One of the most popular science fair models based on the celestial sky would be that of the Solar System. The Sun with its planets in orbit around it is not only easy to make, but is also fun to learn. This easy project is ideal for elementary school science fair projects.

Getting the different sized balls to explain the difference between the sizes of all the planets is a great way to fix relative planet sizes in the minds of the student. Nothing beats setting up a project all on your own. The sense of achievement and accomplishment are great.

With the Solar System Model the students can do it all on their own. All that is needed is to get hold of a good diagram of the Solar System, and then replicate it in 3D. Any material can be used as long as it is sturdy enough to survive being worked with.

For the planets you can use ping pong balls, tennis balls, cricket balls, softball or even footballs. Then cover them in paint corresponding to the planet’s color. Get the Sun fixed in the center of the board and mark the orbits of the planets around it.

You can add as many details as you like to the model. The Asteroid belt between the Earth and Mars, or the moons of all the planets, don’t forget the rings of Saturn. Just have fun and enjoy the process.  If you are looking for more elementary science projects you may find some more here.

The stars have fascinated mankind since ancient times, so why not base your science fair project on them. The two branches of science that have emerged from this fascination are Astrology and Astronomy. The early Astronomers grouped the shiny stars at night into shapes. These came to be known as constellations.

The twelve most famous constellations relate to the Zodiac Signs. This is where Astronomy comes into play. The different signs of the zodiac are based on these twelve different constellations, namely Aries, Taurus, Gemini, Cancer, Leo, Virgo, Libra, Scorpio, Sagittarius, Capricorn, Aquarius, and Pisces.

Wouldn’t it make an interesting science project to display the Celestial Sphere divided into these 12 large sectors based on these signs. Make the shapes of the twelve main zodiac constellations in the model. Have each constellation joined up with straws or string to show the shape.

This model will need to be made like a jigsaw puzzle that you can assemble on the spot. After all a large project like this is also likely to be rather delicate. Try and stick to the actual size scale of the constellations to maintain some authenticity in the celestial sphere.

The model could be supplemented with a display of the symbols of all zodiac signs along with their shape. As an interesting add on you could describe the main characteristics of the people born under that particular sign below the astronomical symbol.  You could add trivia regarding famous people born under particular zodiac signs as well. Get more help here

The science fair project is just half the story at the fair. The actual presentation of the project, including the display board adds to the project.  So what does one do to make the whole project a success? You have to pay attention to all the details from start to finish. Remember the proverb, “Well begun is half done”?

So also think about the proverb “A journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step”. The first step to your science project is topic selection. Make sure that your display board makes the topic of your presentation as clear as possible. Don’t be ambiguous about what you have to say here.

Think of your project display board as the headlines in a newspaper. Only if the headline is attention catching will the reader come close and read all that is written. It helps to be a bit color coordinated to make the board look attractive. If you can not draw illustrations, take print outs. Be as neat and tidy as possible.

Check out this post about improving your project display. You do not want to make a display board that seems more attractive than your actual science project. So be careful about what all you add to it. Remember it must introduce the project and make the reader want to see it. It is used to draw the interest of the visitors and the judges to your project.

We have five senses and they help us to perceive the world around us. The truth is that without these senses we would be no better than the rock out there in the garden. It makes no difference to the rock how hot the sun is or how cold the snow is. However because of our senses we can feel the heat and appreciate the cool breeze on the skin.

Do you feel chilled when an ice cube is placed on you skin? That again is the magic of senses. Imagine going to the bakery when they have just finished baking a fresh batch of bread. That aroma of freshly baked goodies hits your sense of smell and triggers instant hunger pangs. Or at least a little craving for a fresh sweet bun.

Not all the senses can be pleasant. Remember that trip to the  emergency room? The smell of disinfectant and the prick of the needle as you got that tetanus shot? These are sensations as well, even if they are ones that you do not much care for. That’s why we tend to indulge our senses with pleasant sensations so that we feel good.

When your parents want you to tone down the music system or television, they are actually trying to calm their sense of hearing. Sounds make for interesting sensations. This is a great experiment with sound. Give it a go to see just how effective your sense of hearing is.

The air around us is what makes it possible for earth to sustain life. The air is every present and you can feel it every time it moves as breeze. If it is faster we call it wind. It is this air that we can use for a number of science projects. It is easily available at any time of the day or night, no matter where on earth you are.

Now you know that air is around us all the time, yet you can’t see it. So how do you know for sure that it exists? You can prove its presence by blowing up balloons. The content inside is air, if you release the air inside it will loose the shape that it has taken. A balloon changes its shape and stretches to  accommodate the air that is being filled inside it.

Also if you light an incense stick you will see some smoke. Now if the air around the incense stick is disturbed the smoke will make different patterns. Try blowing lightly at the smoke to see what form of waves you can make in the air. If you blow too hard the smoke might disappear all together.

