It's Time for Science Fair Projects!!!

Attention Parent(s)/ Guardian(s) and Students,

        During the next two weeks, your fifth grade student will create a Science Fair Project to enter into the contest here at school.  I have taken the time to provide you and your child several links to look at in order to help create a great project.  These links include information about choosing the right project, a step by step project guide, and useful information on how to prefect the project. 

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       As you know, throughout the year, I have strongly expressed how important i think reading and writing skills are in all content areas.  For this project, your student will also be required to compose a two page essay.  A link is provided to help with the format.  

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     Note: It is important to remember what a hypothesis is.  As a reminder, I have provided the definition: Hypothesis 

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        It is time to get started. I hope you take the time to sit down with your student and look at the links provided.  The last link will be a helpful tool when you have finished your project.  It provides helpful information from choosing a topic to standing and delivering the project.  

Narrowing Your Search

Choosing the Right Project

How to Write the Essay

10 Tips for Success

         As always, thank you for your support in helping your child better his or her education. 
Together we can achieve goals!

Ms. Wilson

Experiment Four:

Color Exploding Molecules

Project Subject to Fourth Grade Science:
Tennessee State Standards:

GLE 0407.Inq.1 Explore different scientific phenomena by asking questions, making logical

predictions, planning investigations, and recording data.

GLE 0407.Inq.3 Organize data into appropriate tables, graphs, drawings, or diagrams.

GLE 0407.9.2 Explore different types of physical changes in matter.

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Introduction and Purpose:

It's an explosion of color! Some very unusual things happen when you mix a little milk, food coloring, and a drop of liquid soap. Use this experiment to amaze your friends and uncover the scientific secrets of soap (stevespanglerscience.com). The purpose of this science project is to cover topics such as mixtures, molecules, and the results of bipolar characteristics in dish soap. This topic also covers changes in physical properties.

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Hypotheses:

In this project, three questions require answers: What will happen when food coloring is dropped in water? The hypothesis for this question is when food coloring is dropped in water, the food coloring will combine with the water without even stirring the mixture. The second question is what will happen when food coloring is dropped in cooking oil? The hypothesis for this question is when food coloring is dropped in oil, the food coloring will sink to the bottom, resulting with no mixture. The final question is which type of milk will result in more color explosion: whole milk, skim milk, or half and half. The hypothesis for this question is whole milk will result in more color explosion.

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Materials and Procedure

Station One: Oil and Water

Station Two: Whole Milk

Station Three: Skim Milk

Station Four: Half & Half

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Results and Conclusions

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Experiment Three:

Somewhere Over the Rainbow!

(Making your very own rainbow)

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Let's Get Started: Materials Needed

101 Great Science Experiments Book, A shallow dish, Bright Flashlight, Small poster board, Duct Tape, Mirror, Water

Step One: Pour water into the shallow dish until it is about half full.

Step Two: Put duct tape on the back of the pan, and attach the mirror firmly. (Note: If the mirror is attached correctly, it will slope.)


(Placing the mirror in the water)

(The result of the mirror being properly placed in the water)

Step Three: Shine the flashlight on the par of the mirror that is under the water.
Step Four: Hold the poster board above the back of your head as you shine the flashlight.

You Now Have Your Own Rainbow

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Discussion Questions:

What is a prism?

What colors are in rainbows?

Do all rainbows have the same colors?

Are the colors always in the same order?

What order do you think they are in?

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Put Your Thinking Caps On!

Think of ways you see rainbows: CD-ROMs, soap bubbles, rain drops, fish tanks, and glass as the light hits them. Although the sun’s rays appear colorless, the rays contain all the colors of the rainbow mixed together. This mixture is known as white light. When white light strikes a white crayon, it appears white because the crayon absorbs no color and reflects all colors equally. A black crayon absorbs all colors equally and reflects none, so it looks black. Artists consider black a color, but scientists do not, because black is the absence of all color.

