From 4th Grade And Beyond

In the progression of science teaching, fourth-grade science projects are expected to be primarily illustrative of a scientific topic. However, any of the following five types of science projects can be used.

Five Types of Science Projects

1. Investigative. This type is the most common. It seeks to verify or disprove a hypothesis through the scientific method.

2. Demonstrative. This project category seeks to demonstrate something that has already been proven. Ideas can be culled from books or the Internet. An example would be making a simple radio receiver out of common household materials.

3. Descriptive or Narrative. Collection of information is the main activity done in this science fair project category. After information collection, the findings are presented. An example is "The Evolution of Airplane Propellers."

4. Modeling. This involves building a physical or digital representation of a concept. An example of this would be creating a model of movement of an ocean's waves or a model of the earth's tectonic plates.

5. Collecting and Correlating. This science project type usually entails presenting a collection and formulating some conclusions. For example, a project displaying locally collected rocks could narrate how the entire town was once underwater.

Some 4th Grade Science Fair Project Ideas

There are a lot of possible projects which can be made for a fourth-grade science fair. Some of these include:

· Do germinating plants know which way is up?

To do this experiment, you'll need some seeds, cotton wadding and a jar. You'll need to place the seeds in the cotton wadding in such a way that they're visible from the outside of the jar. Then the cotton needs to be moistened and the whole setup should be left to stand in a warm, dark place for 2-3 days. Then the seeds should be examined if they've germinated, and the results (particularly the direction of growth) recorded. Afterwards, the jar should be turned upside-down and once more left alone in a warm, dark place for another 2-3 days. Afterwards, check it to see if the seeds have adjusted to the change in position.

· Illustrate air pressure equilibrium and differences.

Millions of tons of air press down on us, but we don't feel a thing because the air within our bodies pushes outward with the same force. To illustrate, you'll need a boiled and shelled egg, a bottle with a mouth slightly smaller than the egg's diameter, and a couple of matches. If you place the egg on the mouth of the bottle, pointed end up nothing will happen. Reduce the air pressure in the bottle by putting a lighted match in it then place the egg on the mouth of the bottle again. This time, the egg will be pushed by the outside air into the bottle. To round off the project, you could show some situations in which a difference in air pressure is important (e.g., weather forecasting, scuba diving, flying).