Elementary science fair projects shouldn't scare you!

Are your school's elementary science fair projects due soon? Let me guess. When your teacher told you about the science fair you got all excited.  

You really wanted to enter something and maybe even (gasp!) win. Maybe you went home and told your mom about it, you were so excited.

But then you forgot all about it. And when the science fair came around, uh-oh.  What do we do? We have no clue!

So what do you do?

Well, you've come to the right place!

We are here to guide you through the easy steps for good elementary science fair projects that is just right for elementary kids. Just follow these ten steps and you're on your way...

...by the way, it's not too difficult — it can even be (gasp!) fun to learn something. We highly recommend you read through this page first before scrolling to the project links at the bottom. Follow these steps and you'll have a great chance of doing well!

The Scientific Method: An Elementary Science Fair Project Necessity

We've boiled down these steps (called the "scientific method") to four categories for all elementary science fair projects.

They are...

1. Preparation
2. Project
3. Paper
4. Presentation

These four steps make it easier to understand the many steps listed below. That's why we used the steps above. We want to make it as easy as possible!

Although this is the easy version...

...read the ten steps below before you start anyway. Please don't skip what follows. It's important to read everything on this page. Here they are...

First, choose a topic that interests you. Find good elementary science fair projects that you think are interesting and choose one. A good project needs to be something exciting, something that you won't "hafta do" and something that will make you jump and shout when you win that blue ribbon!

Second, research your topic. This may sound scary, but it could be as easy as talking to an adult about the topic. You may want to do a search on the internet for your subject as well as go to the library and find books about it too.

To help you with your research we'll give you a question to get you started.

For example...

From the popcorn elementary science fair project idea...

Why does popcorn pop in the first place?

This question is just to get you started. It leads to the next step...

Third, develop an important question. This one will be what your project is all about. Your whole project should have this idea in it. You should come up with a question that you can test. Write down this question because you'll need it later.

For example: From the food elementary science fair project idea...

Which method of wrapping a sandwich is best?

Don't forget. Your whole project will use this question. So don't forget to write it down!

Fourth, guess the answer to the question. This guess is called your hypothesis. Don't let this word scare you. It only means the answer that you guessed about your important question. In fact you should write it down next to your important question. Don't change it! Even if during the experiment you think it's wrong, don't change it!

Fifth, list the things you need to test the question you have chosen. You will want to write this list. It serves two purposes...

First, you will use it later when you make a display.

Second, it helps make sure you don't forget something when you do the next steps.

For example: From the popcorn science fair project...

1. Popcorn
2. Hotair popper
3. Stovetop
4. Measuring spoon
5. Butter
6. An adult to help you

Sixth, gather the items on your list. If you think the project is too hard, this is where to stop and find another. Pretty much, you won't be able to look back from here.

Seventh, Test that important question. Do as much as safely possible having someone older help with anything that may be hard to do. Take lots of photos. You guessed right, you'll use them later.

Eighth, write the results. You will use them later as well.

Ninth, write the report. Do this the way your school requires. Pay special attention to the science fair guidelines you received. If you were not given specific requirements, write one or two paragraphs per grade level. If you need help, use some of these sentence starters.

My science fair project is about__.

I wanted to find out __.

I guessed __.

I tested it by___.

My guess was___.

I learned___.

It's important that you include your question, hypothesis and results. Don't forget these. Without them elementary science fair projects would just be...projects!

Make sure to include at least one graph or chart if your project lets you do that. Judges love to see graphs and charts. So try to include one if at all possible.

Tenth, prepare the science fair project display. Now, gather everything you wrote down. Type or neatly copy the things you wrote. You will want to buy or make a display board that fits the dimensions your school requires. Make labels with the words "question," "hypothesis," "supplies," "test," "results," and "report" on them.

Practice different layouts. Find a layout that you like. Neatly attach the titles, pages, and photos to the science fair project display. Prepare any samples to set on the table in front of your display. If your school requires a speech, practice telling what you did several times. And enjoy the science fair. Be a good sportsman.

For layout ideas, display information, help for your report and all other things science fair click here. We're sure you'll find many great elementary science fair projects here to do. And hopefully you'll find one that will help you win!

Where To Go From Here

Follow these simple rules and you're on your way to science fair success. Scroll down and click on the links below to explore the world of elementary science fair projects!

Popcorn science fair experiment

Food science fair project

Packing material experiment

Condensation science fair project

Paper airplane science fair project

Evaporation science fair experiment

Finished with elementary science fair projects? Homeward we go!