ScienceProjectPacket

LifeScience

Detailedinstructionsoncompletingyourscienceproject

Mrs.BobbiBaconPEPTutor

bobbi.b.bacon@gmail.com

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ScienceProject–LifeScienceClassDonotbeoverwhelmedbythesizeofthispacket.Yes,youwillbecompletingalargeprojectwithmanycomponents,butwewillbebreakingitupintomanageablepieceswithlotsofguidancealongtheway.Thispacketisdesignedtobearesourceandtogiveyouagameplan.Takeitonestepatatimeandyou’llbeamazedathowmuchyouaccomplish.Eachoftheitemslistedonthefollowingscheduleisalsolistedonyourclasssyllabus.Inthefollowingpagesyouwillfinddetailedinstructionsforeachsection.Wewillalsobediscussingtheseitemsinclass.Asyousubmiteachcomponent,itwillbegivenbacktoyouwithnotesforimprovementorsuggestionstotry.Untilwegettothefinalpaperandpresentation,allassignmentswillreceiveasimplepass/failgrade.Sincethescienceprojectcountsas20%ofyourgradeduringthethird&fourthquarters,youwillwanttobesureyousubmitalltherequiredcomponents.Allsubmissionsshouldbetype-writtenandlabeled.Youwillbecompletingtheprojectinsectionsbutattheend,youwillcombineallthesectionsintoonefinalpaper.Thiswillbemucheasiertodoifallyourinformationisstoredinyourcomputer(andbackedupsomewhere).Waittopurchaseyourmaterialsforyourexperimentationuntilafteryouhavecompletedyourresearchandfinalizedthedesignforyourexperiment.Manystudentsfindthattheymakeseveralchangesduringthisprocess.Youwillbeaskedtogiveanoralpresentationofyourprojectjustpriortotheendoftheschoolyear.Youwillcreateatri-foldbackboardtouseinthispresentation.Ifyoulike,youmaygoaheadandpurchasethebackboard,butIencourageyouwaittoputittogetheruntilafteryouhavecompletedallyourexperimentationandcometoyourfinalconclusions.Aboveall,havefunwiththeproject.Ican’twaittoseewhatyoucomeupwith!

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2018ScheduleforScienceProject–LifeScience1/17/18 IdeaDue;ResearchBegins

ReadChoosingYourScienceProjectTopic–pg5Youaretosubmitapieceofpaperwithyournameandyourtopicchoice.Tellmewhatquestionyouaregoingtoanswerandtellmewhyyouchosethistopic.(“Itlookedeasy.”Or“Itlookedfun”arenotgoodreasons.)Thisshouldbeatleastonegoodparagraph.

1/24/18 Submitatleast4sourcesforyourresearch.Read–ScienceProjectResearch–pg6Youaretosubmitalistofyourresources(youwillbesubmittingthisinWorksCitedformatlater).Remember-youwillneedtostartwithatleastfoursources–andnotallfromtheinternet.Wikipediaisnotavalidsource.

2/5/18 Submit4paragraphsonyourresearchthusfarStartyourWorksCitedpage(turninacopy)Read–FourResearchParagraphsandCitingYourSources–pgs7-9Youaretosubmitfourwell-writtenparagraphsontheresearchyouhavedonethusfar,includeyourWorksCitedpage–thistimeinproperWorksCitedformat.

2/12/18 SubmityourhypothesisSubmitexperimentdesignideas(roughdraft)Read–HypothesisandDesigningYourExperiment–pg10Writeaparagraphcontainingyourhypothesis.And,onaseparatepieceofpaperwriteoutthedetailsofyourexperiment.Besuretolabelbothpapers.

2/19/18 Submit2pagesonresearchRead–TwoPagesofResearch–pg12Submittwofullpagesontheresearchyouhavecompletedaboutotherscientistsandtheirworkintheareaofyourproject.NOTE:Thisisinadditiontoyourfourparagraphsfrombefore.Submittingthisportionoftheassignmentdoesnotcountastwoassignments.Ifyousubmittedtwopagespreviously,youwillneedtoresubmitthemagainonthisdatewithanyimprovementsyoumayhavemade.

2/26/18 FormalsubmissionofexperimentdesignExperimentationbeginsathomeRead–FormalSubmissionofExperimentDesignandExperimentation–pg13

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Submittheformalwrite-upofyourexperimentationprocess.Thiscanstillbetweakedasyouworkthroughyourexperimentbutbeasdetailedandasaccurateaspossible.And,beginworkingathomeonyourexperiment,trackingresultsasyougo.

3/19/18 OneparagraphintroducingyourprojectRead–Introductoryparagraph–pg14Submitawellwrittenparagraphintroducingyourproject.Hookyourreader.

3/26/18 BringinexperimentationresultstodateRead–ExperimentResults–pg15Submityourdatatodateandifyou’reready,goaheadanddesignacharttohelpexplainyourdata.Bytheway–thischartwillalsobegoingonyourbackboard.

