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FAQs
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FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS
How do I…??
How do I choose a topic?
Choose a topic that you will enjoy learning more about. Let’s say I like to watch birds at my bird feeder. I can center my project on the birds that come to the bird feeder. What if I have an aquarium? I can develop a project around fish in an aquarium. If you need help narrowing down a topic, there are many web sites to help you. Science Buddies is a site I’d recommend.
How do I know that my research materials are reliable?
Generally speaking, choose materials that are connected with someone who has a great deal of expertise in the topic you are researching. The author could be a scientist, or a good science writer or reporter, or you could choose a reputable science journal or magazine.
If you are researching on the Internet, be sure to choose sites that have an .edu or .org suffix. These suffixes generally indicate you are on a site that is associated with a university or research organization.
If you have any doubts about your research materials, be sure to ask a teacher or mentor who can help you decide how good your materials are for science research.
A couple of cautions: for older students, encyclopedias are great places to start your research, but in general should not be used in your bibliography. Nor should Internet sites such as blogs, Nings, wikipedias, or video sharing sites be used. Younger students may use encyclopedias, but should stay away from the Internet sites listed above.
What is a...??
Hypothesis
A hypothesis is a possible answer to a question or a problem. Hypotheses are based upon what an experimenter knows about the topic and how the topic behaves. Research is conducted before a hypothesis is made. Hypotheses are often stated in If…Then form.
• Example: In my sunlight/plant experiment, my question might be “What is the effect of sunlight on the growth of plants?” My answer (hypothesis) to this question could be “If some plants receive more hours of sunlight than others, then I expect those plants to increase their height at a greater rate than those which did not receive the same amount of sunlight.” The hypothesis is the key to the experiment. In it I should be able to tell what my independent variable is, my dependent variable, and how I will change the IV and measure the DV. Here I can see that my IV is the amount of sunlight (in hours) and the DV is the height of the plants. I am measuring sunlight in hours and I will measure height in standard scientific units: cm.
Fair Test
A fair test occurs when an experimenter changes only one variable at a time and keeps all other variables constant.
• For example: in my sunlight/plant experiment, I cannot change both the amount of sunlight and the amount of water. How will I know which factor had the effect on plant growth?
Variable
Variables are those factors or conditions in an experiment that are changed or altered in an experiment. There are 3 kinds of variables: independent, dependent and controlled.
Independent variable: An independent variable is a variable that the experimenter changes to see if it causes a change in the dependent variable.
• For example: If my question is “What is the effect of sunlight on plant growth?” I will change the amount of sunlight each plant gets to see if different amounts of sunlight have an effect on how much a plant grows. The amount of sunlight is the independent variable because it is what I chose to manipulate to answer my question.
Dependent Variable: a dependent variable is that which an experimenter watches or measures in response to changing the independent variable.
• For example: In my sunlight experiment, the height of the plants depends on the amount of sunlight. This means that the “height of plants” is my dependent variable. I will observe/ measure the growth of plants by measuring the height of plants.
Controlled variables: these are the other variables in an experiment that experimenters keep the same. They do not change.
• For example: In my sunlight experiment, I will keep all other variables the same- the amount of water, the type of soil, the amount of fertilizer, etc. These are variables I am controlling. These can also be referred to as CONSTANTS.
Examples of these types of variables can be found at this or other weblinks:
http://www.sciencebuddies.org/science-fair-projects/project_variables.shtml
Questions about the KSD SciFest
How can I help?
If you are a parent, there are many ways to help. Volunteer to be a judge, to help set up, to help knock down. Volunteer to assist during the fair. Call Christy Nickel at 213-6100 x 3921 to volunteer. There is no set time for volunteering except if you are judging.
When is judging?
Judging will be from 6pm-9pm on Friday February 24, then from 8am-12:30pm on Saturday February 25. Judges will work only one of these sessions for one or more hours. If you would like to volunteer to judge, even if only for a couple of hours, please call Christy Nickel at 213-6100 x3921.
Who judges?
Teachers. Parents. Employees from Boeing, Pfizer, Monsanto, etc.
There will be a training/practice for judges using scoring guides and rubrics on February 15, 2012 from 7-9pm in the Hough First Floor Conference Room. Hough Technology Building is located at the corner of Adams and Sappington Roads in Kirkwood, 63122.
When is the Science Fair?
February 10, 2012: deadline for KSD students to submit a Virtual Science Fair Project. See Virtual Projects
Feb. 24, 3:30-5:30pm KSD students will drop off their completed paper projects at Kirkwood High School, Science Wing (Daugherty Ferry parking lot).
How do I…??
How do I choose a topic?
Choose a topic that you will enjoy learning more about. Let’s say I like to watch birds at my bird feeder. I can center my project on the birds that come to the bird feeder. What if I have an aquarium? I can develop a project around fish in an aquarium. If you need help narrowing down a topic, there are many web sites to help you. Science Buddies is a site I’d recommend.
