As with all scientific investigations once a topic is decided upon, an extensive research process must follow. It is suggested that you perform research on the topic before you state your hypothesis. Since my major focus in writing this unit is to assist both teachers and students in designing and completing a science fair project, I will use the following format with each of the investigations:
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· Background Information
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· Project Overview
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· Materials List & Resources
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· Procedures
The background information will include pertinent information about the subjects that are being investigated within this unit. It is my initial research on the subject and the items that I consider to be important and should be included in the research paper that goes along with the experiment. The project overview will describe what I am trying to find out in my investigation. Even though it is not written to be an official abstract of the experiment, most of the information found in this section can be used in the abstract of the student’s research report of the experiment. The materials list will include all the materials that are needed to complete the experiment. If some of the materials are not easy to find, I will include the address where these materials can be found. Finally, the procedures are the steps that must be performed in order to carry out the experiments presented in this unit of study. Both the materials list and procedures are critical parts of display board and the research paper. Since I am trying to abide by the rules of the NHPS Science Fair, I will list the procedures in numerical order. The materials list can be used as stated within this unit, but the resource list should be excluded.