Why does that happen? It happens because the air replaces the smoke at a very fast rate. So though the smoke is there it can’t really be seen.  This hot air balloon experiment is great fun. Try it out if you have some time.

We have five primary senses. These are the sense of sight, smell, hearing, tasting and feeling. Each of these senses is essential to our experience of the world. They are all related to a part of the body as well. We see with our eyes, smell with the nose, hear with our ears, taste with our tongue and feel with our skin.

So how do we use these in a science project? If you think about it, without the senses there would be difficulty in doing any science project. For instance if you were unable to see the water being turned into ice, how would you know that putting it in the freezer would change its form from liquid to solid?

Again if you were unable to hear, how would you know that the motor of the toy car is running? Or if you were unable to smell how would you know that the cake is cooking in the oven. If you think about it all that you do is related to one sense or the other. The way we live is dictated in a large manner by how effective our senses are.

That’s why the blind, or hearing impaired live in a different manner than us. They are challenged each to to experience the world in the way we do. It is a constant struggle for them to navigate the world with one sense missing. Try going without using a sense for a day to see how dependent you are on it.  Here’s one project that will belie your sense of sight.

We live on a planet which has an atmosphere. That is nothing more than the air around us. It is because of this air that we can breath and live on earth. It is this air that is absent on the moon and so the moon has no life. The atmosphere around us is made up of different elements.

There is oxygen, naturally as it allows us to breath and live, but there are also other gases such as nitrogen, and other material such as dust particles that make up the atmosphere. All these components of the atmosphere tend to put some pressure on us.

In fact when you stand you have air pressure acting on you on all sides. The body also exerts some pressure with the same force so you can stand and not get swayed by the air pressure. This is true of any substance that you see around you. Ever imagine what would happen if the air pressure was more than the pressure the substance you create?

How would the item react? Will it shoot out into outer space? Or will it react in some other way? You can conduct your own experiments and find out. Here is a link to a fun science project that you might enjoy doing.   These cans can be quite entertaining. They also give you the answer to the air pressure equation.

Gravity is the pulling force that the earth exerts on us all. It is the reason why we don’t fly off the earth as well. The gravity on the moon is very much less than that present on the earth. That is because gravity is dependent on the mass of the body. So it is easy for astronauts to jump big distances with small leaps on the moon.

In space there is no gravity at all. That is why when an astronaut comes out of his space craft he tends to float around with no direction to his drift. There is no wind in space to blow him around either. So he uses his own jet engines to propel himself around.

You don’t need to be out of this world to experience gravity, the lack of gravity and to have fun with it. Kids use gravity in games every day. Here’s a few things that they do. You might already be doing a few of these activities and not know that you were employing gravity. Or you may find a fun new game to play. Check it out and think up of more things that you can do with your friends.

Remember all objects exert some amount of gravity. The one which has a bigger mass will have a bigger gravitational force. That is why the sun pulls the planets around it and the planets can pull the satellites. In this case size does matter quite a bit.

Science projects need some forces to act. Any working model will need some energy to make it go. This can be electrical energy provided by a wire and a plug, or mechanical energy provided by physical action being repeated or kinetic energy borrowed from a moving object.

What is gravity? It is the pull of the earth on all things that are on its surface. Everything experiences gravity, from your glass of water to the ball you play tennis with. That is why no matter how high you throw some thing it is still bound to come down again. That is the force that is always available to you no matter where you stand on earth.

So why not harness this power and make a science project . You may want to explain why a pencil will fall to the earth if dropped point facing down, but balances on your finger when you put it mid way lying down. Although it would be possible to do more complex experiments as well. A waterfall using a pump would seem like a good idea.

If you are not interested in getting wet, try out this experiment here. It may be more to your taste. All that matters is that you try and harness this ever present force of the earth in your science project. You can come up with a way to test the acceleration of different objects of different weights due to gravity as well.

Try using a video camera with your parent and calculating the time it takes for a feather, a coin, a ball and a bottle of water to fall to the ground. The end results may surprise you.

If you have noticed some people are great with words and can express themselves really well. They have no problem coming up with flowery language to put on the display board of their science fair project. On the other hand they usually are not too good at crunching numbers. This means that they prefer not to do too many complicated calculations as part of their science project.

Have you wondered why this is so? It has to do with which side of your brain rules you. Roger W Sperry was an American psycho-biologist who did some  research in 1960 and came up with this theory. He said that the brain was divided into two main portions. The left side which is logical and objective and the right side which is emotional and subjective.

As you can guess the people who process the information thrown at them with the left brain are more likely to be the one who can handle mathematical calculations and logical flowcharts well. Plus the people who use the right brain to process information will be more likely to design beautiful display boards and use eloquent language.This does not mean that you can do only one and not the other.

Many people can use both skill sets with ease, but they find one set easier. So when you sit down and think about it, you will realize that you too are better at one type of information processing. Once you know which side of the brain you use more, the subject or the objective, you can pick out a complementary science project. That way you will be playing to your strengths and will find the project easier to do.