4/9/18 Writeupyourfinalexperimentresults.Includetables/charts/graphs,etc.Writeyourconclusionandreallifeapplication.ReadFinalExperimentResultsandInterpretation–pg16Submityourfinalexperimentresultswithchartsandgraphs.Alsowriteyourconclusionandwhetheryourhypothesiswascorrect.Finallyaddatleasttwoparagraphstellinghowyourresultscanbeusedinreallife.

4/16/18 FirstDraftofFinalPaperRead-ScienceProjectPaper–pgs17-18Note–therearesectionsaddedtothepaperthathavenotbeendiscussedyet.Theyarequiteeasytoadd.Justfollowtheinstructions.Mostsectionshavealreadybeencompleted,soit’sjustamatterofcuttingandpasting,thencheckingtobesurethepaperflowswell.ITISIMPORTANTTHATYOUSUBMITTHEDRAFTONTIME!Iwillbedoingonelastread-throughandaddingnotesovertheThanksgivingholidaysothatIcanreturnthepapertoyouforcompletionassoonaswereturntoclass.Afterthat,youwillonlyhaveoneweektoturnaroundthefinalcopy.Pleasedonote-mailittome.Ineedthehardcopy.

4/30/18 FinalPaperDue–NOEXCEPTIONS!!GroupAPresentationswithbackboardRead–BackboardDesign–pgs19Becausewebeginpresentations–ALLpapersmustbesubmittedtoday.Nolateworkwillbeaccepted.Yourbackboardwillnotbesubmitteduntilthedayofyourpresentation.

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5/2/18

SciProj–GroupBPresentationswithbackboard

5/7/18 SciProj–GroupCPresentationswithbackboard

5/9/18 SciProj–GroupDPresentationswithbackboard

Seepage20foracopyofthefinalscoringsheet.

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ChoosingYourScienceProjectTopic

LifeScienceThissemesteryouwillbeworkingonascienceproject.Itwillinvolve

• Research• Experimentation• Interpretationofdata• Conclusion• Reallifeapplication

Youwillthensubmitallofyourinformationinacompletedresearchpaper,somewhereintheneighborhoodof12to15pages,andwillmakeanoralpresentationtotheclassinApril/Maycompletewithbackboard.Thismaysoundabitoverwhelming,butwe’llbedoingitinsteps.Aslongasyoukeepontheschedulesetforyou,youwon’tfindyourselfcrammingthelastfewweeksofschooltogetallofthisworkdone.Thefirststepischoosingyourtopic.And,franklythisisgoingtorequirealittlethoughtandresearch.Firstofall,makeitinterestingandfun.Whowantsaboringprojecttoworkonallsemester?Second,askaquestion.Whatisitthatyouwanttodiscover?Doyouwanttocompareproducts?Areyouinterestedinwhatmakesplantsgrowtaller?Whyisitthatyourdentisttellsyounottodrinksoda?Trytothinkofthecost,materialsandtimeneededtodotheexperiment.Besureitissomethingyoucandowithinthesemester–testinghowvariousfertilizersaffectthegrowthofoaktreeswilltaketoolong.And,youwillhavetodoMULTIPLEteststoseeifyougetthesameresultseachtimeyourepeattheprocess.Choosesomethingyoucanrealisticallydo.Ifyouarenotallowedtousethechainsaw,anexperimentdesignedtofind“themostcost-effectivechainsaw”isoutofthequestion.Itmustalsobesomethingforwhichyoucanfindgoodresearch–inotherwords,somethingthathasprobablyalreadybeendoneanddocumented.Theresearchportionofyourpaperwilltakeupatleasttwoorthreepages.Youwanttobesureyoucanfindenoughinformationtoadequatelymakeyourpoint.Youwillbecompletingthisbeforeyoustartyourexperimentation.Andlastly,itmustbesomethingthathasa“real-life”application.Onceyouhaveconductedyourproject,youmustbeabletotellushowtheinformationyoulearnedcanbeused.YourprojectdoesnotnecessarilyhavetodealwithLifeSciencetopics.Ifyouneedhelpwithideas,youcanGoogle“ScienceFairProjectIdeas”-orcheckoutthesesites:

www.education.com/science-fair/www.sciencebuddies.orgwww.all-science-fair-projects.com

Youaretosubmitapieceofpaperwithyournameandyourtopicchoice.Tellmewhatquestionyouaregoingtoanswerandtellmewhyyouchosethistopic.(“Itlookedeasy.”Or“Itlookedfun”arenotgoodreasons.)Thisshouldbeatleastonegoodparagraph.

