I need easy Science Project ideas

[ncbyrne]

for my 12 year old granddaughter. She is an A student and has no problems all year...and then comes the dreaded science project! She hates it and it gives her such angst! She only got a C the project for the last two years and she worked and worked and worked! She cried her eyes out when she got her grade (at home...she didn't break down in school). She honestly did her best, but I really think she tried projects that were way above her ability - thinking that the "hard" ones would produce a better grade. I have NO clue how to go about helping her. I graduated from high school in 1964 and I never had a do a science project of any kind for any grade. Do you have any age/grade (12/7th grade) appropriate ideas?

 

[NCRedding]

My DD did one where she and her friend compared laundry detergent. They got 3 t-shirts, and put ink, ketchup, mustard and grass on them. They washed them in two name-brand detergents and one generic to see which worked best.

 

[goofyforlife]

ok here's a really easy one......

We compared various brands types of microwave popcorn to show which ones left the most unpopped kernels in the bag (ie waste).

THe bags were all same size at start. Used same popping time....

Variables could be brand or flavor or popping time.....

 

[dizagain]

My suggestions are along the lines of the above post...test paper towel brand strength, popcorn "poppingest", laundry detergent, antibacterial soap versus non-antibacterial soap, etc...these projects always seem to do well.

DD did the soap one...we got petri dishes from a science shop and she got her hands dirty and scraped samples onto slides for the "before". Then she washed with one type of soap and took a sample and then the other. They grew different amounts of bacteria. A couple of dishes didn't do anything but that didn't matter - it's science trial and error.

DD also did a project on color. She did all kinds of optical illusions, etc. and it was a very successful project - you can find lots of info at the library.

There are some really fun books of ideas out there - I own several but they're in boxes and I can't think of the names. You could also probably get ideas on line. Good luck and try to find something FUN! Don't forget that the visuals count! We always put a fun border from the teacher store on the board plus use bright letters for a catchy title. She usually types her info and cuts the pages with scrapbook scissors and glues them onto colored construction paper. She goes all out and it does help the grade!

 

[charlie,nj]

my son did this in 7th grade..got an A+

we got the parts at a local radio shack



electric generator


.

 

[Microbio]

how about a food project, on the new food pyramid.

 

[mtblujeans]

Family Fun has a couple.....hope one of them might help!

 

[tkd lisa]

One of my DD's friends did this one, and I thought it was great.

It's along the lines of the growing bacteria one above.

I think her hypothesis was "Do anti-bacterial lotions clean better than soap?"

She took three apples and three brand new needles. She did something to get the needles dirty (I thing she just rubbed it in her hands, but maybe stuck it in the dishwashing sponge or something like that would work better). Then she stuck one needle straight into one apple, used plain soap to rinse one needle before sticking the apple, and used the anti-bacterial gel on the third apple.

She stored the apples in the same location for about a week. Then compared the condition of the needle pierced site. I was really surprised at how much more rot was in the first apple than the other two. And there was noticable difference between the soap and the anti-bacterial gel.

Good luck!

 

[horseshowmom]

Similar to the laundry soap - comparing stain sticks.

Also - pertaining to polluted water: 3 plants that are watered with "clean" water, water with "some" pollution (detergent of some kind), and water with "a lot" of pollution. Compare and chart their growth (charts and pictures are good). Downside - this one takes awhile to do due to the growth factor.

 

[janet715]

I saw a really neat idea (just can't remember where)... You get a hot dog, rub suntan lotion on half of it and put it under a heat lamp. The unprotected part pretty much cooks, while the other does not. It shows the effects of sun damage and the importance of sunscreen.

 

[BunsenH]

See the "Coke fizz" thread and hand out ponchos to the fair judges.

 

[jbdreamer]

My brother and I just made a pin-hole camera for his science fair project. It was easy to make and fun to use. We actually got some good pictures.

 

[lovethattink]

My son made paper out of laundry lint following the instructions on the website found at the paper thing at innoventions at Epcot. I think it was http://www.tappi.org/paperu/site_map/index.htm

 

[kristen821]

How long does she have for the project?

For my 8th grad project I did which light do plants grow the best? (i.e.) natural sunlight, regular light bulb, red light, green light, black light) It was easy and we had plants in every closet! Somebody else did What brand of popcorn pops the best? They popped different brands and counted all the popped and unpopped pieces and averaged it out to find the best brand. Can she test the kindergarden or lower grade levels on something at the school? A lot of people in my class did that and that seemed a lot of fun. (i.e. How many kids so and so age will pick up after themselfs or how many kids so and so age use the right colors when the color) You can basically test kids on anything. You can also test the difference between boys and girls at so and so age. It is easy to test kids because you can find a ton of books about them when you right the report. We had to have a certain number of references. (It was so long ago that I don't remember how many we needed!)

 

[Southern4sure]

DS (4th grade) just finished his. He tested water quality (pollutants) in retention ponds, lakes and drainage systems. We collected several samples of water from each, used an aquatic water testing kit. It really was easy.

 

[MsLeFever]

When I was in 7th grade I won the jr high science fair and placed in the state fair with this one...

The title was "Marvelous Molds"

I took various kinds of food and placed them in custard cups with saran wrap over the top. Observed them every couple of days and took notes on what I saw.

Then I did some research on mold, what causes it, different kinds and tried to identify what I grew.

We all joke about the "science experiments" that we find when we clean our fridges right?

 

[jackskellingtonsgirl]

When I was in 7th - 9th grade we had to do Science Fair projects. YUCK! We had to come up with a project that answered a question. No models or demonstrations. You had to write up this big report called an "abstract" that gave the overview of your project but it couldn't contain the word "I" - you had to refer to yourself as "the experimentor". Oh, and this was back in the days of TYPEWRITERS, not word processors!

Now DS has to do them. He had to start in SECOND grade. The rules aren't as stringent, but still, YUCK! I think we have come up with a good project for this year, we just have to get motivated to actually DO it. Last year we were burning the midnight oil, glueing (how DO you spell that?) stuff to that stupid board the night before it was due.

Last year his project was carpet cleaners. We stained a square of carpet with grape juice, dark lipstick, and something else, then we cleaned it with 3 different carpet cleaners - Resolve, Oxy Clean, and Woolite. The simple answer is "Your carpet is ruined if you spill these."

 

[goofyforlife]

one thing about the "mold" type experiment is that remember that some of the stuff that might grow could be biohazardous......

We tested saliva of dogs one year (thanks to SPCA for providing the test subjects for us) We originally wanted to do Cats vs dogs but the person at the shelter cautioned us that cat's saliva will grow some really nasty stuff....

 

[funhouse8]

My DD did one that was a lot of fun.
Can you tell the sex of a person by looking at their feet.

She took different pictures of feet (none with polish)
Placed them into a small photo album and numbered them.

Made up answer sheets then went to all the neighbors and her friends at school. She figured out what percentage was correct and how many were wrong. It turns out - You can't and the ones with the nicest looking feet were always called female & most of the time were the male. It was interesting and she seemed to enjoy doing it.

 

[Sparx]

if shes got awhile I say do the Plant Music project. Get three plants. for 1 hour every day subject one to heavy metal music, one to classical and one to no music at all. Chart the growth of the plants. The findings may be surprising.