TITLE Student Name Teacher Name Section Number. PROBLEM STATEMENT (Write out the question that you are testing.) The problem statement is always written.

TITLE

Student Name

Teacher Name

Section Number

PROBLEM STATEMENT

(Write out the question that you are testing.)

The problem statement is always written in the form of

a question, even if it is used as the title. The question

tells people what you are trying to find out.

Poor Problem Statement: How Does Bleach

Work?

Better Problem Statement: Which Bleach Works

Best in Removing Dirt Stains, Tide, Gain, or Great Value?

HYPOTHESIS

This is your educated guess.

A Hypothesis is written like this: "If _____[this is

done] _____, then _____[this]_____ will happen." (Fill

in the blanks with the appropriate information from

your own experiment.)

BACKGROUND INFORMATION

Background information is everything you can research on the topic

of your experiment.

Include as many facts as possible in a report form.

Books, encyclopedias, magazines, or experts in a field can give you

background information to help you understand the topic. That

information will not answer your question. It will only give you ideas

about your topic. For example, you may read about bleach and what

it is made of, and include it in your project report, but you will still

have to do the experiment to get the answer to your question. Begin

collecting information for your bibliography.

ABSTRACT

This is a short summary of the entire project. It

must include purpose, procedure, results, and

conclusions in paragraph form. You should limit

yourself to no more than 250 words. The abstract is

usually the first item the judges look at after the

title.

BIBLIOGRAPHY

You must make a list of all the books, magazines,

interviews, or other sources that you used. There

should be at least two bibliographic references.

There is a specific format for writing a bibliography.

Directions for writing a correct bibliography are

found in your Science Fair packet.

PROCEDURES

What did you do? List and number the steps in the

order that you did them.

Repeat your experiment several times. (At least

three times!)to make sure the results are valid.

Begin each procedure with a verb.

MATERIALS

What did you use?

List all of the items that you used.

Tell how many or how much using metric

measurements.

VARIABLES

These are factors that affect your investigation. A

manipulated variable is what you change on purpose

to see its effect (what you are testing).

A responding variable is what changed or did not

change in response to what you have manipulated.

This is what you are observing and/or measuring in

order to get your results.

DATA

What did you see? Record all your observations in a log. For

example, if you were doing the bleach experiment, you should tell

how long it took for different bleaches to work, or which bleach

worked best at removing that stain. If you used quantitative data, be

exact with your numbers of counts (use metric units). If you used

qualitative data, describe what you observed in words like hot and

cold, bright and dim, or fast and slow. Use the same words when you

talk about the same conditions. Make graphs, tables, charts, or a

survey to display your data, or take pictures. Include at least

(2) forms of data collection.

RESULT

Interpret the data. Think about what you are

learning from the data.

State the finding of the experiment based upon

the data you observed and analyzed.

Do not form a conclusion.

Do not answer the problem statement.

CONCLUSION

Your conclusion should begin with a statement on whether or not the

results supported the hypothesis. You should have added a description

of how specific experimental data supported the hypothesis. Include a

description of problems that might have affected the results and why.

Also include any new discoveries you have made in addition to the

results of your experiment. Add any new questions that may lead to new

experiments.

Make sure to state the WHY? Why did your results support or

not support your hypothesis. What factors could have contributed to

the results?

APPLICATION

Tell why this experiment is important or how your

findings may be useful to others.

Apply what you learned to real life.