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ScienceProjectResearch

Beforeyoucanwriteyourpaperordesignyourexperiment,youneedtoconductyourresearch.Youwillwanttoanswerthesequestions(andanyothersyoumayhave):§ Whatscientistshavedonesimilarresearch?§ Whatexperimentshavebeenorarepresentlybeingperformed?§ Whatweretheresults?§ Whatscientificprinciplesapplytoyourproject?Youwillbewritingatleasttwopagesonsomeoneelse’sresearchforthesubjectyouhavechosen.Youwillalsoformulateyourhypothesisbasedonwhatyoulearninthisstep.Asyouresearch,besuretonarrowthescopeofyourproject.“Doplantsgrowtallerinlightordark?”istoobroadofaquestion.Youneedtoidentifyaspecificplantaswellasthetypeoflightyouwillbeworkingwith.KeepalistofALLthesourcesyouhaveused.StartbuildingyourWorksCitedpageforyourpaperwiththisinformation.Followtheinstructionsonyour“CitingYourSources”informationpage–orgotohttp://owl.english.purdue.edu/owl/resource/747/01/ItisalsookaywithmeifyouuseaBibliography(WorksCited)creationwebsitesuchaswww.easybib.com.Note–WikipediaisnotavalidsourceasitisOpenSourcemeaningthatanyonecanpostanyinformationtheywant,however,ifyoulookatthebottomofaWikipediaarticleonyoursubject,youmayuseanysourceslistedtheretoaidinyourresearch.Atleastoneofyoursourcesmustbeanon-internetsource.Youwillcontinuetoaddtothislistasyouworkonyourprojectandfindthatfurtherresearchisrequired.YourofficialWorksCitedfirstdraftisduelaterinthemonth.Readthroughyourresourcescarefullyandtakegoodnotesoninformationthatisrelevanttoyourproject.

Youaretosubmitalistofyourresourcesshortlyafteryoudecideonaprojecttopic–thenyouwillresubmitthelistasaWorksCitedpageafewweekslater.Remember-youwillneedtostartwithatleastfoursources–andnotallfromtheinternet.

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FourResearchParagraphsThispartoftheassignmentgetsusstartedwithyourresearchpaper.Nowthatyouhavehadtimetoreadabout(andtakenoteson)otherpeople’sresearch,submitthestartofyourresearchsectionintheformoffourwell-writtenparagraphs.Thisisnotnecessarilysupposedtobeoneparagraphperresource–especiallyifyoujusttellmethesameinformationfourtimesandquotefourdifferentsources.Thisisthestartoftheresearchsectionofyourpaper–sowritefourparagraphsaboutyourresearch,makingitflow.Youmayhavediscoveredthatnotalltheresourcesyougatheredcontainedanabundanceofinformationonyourtopic.Ifnot,it’stimetoexpandyourresearch.Eveniftheoriginalsourcesareallgood,continuetoaddtoyourinvestigation.Themoreinformationyouhavetoworkwith,theeasieritwillbetowriteyourpaperanddesignaworkableexperiment.Itisalsopossiblethatbynowyouhavediscoveredthatthisisnotreallytheprojecttopicyouwerehopingthatitwas.Nowisagoodtimetochangetopicsifyou’dlike.Justkeepmepostedonwhatyou’redoing.Ifyou’rechangingtopics,youwillneedtosubmitanupdatedlistofresourcesalongwithyourfourparagraphs.(Doyouseewhywespreadthisoutoverseveralweeks?)JSeethenextsectionforinformationoncitingyoursources.

Youaretosubmitfourwell-writtenparagraphsontheresearchyouhavedonethusfar,includeyourWorksCitedpage–thistimeinproperWorksCitedformat.

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CitingYourSources

Note–themajorityofthisinformationistakenfromTheOWL(OnlineWritingLab)atPerdue:

http://owl.english.purdue.edu/owl/resource/747/01/YoumayusetheBedfordHandbook,Writer’sInc.oranyothergoodresourcethatyouhavetohelpyoucitesources.Itisimportantthatyougivepropercredittoyourresources.Apaperwithoutpropercitationissubjecttothechargeofplagiarism.Ifyouuseadirectquotationorifyousubstantiallyrepeatanideafromanothersource,youaretocreditthatsource.Putquotationmarksaroundadirectquote.Attheendoftheinformationyouarecreditingputaoneortwowordcitationwithinparentheses.YouwillgivecompleteresourceinformationattheendonyourWorksCitedpage.Note:WorksCitedandBibliographyarethesamething.Forexample,ifyouquotefromanarticlewrittenbyDr.CharlesAlexander,youwillput(Alexander)attheendofthestatementinthebodyofyourpaper.Ifyouuseasourcethatdoesnothaveanauthor,pickafewwordsthatwilleasilyidentifyyoursource.Ex.(JetPropulsionLaboratory).Ifyouhavemorethanonesourcefromthesameauthor,addmoreidentifyinginformationwithinthepaper.Ex.(Alexander,March2008).Ifyouarequotingfromabook,includethepagenumber.Ex.(Alexander157).

BasicRules

• BeginyourWorksCitedpageonaseparatepageattheendofyourresearchpaper.Itshouldhavethesameone-inchmarginsandlastname,pagenumberheaderastherestofyourpaper.

• LabelthepageWorksCited(donotunderlinethewordsWorksCitedorputtheminquotationmarks)andcenterthewordsWorksCitedatthetopofthepage.

