Parent Involvement
Parents' involvement in their child's science fair project should be a positive experience for both parents and their children. Here are some positive ways in which a parent can help their child:
BE INFORMED: Read the material that comes home from school. Become familiar with the Scientific Method and other components of a science fair on this web site.
PICKING OUT THE TOPIC: The topic that your child will choose is one that is a part of their current curriculum. Your child will be working in a group of 3 to 4 students to complete their project. The topic that is chosen will be a group choice. You can take a look at the current Tri-District Curriculum to familiarize yourself with what your child is learning. After viewing the curriculum, encourage your child to do some research using the trusted Science Fair web-sites for a possible topic that they can bring to the group for discussion.
KNOW YOUR CHILD’S ROLE: Your job is to help your child keep up with his or her responsibilities as a member of group. Each child will have tasks that they need to complete. You can ask your child to explain their project to you and find out how the project is progressing. Check your child’s project plan and calendar as well.
CONDUCTING THE EXPERIMENT: After your child has carefully planned the experiment (s)he will do, it will be completed in school. Equipment from the classroom and Discovery Room will be used to complete the experiment but occasionally house hold items may need to be brought in.
COMPLETION OF PROJECT: After the experiment is completed, all the data collected and the steps taken to complete the project will need to be typed and put on a display board. Their teachers will provide all display boards needed. Students may want to bring in other items from home to make their display board stand out.
MAKE IT FUN: If you've done all of the above, this project should be a positive experience for your child. Remember, an experiment doesn't have to "work" for the project to be successful. As long as your child is learning, even if it is from mistakes, it is a worthwhile project.
Here is a web site that you will give you additional ideas on helping your students.