This handbook is adapted from "A Guide to the Best Science Fair Projects" by Janice VanCleave. For information on this book or other books by Janice VanCleave, click here. Ms. VanCleave has also prepared a searchable archive of answers to questions about science fair projects.

So you're going to do a science fair project. Great! Your work could be chosen as an entry in your school fair and even in regional, state, or national competitions. As a participant in any science fair, you'll get to show off your work and possibly receive achievement awards. But most important, you'll also learn a lot about science by observing and sharing with other science fair participants.

A science project is like a mystery in which you are the detective searching for answers. Science projects let you practice and exhibit your detective skills. You not only get to select which mystery to solve, but you can creatively design methods for uncovering clues that will lead to the final revelation of who, what, when, where, how, and why. This book will give you guidance and ideas. It's your job to discover the answers!

This book covers the eight most important points you need to know for science fair success:

1. Scientific Method
   Research, Problem, Hypothesis, Experimentation, Conclusion
    
   
2. Topic Research
   Project Types, Three Steps to a Topic, Research a Topic, Topic Ideas
    
   
3. Project Research
   Primary Research, Secondary Research
    
   
4. A Sample Project
   Starting Your Project, Procedures, Results, Explaining Your Results, Hypothesis
    
   
5. Project Report
   Title Page, Table of Contents, Abstract, Introduction, Experiment and Data, Conclusion, Sources, Acknowledgments
    
   
6. The Display
   Helpful Hints, Do's and Don'ts, Safety
    
   
7. Presentation and Evaluation
   Judging Information, Do's and Don'ts at the Fair

From Janice VanCleave's Guide to the Best Science Fair Projects, Janice VanCleave (John Wiley & Sons, Inc., 1997)