• Doublespaceallcitations,butdonotskipspacesbetweenentries.• Indentthesecondandsubsequentlinesofcitationsfivespacessothatyoucreateahanging

indent.You’llfind‘hangingindentation’asoneofyouroptionsforparagraphformattinginyourWordprogram.

• Listpagenumbersofsourcesefficiently,whenneeded.Ifyourefertoajournalarticlethatappearedonpages225through250,listthepagenumbersonyourWorksCitedpageas225-50.

• Ifyou'recitinganarticleorapublicationthatwasoriginallyissuedinprintformbutthatyouretrievedfromanonlinedatabase,youshouldprovideenoughinformationsothatthereadercanlocatethearticleeitherinitsoriginalprintformorretrieveitfromtheonlinedatabase(iftheyhaveaccess).

CapitalizationandPunctuation

• Capitalizeeachwordinthetitlesofarticles,books,etc,butdonotcapitalizearticles,shortprepositions,orconjunctionsunlessoneisthefirstwordofthetitleorsubtitle:GonewiththeWind,TheArtofWar,ThereisNothingLefttoLose

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• Useitalicsorunderliningfortitlesoflargerworks(books,magazines)andquotationmarksfortitlesofshorterworks(poems,articles)

ListingAuthorNames

Entriesarelistedbyauthorname(or,forentireeditedcollections,editornames).Authornamesarewrittenlastnamefirst;middlenamesormiddleinitialsfollowthefirstname:

Burke,KennethLevy,DavidM.Donotlisttitles(Dr.,Sir,Saint,etc.)ordegrees(PhD,MA,DDS,etc.)withnames.Abooklistinganauthornamed"JohnBigbrain,PhD"appearssimplyas"Bigbrain,John";do,however,includesuffixeslike"Jr."or"II."Puttingitalltogether,aworkbyDr.MartinLutherKing,Jr.wouldbecitedas"King,MartinLuther,Jr.,"withthesuffixfollowingthefirstormiddlenameandacomma.

MorethanOneWorkbyanAuthor

Ifyouhavecitedmorethanoneworkbyaparticularauthor,ordertheentriesalphabeticallybytitle,andusethreehyphensinplaceoftheauthor'snameforeveryentryafterthefirst:

• Burke,Kenneth.AGrammarofMotives.• ---.ARhetoricofMotives.

Whenanauthororcollectioneditorappearsbothasthesoleauthorofatextandasthefirstauthorofagroup,listsolo-authorentriesfirst:

• Heller,Steven,ed.TheEducationofanE-Designer.• Heller,StevenandKarenPomeroy.DesignLiteracy:UnderstandingGraphicDesign.

WorkwithNoKnownAuthor

Alphabetizeworkswithnoknownauthorbytheirtitle;useashortenedversionofthetitleintheparentheticalcitationsinyourpaper.Inthiscase,BoringPostcardsUSAhasnoknownauthor:

• Baudrillard,Jean.SimulacraandSimulations.• BoringPostcardsUSA.• Burke,Kenneth.ARhetoricofMotives.

AdditionalSources

• ForinformationoncitingBooks,gotohttp://owl.english.purdue.edu/owl/resource/747/06/• ForinformationoncitingPeriodicals,gotohttp://owl.english.purdue.edu/owl/resource/747/07/• ForinformationoncitingElectronicSources,goto

http://owl.english.purdue.edu/owl/resource/747/08/

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YourHypothesis

Nowthatyouhavespentsometimewithyourresearch,youshouldhaveformulatedanideainyourheadabouthowthisprojectwillturnout.Ahypothesisisaneducatedguessabouttheresultsyouexpecttoseefromyourexperimentation.Writeseveralsentencesaboutwhatyouexpecttoseeafteryouhaveconductedyourownexperimentation.Besuretotelluswhyyouexpecttoseetheseresults.Wewillbeexpandingthistoafullparagraphasweworkoncompletingyourpaper–sothemoreinformationyouhavenow,thebetter.

DesigningYourExperimentBeforeyoustartwiththefunstuff,i.e.,theactualhands-onexperiment,youwillneedtowriteyourplanoutonpaper.RememberthatthisisNOTademonstration–thisisanexperimenttotestsomething.Youwillhaveaskedaquestionandnowyouneedtodeterminehowtogetananswertoyourquestion.Forexample–whichbatteryislongerlasting,orhowfastwillchipsgostaleifthebagisleftopen?BTW–you’llalsoneedtodefinewhatitmeanstobe‘stale’.Thinkofwaysthatyoucantestyourideas.Youcanwriteoutyourexperimentprocessinparagraphformatorinalist,butyouwillneedtobesuretoincludethefollowingdetails:

• Materialsthatyouwillneed.Includesizesorbrandnamesifthat’simportant.Alwayslisttheamounts(usingthemetricsystemofcourse).

• Thestep-by-stepprocessyouwillfollowtosetupandruntheexperiment.• Howlongyouthinkitwilltaketoconducttheexperiment.Youhaveapproximatelyfourweeks

tocompleteyourexperimentsoyou’llneedtostaywithinthistimeframe.• Detailsonhowyouwillmonitortheexperiment’sprogress.

