Science Fair Project Proposal Requirements

Hi all!

Your Science Fair Project Proposal is due on Friday December 1st - I extended the deadline so that you can enjoy the Thanksgiving break.

You can work in up to groups of 3 people, and you can select any project that relates in some way to Biology and is school appropriate. Have fun with it - choose a topic you're interested in and that you'd like to explore more! Make it fun - I want you guys to be as creative and excited as possible. You're pretty awesome students, and I know you can make amazing projects!

To clarify, once you have completed the project for credit in Biology (final project isn't due until February 2018, so we have plenty of time) if you don't want to present it in the actual science fair in February 2018 that's completely fine. My main goal is that you come up with an idea and use the scientific method to see the project from start to finish. I don't want this to be a lot of extra stress if you don't like presentations - I want you to have a good experience. I am currently developing 3 options for participation, and will roll those options out after Thanksgiving Break. For now, just focus on your proposal and we'll go from there.

Please also make sure that you discuss your project with your parents and review that your project can be accomplished safely. Also, I just received a grant for a 3D printer for our Biology class - if you want to use this 3D printer for your project please let me know! I'm happy to help!

ALSO, in the spirit of equality, I am also doing a science project of my own, and will be able to show you my project as an example as we go through this process so you clearly understand expectations. For my project, I'm starting a MOJH paper and plastic recycling program. So we are all in this together :)

I have posted my paper at the end of this blog entry, and you can follow mine as an example for formatting and structure. In Microsoft Word, my example below is about 3.25 pages in length if you're wondering.

If you are struggling to select a topic, please use this site to narrow your search and find something that really interests you:

https://www.sciencebuddies.org/science-fair-projects/topic-selection-wizard/background-info

Your paper should be:

- 3 full pages in length, 12 point Times New Roman font, in MLA format. For help on MLA formatting, please see this page: https://owl.english.purdue.edu/owl/resource/747/01/

Also, you can just follow the formatting in my example below - iit's formatted in MLA style.

- The first paragraph should contain background information on your idea and should contain a thesis statement summarizing your main project idea.

- The rest of the paper should outline how you will use the scientific method to conduct your experiment. It should contain these Scientific Method components:

3-Page Paper Example:

Your Name (Add names of other partners as appropriate)

Mrs. Taylor

Period A1 (Add your specific class period)

11/16/17

Feasibility and Eco-Impact of Recycling at MOJH

Question

How can we develop a recycling and composting program at MOJH that will reduce the

school's carbon footprint? (This is my basic question for the project)

Background Research

On a global scale, the concepts of recycling used paper and plastic materials has

gained attention as a potential solution to the Earth's pollution problem. Several large scientific

organizations, such as National Geographic and Scientific American, have recently highlighted the

importance of reusing natural resources for multiple purposes in order to conserve expended

energy. Local recycling programs are especially important, because such programs afford

everyday citizens the opportunity to engage in proactive resource renewal and reuse efforts.

Currently, MOJH does not have a recycling program for plastics and paper. If a recycling

program did exist, I expect it would be used on a weekly basis during the school year by

at least 75% of teachers and school staff, thus lowering MOJH's overall carbon footprint. (This is my

thesis statement - the main point of the project)

Hypothesis

If MOJH were to regularly recycle paper and plastics at 75% functional capacity (meaning that

at least 75% of the teachers and staff in the building participated regularly in recycling) for at least

one month, it would reduce the school's carbon footprint by at least 10% during that given month.

Additionally, I estimate that having a recycling program will help teachers and staff be more

conscientious about the amount of paper and plastic they use, and may actually decrease

the amount of paper/plastic use throughout the school. (you will tailor the hypothesis,

experiment/project, data collection, and data analysis to fit your specific idea)

Experiment/Project

In order to assess the impact of a recycling program on the school's carbon footprint, I

must first assess the amount of paper and plastic materials currently being used for a single

purpose and thrown away in the trash. I will conduct a teacher survey asking specific questions

about their estimates of their paper/plastic usage, and the amount of paper/plastic waste they

estimate generating. This survey will have at least 10 questions appropriate to the content of the

science project.

I will then initiate a recycling program for paper and plastics. Each teacher will receive a

recycling bin, and will be asked to participate in recycling for at least one month. Recycling will

be collected on a weekly basis by designated student volunteers and will be collected by a local

recycling company. I will collect observations during this time of teacher habits, and will record

my observations through a daily school walk-through inspection of each recycling bin. I will record

which teachers use their bin on a daily basis, and the location of the bin in the classroom.

At the end of the month, I will ask all teachers in the building to re-complete the survey asking

the same specific questions about their estimates of paper/plastic usage, and the amount of

paper/plastic waste they estimate generating. I will also ask five additional questions about

whether they feel that their use of paper/plastic has decreased over the last month, due to the

heightened conscientiousness of eco-friendliness within the school.

Data Collection

I will use three main pieces of data in my project. First, I will collect the initial surveys from

teachers regarding their recycling habits. Then, I will record the actual use of the recycling program

through visual inspection throughout the school for one month. Lastly, I will collect follow-up

surveys from teachers regarding their recycling habits and perceptions at the end of the month.

Data Analysis

I will do two things to analyze my data. I will first compare each teacher's responses from their

initial survey and compare it to the post-project survey to see how their estimates of waste

changed over the one-month period. I will compare waste rates before and after the program, and

will assess whether the reduction in waste is greater than or equal to 10%.

I will then use my observational data of each teacher's classroom use of the recycle bin to

identify which teachers used the program regularly and which did not. I will then determine what

percentage of teachers used the program regularly, and will assess whether 75% of the teachers in

the school participated in the paper/plastic recycle program.

Communication of Results

I will present my findings at the MOJH Science Fair in February 2018. (if you don't want to present

at the science fair, you can share your findings digitally on Canvas - more info on that option to come after

the Thanksgiving Break).