my 2nd grader needs help with a science fair project

[whirlsy]

any ideas would be great!! I have been searching the web and nothing seems too exciting~ the science fair is for 4th graders and up but they said if the younger grades wanted to participate they could~ of course she wants too. she has no idea how bad her mother did in science so I am no help, her father keeps picking out ideas over her head. so I am asking my friends on these boards for help. I only want ideas she can do 90percent of, I hate it when parents do all the kids work~ the only thing i can come up with is the colored water with a white carnation or celery stalk in it and you watch the water go through their veins. kinda boring but I think she will think it is pretty cool. She loves to bake so any ideas with baking would be cool. thanks for any info. Dawn

 

[janette]

There are several sites with lists of ideas just do a search for elementary science projects.

I like the project one of the neighbor girls is doing. She came over and used our dogs as part of her experiment so I have a pretty good idea of what it is She gave the dogs a choice of about 5 toys and wrote down which they preferred. There are several different things you could do with that. Our dogs are a good sample because we have a 14yo, 6yo & a 5mth old. She has also done several other neighborhood dogs.

 

[Saffron]

How about baking or making different clays or play doughs to find out which is best for building with, modeling, painting, etc. She will love mixing the mixtures, molding them and baking them.

She could write up a little observation sheet telling what she found during her experiment - which is hardest, pourous, crumbliest etc.

 

[MrsPiglet]

Last year my 4th grade DD, did a project and even won second place.

Will lintel beans sprout fater if they have been boiled and for how long? This was her question?

I helped with the boiling part, but we had seven little plastic containers, with paper towels folded neatly at the bottom, so the beans were not sitting in direct water.

Ok containers was first no boiling, second 5 minutes, third 10 minutes and so on.

She placed them in the window sill so they would get sunlight and made sure they were damp but not soaked. Checked them daily and recorded her findings.

She had a blast doing this project.

This year I think she want to know what preserves fruit the longest, like apple juice, lemon juice, milk, soda things that way.


good luck I agree about science I hated science.

 

[Cindy B]

My son is in second grade and this is what he is doing...

He has a plastic marble maze game... which is different pieces.

He has set up different models and used different sized /weight marbles... and using the degree of the decline, determined which marble moves the fastest, and why the bigger one goes the slowest... also why does speed affect performance..

He wanted to design roller coasters/pulley systems, but that is still the forefront idea, but that is more expensive.


There is also the potatoe clock (very cool) circuit boards where you can make it work with the different components and throw the switch, and the light comes on.

 

[Marla Hellwig]

Get some white carnations - make up little cups of water with different color dyes - put one flower in each cup - how long does the dye take to reach the flower petals - does one color work faster than another - do the petals get darker the longer left in the dye

 

[crazyme5kids]

Here is an easy one that shows how air expands. Put an empty 2 liter soda bottle in the freezer for an hour or so. Take the bottle out and place a balloon (deflated) over the opening. The balloon will inflate. This shows how cold air expands. It is quick and your daughter can do it all (she might need a little help getting the balloon on), but best of all is the smile you'll see on her face! This is almost like a magic trick!

 

[whirlsy]

Thanks for all the great ideas~ I will pass these ideas along to her and let her pick out her favorite~thanks again I knew you would come through for me.

 

[Suzy Mouse]

Another good one I did with my students and great for a 2nd grader.

I hope that I can explain this.

Take 3 seeds and soak them. Let them start to sprout. When a "plant" has started to grow do the following with them.
Leave one alone
Take one of the "halves of seeds" off of another.
Take both "seeds" off the last.

Then plant them and see which one grows the best.

THe plants need the rest of the "seed" as food. The plant with both halves grows the best. The one with half grows a little and the last one doesn't grow at all!!