Ifyouneedtodesignaformorchart,pleasesubmitthatwithyourdesign.Sketchesarealsogreatiftheyhelpexplainyouridea.Let’stalkalittlebitaboutvariablesandcontrols.IfI’mtestingforwhichbatterylastslonger,Ineedtohaveseveralbatterybrands.Thesearemyvariables.BUTwhatifItestoneofeachbatterybutunknowntometheDuracellbatterywasadudtostartwith.IsthatfairtoDuracell?Tobecertainofmyresults,Ishouldusemorethanoneofeachtypeofbrand.Infact,ideallyIshoulduseatleasttenofeachtypeandtakeanaverage.Thiscangetcostlythough–sothreeofeachtypewouldbeacceptable.Exposethemalltotheexactsametest.Ifyouputoneinaflashlightandoneinatoycar,youwon’treallyknowwhichonehasthemoststayingpoweraseachdevicedrainsabatteryatadifferentrate.Or–whatifIwanttodetermineifcoffeehelpsplantsgrow?Fromthefirstexample,youshouldnowrealizethatwewouldneedseveralplantstotestthiswith,justincasewegetaplantthathassomethingelsewrongwithit.Inthiscase,thecoffeeisourvariable.So…howdoweknowifcoffeeisagoodorabadthingforplants?We’dneedtotestitagainsthowplantsnormallygrow–thatis,withwater.Water

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wouldbeourcontrol.Again,ideallyyouwouldneedmanyplantsthatyougivewatertoandmanyplantsthatgetcoffee.KeepALLplantsinthesameareaandgivethemequalamountsofeachliquid.Inotherwords–theonlyvariableshouldbethetypeofliquidthattheyarereceiving.Controlasmanyfactorsasyoucansothattheresultsareonlyaboutthequestionyouareasking.Ifyouaretestingsomethingthatcanbesubjective–likewhichtastesbest,CokeorPepsi–thisisanopiniontest.Youwillneedatleast100teststomakethisanaccurateexperiment.

Bytheway–anexperimentthatjustasksforapreferencebetweentwoproductsiskindofboring.Addsomemoredetailssuchasageorgender.Getcreative!

Inyourexperimentdesign,makeitclearhowyouwillkeepcontrolofallthefactorsinyourexperimentsothatyouaretrulytestingonlythevariable.

Sidenote–ifyou’reworkingwithplants,besuretogetsomethingthatgrowsrapidly.Limabeansareagoodscienceprojectplant.

Writeaparagraphcontainingyourhypothesis.And,onaseparatepieceofpaperwriteoutthedetailsofyourexperiment.Besuretolabelbothpapers.

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Two-ThreePagesofResearchYouwillhavereceivedsomenotesbackfrommewhenyouwroteyouroriginalfourparagraphsonyourresearch.Youwillalsohavehadtimetocontinueresearchingasyoudraftedyourhypothesisandexperimentdesign.Nowisthetimetoexpandyouroriginalfourparagraphsintoatleasttwofullpagesofresearch.ThissectiondoesNOTcontainanyinformationontheprojectyouaredesigning.Remember–itisresearchaboutwhatothershavedoneONLY.Alsonotethattwofullpagesmeansjustthat.Ifyoustartaboutfourinchesfromthetopofyourfirstpagebecauseofyourpaper’sheadings,thenyoushouldgotoatleastfourinches(ormore)onathirdpieceofpaper.Usethefollowingformat:

• Doublespace• Indentyourparagraphs• TimesNewRoman,CalibriorArialfont–size12• 1inchmarginsallaround• Citeyoursourceswithinthebodyofyourparagraphs–useaoneortwowordcitein

parenthesis,typicallythefirstwordfromyourWorksCitedpageforthatreference.Doagoodjobhereandyou’llbefinishedwiththissectionofyourpaper.J

Submittwofullpagesontheresearchyouhavecompletedaboutotherscientistsandtheirworkintheareaofyourproject.

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FormalSubmissionofExperimentDesignYouwillhavereceivednotesbackfrommeonthefirstdraftofyourexperimentdesign.Youwillalsohavehadtimetoputalittlemorethoughtintotheprocessandstartgatheringyourmaterials.Forthisassignmentyouaretoformallywriteuptheprocedureforcompletingyourexperiment.Itmustcontainenoughdetailthatsomeoneelsecouldcomebehindyouandcompleteyourexperimentbasedsolelyonyourinstructions.Again,includebrandnamesandsizesifthatinformationisappropriate,alwaysusingmetricmeasurements.Givethereaderstep-by-stepinstructionsonsettingupandmaintainingtheexperiment.And,tellushowyouwillbekeepingtrackoftheresults.(IMPORTANT,ifyouarecopyingtheinstructionsfromapre-designedexperimentbesuretomakechangesthatwillmaketheexperimentlineupwithexactlywhatyouaredoing.)Includeforms,chartsorsketchesiftheyareappropriateforyourdesign.Beclearabouthowyouwillcontrolallthefactorssothatyouareonlytestingthevariable(s)youwanttotest.

