claims made by the investigator need to
be supported by the evidence gathered in their experiments. Each claim should be justified with an observation,
measurement, computation, or graph. Conclusions should not be limited to whether or not the hypothesis is
accepted or rejected by the data, but instead should explain what, how, and why the data supports or does not
support the hypothesis. Students should write their own conclusions sighting the evidence that supports their
claims with minimal parental or mentor support.
 Conclusions should be recorded under the Conclusion label on the display board.
School Fair Project Time Line
Date of the School Math and Science Fair ________________________________________________________________
Date
Completed
Things I Need To Do
Choose a topic, write and submit a Testable Question.
Research the topic using books, the Internet and other resources (like
science activity books). Submit any changes in writing to the teacher.
Write a Hypothesis Statement and submit it for approval.
Design an experiment to test your hypothesis. Write a Materials List and
the Procedure Steps you will follow and submit them for approval.
Conduct the experiment 3 times and record your observations and data in a
log or your science notebook.
Organize your data into charts or tables. Make one or more graphs that
compare or contrast the data. If you are doing a math project, write an
explanation in the Relationship to Math section explaining the math you
used to understand your data.
Write your conclusion. Make sure you justify each claim you make with
evidence you recorded in your data tables or graphs.
Make your project display board. Be careful to follow the exact display
board order and then submit it to your teacher.
Present your project to the class. Be ready to talk about your experiment
and what you learned in your investigation.
Celebrate! Visit the School Fair to view the projects submitted by other
students throughout the school.
Submit first and second place winning school project boards to the School
Fair Coordinator for entry into the District Elementary Fair.
District Fair Set-up and Judging in the South Florida Expo Center.
Visit the District Elementary Fair at the South Florida Fairgrounds.
School project boards picked up by the school coordinator from the
fairgrounds. District Fair winners posted on Elementary Science website.
Celebrate! School awards assembly presentations.
Name ____________________________________________________________ Date ___________________________
My Testable Question
My project is about (what topic are you investigating)
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My testable question is (opinion surveys are only allowed as math projects)
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The evidence I will collect is (what observations, data, and measurements will be recorded)
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Teacher comments
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My Hypothesis Statement
My project hypothesis is (must include cause and effect)
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I already know (from class, books, or the Internet)
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I want to learn (why are you doing it)
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Teacher comments
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My Materials and Procedures
I will use these materials in my experiments (list items by quantities and tools)
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I will follow these steps to do my experiments (number each step in the order it is done)
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I will observe these changes (which data and measurements you will collect and record)
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Teacher comments
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