Science Fair Project Ideas for Elementary Students

The science fair is soon going to be organized at your school and students are busy hunting for a good topic for their project. Teachers are busy with the arrangement, making all possible efforts to guide their students. A few are nervous on how to go ahead with the work, while the rest have already started working on their topics. All of us can imagine the situation and the activities that goes around just a few days before the exhibition. If you are falling short of ideas, the following mentioned experiments would help you out.

At the elementary level, students are keen at performing experiments with eggs because it's one of the easiest thing to do. The two basic experiments performed with eggs are, finding out whether the egg is raw or boiled without touching it, and making an egg float in salt water. So how do you conduct these two experiments?

To perform the first experiment, you need to keep a raw egg and a boiled egg side by side. Now spin both the eggs. You will find that the raw egg will wobble while the boiled egg will spin steadily. You can draw an inference by explaining the scientific reason behind it.

Raw eggs cannot spin uniformly because the white portion of the egg and the yolk present inside are set in motion, as a result of which the center of gravity changes and they start wobbling. On the other hand, since the internal mass of boiled eggs is set together, it doesn't move within the egg, which allows it to maintain a constant axis of rotation.

While performing the saltwater experiment, you will find out that eggs will float in saltwater because its density is more than normal water. Thus, increasing the density of water makes objects float easily. You can set up this experiment model with a good presentation.

We all know that earthworms survive by eating soil and organic matter present in soil. Now this theory could be utilized for your project with an artificial model of earthworms, soil, and a few plant species. The mechanism of action that works behind it is more important. Earthworms burrow in soil, and their slow movements aerate the soil.

They consume soil and organic matter, which is digested and then excreted. Their excreta is deposited as castings, which are rich in nutrients beneficial for the growth of plants. If plants are grown in areas populated by earthworms, they will have a better growth rate, since nutrient concentration of the soil is increased by the deposition of castings. Aeration in the soil is another factor that accentuates growth of plants.

Students having a keen interest in physics can opt for electricity-related topics. One simple experiment is the demonstration of the production of electricity using potatoes. You need the following equipment to perform this experiment: Copper electrode, zinc electrode and a potato.

Measure the voltage with a multimeter. You will get these instruments in your physics lab. Stick both the electrodes in the potato for some time, and then connect the other end of the electrodes to the multimeter with the help of alligator clips. You will observe some reading on the multimeter due to production of an electric current.

Research more on such phenomenon and come up with new ideas to set up your own unique project. Some other interesting topics include measuring the speed of electricity, finding out which is the best conductor of electricity among a given range of samples, and trying various other methods for generating electricity.

• Growing crystals with salt and sugar.
• Demonstrating the eruption of volcano.
• Growth of plant in the presence of a detergent.
• What types of wood burn the fastest?
• In what conditions does mold form quickest?
• The effects of different fertilizers on plant growth.
• How does pollination work?

• Make your own kaleidoscope.
• Test a range of household cleaners to see which works best.
• What substances release the most harmful chemicals when burnt?
• The relationship between the pH level of soil and plant growth.

• Effect of caffeine on plant growth.
• What is the effect of UV light on the growth of bacteria?
• Explain the greenhouse effect and how it is related to global warming.

Science fairs organized in schools offer creative freedom to students to bring out their scientific skills and creative instincts for creating commendable work. Feel free to take necessary guidance from your teacher whenever needed. All the best!