Indeed the traditional rainbow is sunlight spread out into its spectrum of colors and diverted to the eye of the observer by water droplets. The "bow" part of the word describes the fact that the rainbow is a group of nearly circular arcs of color all having a common center.

The Color Spectrum:

A prism separates white light into a group of seven colors called a spectrum. These seven colors are always in the same order. The colors of the spectrum are red, orange, yellow, green, blue, indigo, and violet. You can make up a name by using the first letter of each color to form a person's name. ROY G BIV Light can be reflected and bent. When light passes into the prism glass it slows down and it bends. The color red is not as bent the same way as the color violet is bent. When the colors come out of the prism, each color is bent in a different way and in a different quantity.

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Other Resources For This Lesson:

4th Grade Lesson Plan

Related Concepts of Light Refraction (Allison Hayes)

Experiment Two:

***Making an Underwater Volcano***

Discussion Question:

What is a volcano?

What makes a volcano erupt?

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• Definition of Volcano: A vent in the crust of the earth or another planet or a moon from which usually molten or hot rock and steam issue

• Definition of Magma: Melted rock

A volcano begins as magma rises from deep inside the earth toward the surface. As the gas-filled magma rises, it melts gaps in the surrounding rock and forms a large chamber. Pressure from the solid rock around it forces the magma up to the surface through the conduit (channel) in a weakened part of the rock. The gas and melted rock blast out an opening called the central vent.

The erupted materials gradually pile up around the vent, forming a volcano. A bowl-like crater generally forms at the top of the volcano. The vent lies at the bottom of the crater.

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Materials needed:
-Scissors, narrow-necked small bottle, hot and cold water,
red food coloring, string, and a large glass jar.
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Step One: Fill a large jar with cold water.


Step Two: Cut a long piece of string and tie around each side of the bottle to make a loop.

Step Three: Fill the little jar with extremely hot water. Pour a few drops of red food coloring into the jar directly afterward.


Step Four: Hold the bottle by the loop of string. Lower it gently into the jar of cold water.
The hot water rises from the small bottle like smoke from an erupting volcano!

Underwater Volcano

More Resources on Volcanoes:

Experiment One:

Check Your Reaction Time!

Just what is "reaction time?"

Reaction is defined as a response to a situation.

Time is defined as a system of measuring the passage of time.

So, when you put those two definitions together, you understand that reaction time is defined as how fact you are to react to a situation.

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Discussion Question:
Could your reaction time be a matter of life or death? Think about it as we create a way to record your reaction time.
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Materials Needed:
Science experiment book, ruler, scissors, 6 markers, a pencil, and six 3in name tags

Step One: Take the ruler and measure the name tag at two inches and make a mark.
Repeat for the remaining five name tags.

Step Two: Cut the tags along the 2in. mark.

Step Three: Color the six tags with different colors.

Step Four: Line the tags up in the order you want the reaction time to be.
For mine: Red is the fastest reaction time and pink is the slowest.

Step Five: Take the tags and place them on one side of the ruler. (Doesn't matter which side).

The Finished Product!!!
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Now to check your reaction time:
Please refer to the link here for directions:

Red/Orange: Fast Reaction Time
Yellow/Green: Medium Reaction Time
Blue/Pink: Slow Reaction Time
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Do you have a slow or fast reaction time? What determines your reactions time?
Some factors that determine reaction time are:

• Experience
• Age
  
• Fitness
• Fatigue
• Illness
• Pre-occupation
• Distraction
• Mood
• Medication, prescribed and/or not
• Poor Vision and/or hearing

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Curiosity Zone: Time for Variations

After you’ve tested yourself, why not experiment further. Here’s a few suggestions, do reaction times vary:

• for people of different ages (children verses adults)?
• if you use your dominant hand verses non-dominant hand?
• if you are tired or alert?
• for men verses women?
• depending on your mood?

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Other Resources for Reaction Time:

Fifth Grade Lesson Plan

Reaction Time Test Online
Proof that Men are Quicker than Women
Fingertip Reaction Time
Kayla Whitt's Reaction Time Reserach