ExperimentationGotowork!NOWthatyouhaveworkedthroughthedesignprocesses,it’stimetostarttheactualexperimentation.You’llbetoldthisinclass,butdon’tgetantsyandstartearlyasyoumayhavetototallyredoyourexperimentbasedonanychangeswemakeduringtheprocess.(Yes–thishashappenedtostudentsinthepast.)But,ifyouhavesuccessfullyworkedthroughalltheprevioussteps,youarereadytogetstartedwiththeexperiment.Youwillbegivenseveralweeksforthispart–butdon’tprocrastinate.Evenifyourexperimentisdesignedtobecompletedallinoneday–don’tmakeitthedaybeforetheworkisdue.Somethingunexpectedcouldhappenandyou’llneedtheadditionaltimetomakecorrections.Important–evenifyourexperimentdoesnotturnouthowyouexpectedittodoesnotmeanthattheprojectisafailure.WhathappensifyouplantabunchofseedsandNONEofthemgrow?Or,whatifyouexpectedmoldtogrowonyourstalebreadbutsomethingunknownateitinstead?Remember,repeatyourexperimenttoseeifyoucontinuetogetthesame(oraboutthesame)results.Themoretimesyourepeattheprocess,themoreaccurateyourresults.And–ifitstilldoesn’tworklikeyouexpectedthenanalyzethat.Yourconclusionwillbeananalysisaboutwhyyourexperimentturnedoutdifferentlythananticipated.Keepgoodrecordsofyourresults.Recordthedate,measurements,times,whateverisappropriateforyourtest.Ifpossible,alsotakepicturesasyougo.Ifyouaretestingpeople’sreactions(tastetests,etc.),itisnotnecessarytorecordtheirnames.Onlyrecordfactorsthatarepertinenttoyourtestsuchasgender,agerange,haircolor,ordominanthand–youknowincaseyou’rewantingtotestwhetherleft-handedboyscanthrowaballfartherthanright-handedboys.

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IntroductoryParagraph

Iknowthisseemsalittlebackwardstojustnowbewritingtheintroductoryparagraph–butyou’venowspentlotsoftimewithyourexperimentandyouhaveabetterideaofhowtointroduceittoyourreader.Thisparagraphisyourhook.It’swhatwillenticethereadertodelveintoyourpaper.Don’tjuststartoffwithavaguestatementlike“Didyoueverwonderabout….”Or“Thispaperisabout….”E-how.comgivesthisadvice:

• Writedownthemostinterestingthingsaboutyouressay.Istheresomethingsurprisinginwhatyouhavewritten?Doesaspecificimagecometomind?

• Explainthemostinterestingaspectofyouressaytosomeoneelse.Ifyou'restuck,trycompletingthesesentences:

o WhenIwasthinkingaboutthis,Icouldn'tbelievethat______.o Itwasamazingtomethat________.o Imaginewhatit'sliketo_______.o TheimageIcan'tgetoutofmyheadis______.

• Determinetheaspectofyouressaythatwouldbethemostinterestingandcompellingtosomeonewhohasnoideawhatyouaregoingtosay.

• Writethis"mostinteresting"factorimageinasentenceortwo.Refineit.Readitoutloud.Itshouldmatchthetoneoftherestofyouressay.(E-howHook)

Givemeatleastfourorfivegoodsentencesthatwillexciteyourreaderaboutyourpaper.Donotgivedetailshereaboutyourexperimentorresearch–onlyhints.

Submittheformalwrite-upofyourexperimentationprocess.Thiscanstillbetweakedasyouworkthroughyourexperimentbutbeasdetailedandasaccurateaspossible.And,beginworkingathomeonyourexperiment,trackingresultsasyougo.

Submitawellwrittenparagraphintroducingyourproject.Hookyourreader.

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ExperimentResults

Hopefullybynowyouhavecompletedthemajorityofyourexperimentationandarerecordingtheresults.Youwillsubmittheresultsintwoways:(1)rawdataand(2)interpretationofyourdata.

Fornow,we’llfocusontherawdataorsimplythebasicresultsofyourexperiment.Forexample,howmanychoseCokeandhowmanypeoplechosePepsi?Or,howlongdidtheDuracellbatterylastandhowlongdidtheEvereadybatterylast?Submittheresultsforeverytestthatyoucompleted.Ifpossible,submitalltheinformation.Forexampleifyoutested5Duracellbatteriesand5Evereadybatteries,tellushowlongeachindividualbatterylasted.However,ifyouasked100peoplewhethertheypreferredCokeorPepsi,ratherthanlist100responses,givethetotalnumberwhochoseCokeandthetotalnumberwhochosePepsi(alongwithwhateverotherdetailsyouaddedtomakeitmoreinteresting).

