Science IS Important!

Presented by: Dr. Jo-ne BourassaScience Coordinator, BCSDjbourassa@bibb.k12.ga.us

478-765-8654

I hear and I forget.

I see and I remember.I do and I

understand.-Chinese proverb

OScience will be a secondary indicator for AYP in elementary and middle school beginning with scores from the Spring 2013 CRCT .

“Preparation for high school and college level science courses

begins in kindergarten with the very first Georgia Performance

Standard for science.”

Science Opportunities in Bibb County

OGreat science teachers in the elementary, middle, and high schools

OScience OlympiadOScience FairOSchool Based science clubs

What is Science Olympiad?

O Each school has one competition team consisting of a maximum of 15 members.

O Members participate in over 23 events at a regional, state or national competition

O Schools may need parent volunteers to help with their SO teams at the elementary, middle, and high school levels.

O Science Olympiad Video

Elementary SO ActivitiesFun Day – usually designed for K-3 grade

students as a way to engage students in some kind of SO program

Fun Night – Groups of 3-4 students with team names and team colors move from room to room participating in different SO activities.

Competitions – teams of students from each school practice events and then compete against other students in the district or the state.

Science Fair for Parents!!

Let’s have some FUN!!http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2-c0gGIMI_s

SAFETY FIRST!!!!The following require prior approval:

OGunsOPaintball gunsOMoldOFungiOBacteriaOFresh or frozen

animal tissue

OSoil Studies OHuman

SurveysOUse of humans

in experiments

The following cannot be done by students.

OAny experimentation that requires humans to ingest something.

OAny experiment that changes the surrounding conditions of a vertebrate.

OAny survey or experiment that might cause emotional or other forms of mental stress to humans or other vertebrates.

The Science ProcessO The following should be done in their

Science Fair logbook.O QuestionsO HypothesisO ProcedureO MaterialsO ExperimentationO ResultsO Conclusion

Research QuestionO Choose a Question or Purpose:

O Resources: The student’s science book, AIMS lab books, an older siblings science book or lab book.

O Question should have only ONE dependent variable – What you DO NOT control.

Example: “Does the amount of surface area affect the rate of evaporation of water?”

O Students can have more than one Independent Variable: What do you control? (but the more independent variables you have, the more complicated the experiment gets.)

O Examples: Surface Area, Volume of water, Amount of sunlight or heat

HypothesisO This is a statement about what the

student thinks will happen.O For example: If the surface area

(increases or decreases) then the rate of evaporation will (increase or decrease)

O OR If the surface area is (large or small), then the water will evaporate (faster or slower).

ProcedureO How will your child go about

answering the question? What “recipe” will they follow in order to find the answer?O Identify what data will be taken

during the experiment.O Safety is of the utmost importanceO Procedures should lead to a

reasonable answer.

MaterialsO Once the procedures have been

identified, students should make a materials listO Encourage the use of materials that

are easily found at grocery stores or department stores.

O Set a budget for you child.O The use of any home cleaning

supplies should be approved by the teacher.

ExperimentationO This should be done in an appropriate and

safe location.O Student should record all data and observations

(even failures) in a log book.O The student should write in blue or black ink.O It is OK if the log book gets messy.O NO pages should be torn out of log book.O Anything that influences the data should be

recorded in log book.O The same experiment should be performed

THREE times.

ResultsO This is where the data is analyzed.

O Data can be graphed.O You can average the data.O You can use a formula to analyze

the data. O You can create a ratio to show the

relationship between the data.

ConclusionO This is where the student refers back

to the hypothesis. Student should support this with data.O For example: I found that it took

longer for water to evaporate with a small surface area. My data shows that it took 3 days for the water to evaporate from a 2 inch diameter cup and it only took 1 day for the 5 inch diameter cup.

Research PaperO (May be Handwritten in elementary school but

should be typed in middle and high school)O Title PageO Introduction

O Should answer the following questions:O What is your purpose?O What is your hypothesis?O Why did you want to do this project?O OR What did you hope to find out?

O This may also include research information about the topic.

O Materials and ProceduresO Should be copied neatly from log book.

O Results: The students should answer the following questions.O What is the actual data that I am using to answer

my question?O May include a data table and/or a graph.O Copy data from log book.

O Discussion:O How did the data vary between repeated

observations of similar events?O How were your results influenced by uncontrolled

events?O What would you do differently if you repeated this

project?O What other experiments do you want to conduct on

this topic?

O Conclusion: Copy conclusion neatly from log book.

O Acknowledgements: Credit those who gave assistance.

O Bibliography: Include any documentation that is not the students own work. This must be done in APA style.

Display

O Board: Titles may be handwritten in elementary, but they should be typed in middle and high school

Parents:O Make sure your child feels it is his or her

project. Make sure the work is primarily the work of the child.

O Realize the main goal of a science fair project is to help your child use and strengthen the skills he or she has learned and develop higher-level skills as well as have FUN!

O Provide transportation to libraries, nature centers, or universities that can help your child find project information.

O Help at your local school or county science fair. Contact your child’s teacher to volunteer.

O Help your child plan a mutually agreed upon timeline to prevent a last minute project. It is suggested to allow at least 12 weeks to conduct an experiment and prepare the presentation.

O Help your child ask good questions.O “My mother made me a scientist without ever

intending to.  Every other Jewish mother in Brooklyn would ask her child after school, "So?  Did you learn anything today?"  But not my mother.  "Izzy," she would say, "did you ask a good question today?"  That difference - asking good questions - made me become a scientist. ”

                 ~Isidor Isaac Rabi (1898 - 1988), physicist