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“When we began, well over 90 percent of these students
had never been exposed to inquiry-based science. Now, they are clearly seeing
themselves as successful. They have taken an idea, and now it has a true form.
They realize they can be successful at trying and doing new things.”
— Eugenia Echols, Ph.D.
Intel Education Program
Manager, Arizona
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Ready to start using the middle school science fair curriculum? Download these
free materials.
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When middle school students conduct real scientific research to answer their
own questions, they develop an enthusiasm for science and a sense of their own
potential as problem-solvers. Getting younger students ready for a successful
science fair experience also raises new questions and challenges for teachers.
Intel ISEF Middle School Science Fair: A Guide for Teachers offers a
comprehensive curriculum and planning guide. It provides teachers with a
detailed road map, outlining planning considerations and hands-on activities
for the 30 weeks leading up to a fair. Downloadable files include the complete
teaching guide, plus an accompanying set of transparencies.
Developed by Teachers
The guide has been developed by a team of experienced science teachers and used
in middle school outreach efforts in connection with the Intel International
Science and Engineer Fair (Intel ISEF).
In 2004 and 2005, with support from the Intel® Innovation in Education
initiative and Intel Public Affairs, teachers piloted the curriculum with
thousands of students in Oregon and Arizona. Through an outreach effort to
engage traditionally underrepresented students in mathematics and science,
participants included students at Native American tribal schools and in urban
communities serving a high percentage of minority students. Many participating
students have gone on to enter science fairs affiliated with Intel ISEF. The
experience builds their interest in science and boosts their confidence as
learners.
Formal and Informal Learning
The science fair curriculum is appropriate for both formal and informal
learning. It includes suggestions for use in science classes, in
interdisciplinary classes, and in after-school science clubs. In all settings,
students gain experience in using the scientific process to generate questions,
design investigations, collect data, and analyze results.
As a result of their guided science inquiry experience, students learn to:
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Ask a good question
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Design an investigation
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Create graphs to display data
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Write clearly about procedures
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Communicate their results
Classroom resources include the description of hands-on activities, which use
inexpensive materials to launch students on inquiry learning. Suggested
questions show teachers how to take students’ thinking deeper, preparing
them to conduct their own investigations.
Supporting Resources
In addition, the guide outlines suggestions for working with volunteers and
science coaches; describes how to set up a science club and recruit members;
and provides an overview of the requirements for entering a science project in
a fair affiliated with Intel ISEF.
The middle school science fair curriculum has been developed through the support
of the Intel Innovation in Education initiative, which promotes math and
science education for girls and traditionally underserved minorities.
Saturday Academy*, an Oregon-based organization that engages young
people in hands-on, in-depth scientific exploration, coordinated the production
of this Guide for Teachers.
To learn more about Intel ISEF-affiliated science fairs for middle school
students, visit Science
Service*.
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