Inadditiontorawdata,giveussomethingtovisuallyunderstandtheresults.Thisisbestdonewithsometypeofchart.Forexampleabarchart,piechart,linegraphorevenaVenndiagramwillaidthereader’sunderstandingofyourexperimentresults.Justbesuretolabelitwellsothatthereaderknowsexactlywhateachsectionofthechartstandsfor.Itmightbeagoodideatotryandputyourdataintoseveraltypesofchartstodeterminewhichonereallydoesthebestjobwithyourdata.

Submityourdatatodateandifyou’reready,goaheadanddesignacharttohelpexplainyourdata.Bytheway–thischartwillalsobegoingonyourbackboard.

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FinalExperimentResultsandInterpretationBynowyoushouldhavecompletelyfinishedallofyourexperimentationandobtainedmultiplesetsofdatatoworkwith.Allofthisinformationneedstofitneatlyintoyourfinalpaper.Followtheguidelinespreviouslygivenforreportingyourdataandputtingitintochartformat.Youarenowreadyforthesecondpartofthissection–interpretingyourdata.Thissectionofyourpaperwillbeentitled“ConclusionsandRealLifeApplication”Saythatoutofyourtenbatterytests,allfiveEvereadybatterieslastedlongerthanallfiveDuracells.ThoseareprettyclearresultsandyoucansaythatEvereadybatteriesarelongerlastingthanDuracell.But,whatifinthreetestsDuracelldidbetterandintwotestsEvereadywonout?And,whatifEvereadylastedtwiceaslongasDuracellinthosetwotestswhileDuracellonlylastedtenminuteslongerintheteststhattheywon–nowhowdoyouinterpretthoseresults?Ifyoucandeterminesomeotherfactorhadaneffect–reevaluatehowyouranyourexperiment.Iftherewasnootherfactor,thentherearenocleardifferencesinbatterybrands.Also,ininterpretingscientificresults,youshouldnotusephraseslike“betterthan/worsethan”or“more/less”.Youneedtobespecific.Forexample,ratherthansaying“Wateringplantswithcoffeemakesplantsgrowmorethanwateringplantswithplainwater,”youwouldsay:“Wateringplantswithcoffeeresultsinanaveragegrowthofthreemorecentimetersperweekthanwateringplantswithplainwater.”Aspartofthissection,telluswhetheryourhypothesiswascorrect.Didyougettheresultsyouoriginallyexpected?Whyorwhynot?And,finally,tellushowwecanuseyourresultsinreallife.Thisshouldtakeatleasttwoparagraphs.Longerwouldbeevenbetter.

Submityourfinalexperimentresultswithchartsandgraphs.Alsowriteyourconclusionandwhetheryourhypothesiswascorrect.Finallyaddatleasttwoparagraphstellinghowyourresultscanbeusedinreallife.

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ScienceProjectPaperIfyou’rereadingthis,you’realmosthome!It’stimetobeginassemblingalltheworkyouhavedoneintoyourfinalpaper.Gatherupeverythingyou’vedonesofarandfollowtheguidelinesbelowtocompleteyourproject.Therewillbesectionsthatyouhavenotdoneyet,buttheyarerelativelysimple–justdothemasyougo.LayoutRequirements:

§ Doublespace,indentyourparagraphs§ Donotputanextraspacebetweenyourparagraphs§ Labeleachsectionwithaboldheadline§ TimesNewRoman,ArialorCalibrifont–size12§ 1inchmarginsallaround§ Numberyourpages(notnecessaryonthetitlepage,butitcountsaspage1)§ Citeyoursourcesintheresearchsection–useaoneortwowordciteinparenthesis,typicallythefirstwordfromyourWorksCitedpageforthatreference.SeetheinformationonwritingyourWorksCitedpage(separatepage).

Yourpapershouldcontainthefollowingsections:¨ Titlepage–Comeupwithatitleforyourwork–thiswillappearonyourbackboardaswell.The

titleshouldbeboldcenteredtowardsthetopofthepage–largerfontokayhere.Onthebottomhalfofthepage,centeryourfullname,thedatedue,andyourclass–ex.PEPLifeScience.

TableofContentspage–tellingwhichpageeachofthefollowingsectionsbegins.

Thebodyofyourpapershouldflow–donotchangepageseachtimeyoustartanewsection.Theheadingswillbeusedasseparators.Yourbodyshouldcontainthesesections:¨ Introduction(atleasttwoparagraphs)–thisisyourhookandthebasicintroductionexplaining

yourproject.Itwillincludewhyyouchosetheprojectandwhatyouwillbetesting.¨ Hypothesis–(oneparagraph)¨ Acknowledgements(oneparagraph)–acknowledgeanypeoplewhohelpedyouinyourproject.

Thiswon’tbeanypersonyouexperimentedon–thiswillbeanyadditionalpeoplewhohelpedyouwithyourprojects(Hint:whopaidforthematerials?)

¨ Research(twoormorepages)–thisisallthatworkyoudidinthebeginning.Copyithere–beingdoublesurethatyouhavecitedallsources.