How do I know that my research materials are reliable?
Generally speaking, choose materials that are connected with someone who has a great deal of expertise in the topic you are researching. The author could be a scientist, or a good science writer or reporter, or you could choose a reputable science journal or magazine.
If you are researching on the Internet, be sure to choose sites that have an .edu or .org suffix. These suffixes generally indicate you are on a site that is associated with a university or research organization.
If you have any doubts about your research materials, be sure to ask a teacher or mentor who can help you decide how good your materials are for science research.
A couple of cautions: for older students, encyclopedias are great places to start your research, but in general should not be used in your bibliography. Nor should Internet sites such as blogs, Nings, wikipedias, or video sharing sites be used. Younger students may use encyclopedias, but should stay away from the Internet sites listed above.
What is a...??
Hypothesis
A hypothesis is a possible answer to a question or a problem. Hypotheses are based upon what an experimenter knows about the topic and how the topic behaves. Research is conducted before a hypothesis is made. Hypotheses are often stated in If…Then form.
• Example: In my sunlight/plant experiment, my question might be “What is the effect of sunlight on the growth of plants?” My answer (hypothesis) to this question could be “If some plants receive more hours of sunlight than others, then I expect those plants to increase their height at a greater rate than those which did not receive the same amount of sunlight.” The hypothesis is the key to the experiment. In it I should be able to tell what my independent variable is, my dependent variable, and how I will change the IV and measure the DV. Here I can see that my IV is the amount of sunlight (in hours) and the DV is the height of the plants. I am measuring sunlight in hours and I will measure height in standard scientific units: cm.
Fair Test
A fair test occurs when an experimenter changes only one variable at a time and keeps all other variables constant.
• For example: in my sunlight/plant experiment, I cannot change both the amount of sunlight and the amount of water. How will I know which factor had the effect on plant growth?
Variable
Variables are those factors or conditions in an experiment that are changed or altered in an experiment. There are 3 kinds of variables: independent, dependent and controlled.
Independent variable: An independent variable is a variable that the experimenter changes to see if it causes a change in the dependent variable.
• For example: If my question is “What is the effect of sunlight on plant growth?” I will change the amount of sunlight each plant gets to see if different amounts of sunlight have an effect on how much a plant grows. The amount of sunlight is the independent variable because it is what I chose to manipulate to answer my question.
Dependent Variable: a dependent variable is that which an experimenter watches or measures in response to changing the independent variable.
• For example: In my sunlight experiment, the height of the plants depends on the amount of sunlight. This means that the “height of plants” is my dependent variable. I will observe/ measure the growth of plants by measuring the height of plants.
Controlled variables: these are the other variables in an experiment that experimenters keep the same. They do not change.
• For example: In my sunlight experiment, I will keep all other variables the same- the amount of water, the type of soil, the amount of fertilizer, etc. These are variables I am controlling. These can also be referred to as CONSTANTS.
Examples of these types of variables can be found at this or other weblinks:
http://www.sciencebuddies.org/science-fair-projects/project_variables.shtml
Questions about the KSD SciFest
How can I help?
If you are a parent, there are many ways to help. Volunteer to be a judge, to help set up, to help knock down. Volunteer to assist during the fair. Call Christy Nickel at 213-6100 x 3921 to volunteer. There is no set time for volunteering except if you are judging.
When is judging?
Judging will be from 6pm-9pm on Friday February 24, then from 8am-12:30pm on Saturday February 25. Judges will work only one of these sessions for one or more hours. If you would like to volunteer to judge, even if only for a couple of hours, please call Christy Nickel at 213-6100 x3921.
Who judges?
Teachers. Parents. Employees from Boeing, Pfizer, Monsanto, etc.
There will be a training/practice for judges using scoring guides and rubrics on February 15, 2012 from 7-9pm in the Hough First Floor Conference Room. Hough Technology Building is located at the corner of Adams and Sappington Roads in Kirkwood, 63122.
When is the Science Fair?
February 10, 2012: deadline for KSD students to submit a Virtual Science Fair Project. See Virtual Projects
Feb. 24, 3:30-5:30pm KSD students will drop off their completed paper projects at Kirkwood High School, Science Wing (Daugherty Ferry parking lot).
Feb. 25, 12:300-3:30pm Enjoy the fair activities. Projects open for viewing at 1:00 pm.
3:30-4:00pm Students remove projects.
Other Questions you might have
Do I put my child's name on a project?
No, there should be no identifying features of name or photos of the student.
How much should I help my child with their research?
This .pdf file will assist understanding how much to help at each age level.
Role of Adult (pdf, 123.53KB)
3:30-4:00pm Students remove projects.
Other Questions you might have
Do I put my child's name on a project?
No, there should be no identifying features of name or photos of the student.
How much should I help my child with their research?
This .pdf file will assist understanding how much to help at each age level.
Role of Adult (pdf, 123.53KB)