Science projects and science fairs serve four major purposes for students: (1) they motivate
students to pursue an active interest in a variety of science-related fields; (2) they provide
a forum for students to showcase their research findings; (3) they provide students with an
opportunity to dialog with science professionals and with the public and; (4) they give
recognition to students for the talents they exhibit through their hard work.
But science fairs also serve an important purpose for instruction. They create an “event” upon
which teachers can focus to bring to light students’ abilities to independently practice the science
processes and investigative skills teachers have been reinforcing throughout the year in classroom
and laboratory instruction. Science projects are a wonderful way for students to demonstrate their
understanding of scientific concepts and proficiency with research skills, and science fairs create
a school and community event that highlights the importance of these skills in contributing to academic
literacy.
Throughout the school year students have many opportunities to demonstrate proficiency in the lab with
science skills, including collection, organization, & analysis of data; identification & manipulation of
variables; and identification of sources of error and implications for further experimentation. An
independent science project allows students to pull all of these potentially isolated experiences
together and offers teachers a testament of what students can do, from start to finish, with these
skills. There is really no better way to ensure that students are truly proficient with the skills
outlined in the Scientific Reasoning and Logic strand of the Prince William County Science Curriculum
and for which they are accountable.
Science projects require a commitment of time and effort from both students and teachers. Students need to
know that teachers recognize the value and purpose of independent inquiry. If they sense less, then the
experience becomes an empty exercise and a waste of time for everyone. Likewise, a science fair that is
coordinated with heartfelt enthusiasm, sincerity, and commitment from the entire school is one that will
succeed in its purpose to give students—and the school community—a chance to showcase great science efforts
and boost school pride.
The purpose of this handbook is to provide coordinators and teachers with resources and information to support
your efforts to promote science projects and science fairs. Please take the time to read this handbook
carefully. It is essential that you understand the protocols involved in overseeing independent classroom
research and the guidelines that are in place to allow qualifying students from your school to enter the Prince
William-Manassas Regional Science Fair competition.
The Science Office is available to assist you as you prepare to undertake the tasks and responsibilities involved
in monitoring student research and presentation. Please feel free to contact me at by e-mail at klanzaf@pwcs.edu
or by telephone at (703) 791-7240 if you should have question or require further information or assistance. Keep
in mind also that the Science Focus Group members of the Instructional Support Team are also available to
assist you.
Best wishes as you begin another exciting year of science research!
Sincerely,
Kathy Keesee
Supervisor of Science and Family Life Education
Prince William County Public Schools
Director, Prince William-Manassas Regional Science Fair
Prince William County Public Schools supports the National Science Teachers Association position on science
competitions. All students should have an opportunity to participate in science exhibitions and/or competitions
during each school year. It is the expectation that all students in advanced science courses be encouraged to
participate in science competitions, exhibitions, and other science-related extracurricular events.
Rationale:
The National Science Teachers Association recognizes that many kinds of learning experiences, including science
competitions, can contribute significantly to the education of students of science. With respect to science
competitions, such as science fairs, science leagues, symposia, Olympiads, scholarship activities and talent
searches, the Association takes the position that participation should be guided by the following principles:
Declarations:
- Students and staff participation in science competitions should be voluntary and open to all students.
- Emphasis should be placed on the learning experience rather than on the competition.
- Science competitions should supplement and enhance other educational experiences and be closely aligned
or integrated with the curriculum.
- The emphasis should be on scientific process, content and/or application.
- Projects and presentations should be the work of the student with proper credit to others for their contributions.
- Scientific competitions should foster partnerships between students, the school and the science community.
—Adopted by the Board of Directors
January 1999
This document can be found online at www.nsta.org/positionstatement.
- Registration for all local fair winners will be online. Online forms for regional fair participation
will be made available in late January and will be password protected; each science fair coordinator
will receive a school-specific access code for his/her school. Teachers and/or coordinators should
assist students in entering and submitting the information on the Prince William – Manassas Regional
Science Fair Participant Entry Form and Summary of Project / Abstract forms or complete the online
registration for students. It is suggested that a hard copy of the forms be downloaded and completed
prior to submitting the information electronically; once the entry is submitted, changes cannot be made.
The school access code should never be shared with students.
- Teachers are encouraged to model and allow students to practice the procedures for brainstorming topics
and the four-question strategy to formulate hypotheses (page 22) in the classroom regularly. Teachers should
also provide students with opportunities to develop solid experimental designs. The Experimental Design
Diagram (page 27) is helpful in assisting students with thinking through this process and provides teachers
with evidence of student-created design components in a consolidated form. The Experimental Design Diagram
is NOT required for regional fair participation, but regional fair judges are instructed to look for the
elements of a good experimental design as a part of the judging criteria.
- No student walk-ins will be allowed on the Friday night of project set-up. All students must be
electronically pre-registered.
- Protocol forms for human and vertebrate research must still be submitted in hard copy to the Science Office.
No student will be allowed to participate in the regional fair if protocol forms are not received (even if
the student is electronically registered). These forms are located in Appendix A.
- Modification in some categories and/or category names has been made. For all three regional divisions
(Junior—5/6; Middle—7/8; and Senior—9-12), “Botany” has been changed to “Plant Sciences,” and “Zoology” has
been re-named “Animal Sciences.”
- The Engineering category for the Senior Division has been divided into two sub-categories: Engineering:
Materials & Bioengineering and Engineering: Electrical & Mechanical. Individual high schools may continue
to consolidate engineering projects in one general engineering category, if desired.
- All projects involving astronomy topics in the Middle and Senior Divisions (Grades 7-8 and 9-12) will now be
included in the “Physics and Astronomy” category.
- Mazes are allowed for students in Grades 5 – 8 as long as they comply with the guidelines on mazes located
on page 28.
- Several new sections have been added to this handbook to provide more specificity to teachers and coordinators:
- Page 4—NSTA / Prince William County Public Schools position statement regard science competitions;
- Pages 14-15—Elaboration of project category descriptions
- Pages 34-36—Delineation of rules for conducting experimentation for students in Grades 5 – 8
- Page 38—Elaboration of Rules and Procedures for Displaying Projects
- Pages 39-40—Updates to Suggested Project Components
- Pages 41-42—Delineation of Components of a Research Report (Grades 7-8) and a Simple Report (Grades 5-6)
- A sample local school fair evaluation form and judging criteria have been provided. Schools do not have to use the
Prince William – Manassas Regional Science Fair Project Evaluation sheet. It is provided to inform students and
teachers of the criteria upon which students will be judged at the regional fair. Schools may develop their own
project evaluation form for judges; however, it is suggested that the local school evaluation criteria not depart
drastically from the regional fair criteria.
- Student protocol forms for research involving human or vertebrates at Grades 5 – 8 are provided in Appendix A.
These forms can be duplicated from this handbook or downloaded from the science website. These forms must be
submitted in hardcopy form.