¨ Materials(list)–beveryspecific.Includebrandnames,sizes,weightsorvolumes,quantity,etc.(metric).Ifyoubuiltanything,includetheprocedureforconstruction.Youmayinsertpicturesordiagramshere(notofyourexperiment–onlyofdevicesyoumayhaveused).Ifyouusedaquestionnaireinyourexperiment,showacopyofithere.‘Box’theminsothatitisclearwheretheystopandstart.

¨ Experimentprocedure–asimpleandcompletelistofthestepsyouused.Someoneshouldbeabletotakeyourmaterialslistandyourproceduressectionandcompletelyduplicatewhatyoudid.Don’tleaveanythingout.

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¨ DataandResults(threeorfourpages)–startbyshowingyourdata,explainwhatitallmeansandendwithanygraphsorchartsthatmakeiteasiertointerprettheresults.Thissectionwillbeacombinationofwritingandcharts.Again,picturesanddiagramswillgowellhere.Caution:donotmakethegraphicshuge–justlargeenoughtobereadable.Makesuretheyarewelllabeled.Weshouldunderstandwhateverythinginyourchartsorgraphsmean.

¨ ConclusionsandApplication(atleastthreeparagraphs–maybemore)–whatcanyouinterpretfromyourresults?Didyouhaveacorrecthypothesis?Whyorwhynot?Howcansomeoneusetheseresultsinreallife?

¨ WorksCited(thisisaseparatepage)–seetheBedfordHandbookorWriters,Inc.forinstructionsoncompletingthisaccurately.Or,youcanfindMLAguidelinesonlineatTheOWLatPerdue.

PROOFREAD!!Havesomeoneelseproofread!!PROOFREAD!!Besurethatyourpaperflowswellandthatsomeonewhoisnotfamiliarwithscienceorwithyourprojectcanunderstandwhatyouhavewritten.

Congratulations–youhavedonealotofworkandhereiswhereitshines!

Itisimportantthatyousubmityourfirstdraftonthedayitisdue.Iwillbedoingonelastread-throughandaddingnotessothatIcanreturnthepapertoyouforcompletion.Weonlyhaveashortturn-aroundtimebeforeyourabsoluteDEADLINEforthefinalpaper.Pleasedonotemailyourpapertome.Ineedthehardcopy.

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ScienceProjectBackboardThebackboardisusedtogiveavisualoverviewofyourproject.Mostpeoplewon’tbereadingyourpaper–theywillbelookingatyourbackboard,soitwillneedtotellthewholestory.YoushouldreadthebackboardfromlefttorightUseathree-paneledbackboardanddivideitasfollows:

TITLEOFYOURPROJECT

Problem

Hypothesis

Procedures

Photos/Drawings

Graphs/Charts

Tables

Usewhatworksbestforyourprojectonthispanel.Justbesurethateverythingiswell

labeled.

Results

Conclusions

Real-LifeApplications

Note:photosshouldbeoftheproject–notofyou.Youwillrepeatinformationfromyourpaperonthebackboard,butpleasedon’tjustcutoutandpasteyourresearchpapertotheboard.Getcreative!!Noteverydetailfromyourpaperneedstobeincludedhere–justenoughtogivethereadergoodinformationonyourproject.Makepeoplewanttoreadit!Italsoneedstobereadfromfartheraway–soenlargefontsifyou’reprintingfromyourcomputer.Resistthetemptationtoaskyourparentsforhelphere.Youcan,ofcourse,askquestionsandgethelpwithlogisticsandsupplies–butthisshouldreflectyourabilities.J

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SCIENCEPROJECT–FINALGRADINGSHEET

FinalPaper: PointsPossible PointsEarnedResearch:ThoroughClearlypresented

30

CitedatleastfoursourcesWorksCitedpageaccurate 10

Experiment:PlannedwellRepeatedsufficientlyAdjustmentsmadeifneededScientificprocessfollowed

25

Results:Datapresentedwell(readableandunderstandable)Goodinterpretationofresults

25

RealLifeApplication 5 Paperformattedcorrectly 5 TOTAL 100

Presentation: PointsPossible PointsEarnedPresentationGoodeyecontactwithyouraudienceOrganized,sequentialpresentationThorough

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ExhibitAttractive,neatandbalancedLabeledwellEasilyunderstoodbytheaveragepersonBiology–containedabstract

20

KnowledgeAbletoanswerquestionswell 10

TOTAL 50

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WorksCited

Berry,Hillary,ScienceFairProjectNotebookc.2004Manyideasandconceptsfoundinthispacketwere

takenfromtheScienceFairProjectNotebookdesignedbyHillaryBerryoftheWestgateCo-op,Jacksonville,FL.

Novak,Melanie."HowtoWriteaHookforanEssay."EHow.DemandMedia,26June2009.Web.16

Aug.2012.<http://www.ehow.com/how_5127257_write-hook-essay.html>."ScienceFairProjectAbstract."HowtoWritea.N.p.,n.d.Web.17Aug.2012.

<http://www.sciencebuddies.org/science-fair-projects/project_abstract.shtml>."WelcometothePurdueOWL."PurdueOWL.N.p.,n.d.Web.16Aug.2012.

<http://owl.english.purdue.edu/owl/>.