What is a Science Fair?

Posted: 1/21/2026 10:39 pm

A science fair is a place for students to present their science projects to professional scientists and to the community. Its main purpose is to get you excited about science by doing it rather than simply learning about it. A scientist first asks a question about some aspect of the world, and then tries to find its answer. At the science fair, each student presents a project, both visually and orally, with the question and answer displayed in an interesting way. Students should be able to explain their projects, and answer questions.

What are the goals of the science fair?

• Students understand and are able to apply the scientific method;
• Students develop intellectual curiosity about how things work;
• Students become aware of science's relevance to the real world;
• The fair brings public awareness to the field of science.

What makes a good project?

• Ask a question in a subject you are interested in – it’s something you like to think about and will be happy to spend time working on. For example, you may have a pet bird at home who is a very picky eater. What is its favorite food? Does it ever get tired of eating the same food all the time? Once you’ve chosen a question, you must figure out a way to find the answer to your question. There are many ways to answer questions. You can design an experiment or a survey, build a model, or write a computer program that can help you find the answer.
• A good project is one you can do mostly by yourself, with only a little help from grown-ups: parents, Science Fair Organizers, teachers, and friends. The reason to do a project is that it is fun and will help you learn something you didn’t know before. Having someone else help you too much takes away some of your fun at discovering something new, and you don’t learn as much. Your project doesn’t have to be perfect – if it follows the scientific method and is neat enough to read, then it is good.
• A good project is something you design and build by yourself from regular or everyday materials. Doing it by yourself is more satisfying than simply buying a kit someone else made in the store. Creative projects using basic materials make for the most impressive science fair projects!
• A good project is one that, when you’re done with it, makes you wonder about other things. Did seeing what happened in your project make you think of other questions you’d like to know the answer to? That’s a great project!

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