Make science fairs even more accessible with these simple experiments designed for 8th-grade students or their parents to replicate at home.
Don’t forget your lab coat for this exciting project! Plants will dance along to different genres of music as part of this immersive experiment.
Density and Viscosity
Selecting an engaging topic for your 8th grade science fair project can make all the difference in its success. Engaging research will keep you engaged throughout its completion.
Liquid density can be defined as the amount of material packed into a certain space. Try this fun experiment to test different liquid densities and observe any discrepancies among them.
Kids can learn about non-Newtonian fluids with this engaging and educational activity, which offers children the chance to experience them first-hand. Kids can knead, run on, hit with their fist or hammer and observe its physical properties!
Paper Rockets
Students work independently or in teams of two to design, assemble, and launch paper rockets with a teacher-built PVC pipe launcher. Students evaluate their designs before altering and rebuilding them to see how the changes affect how far their rocket travels.
Carefully fold one of the long sides into a triangle shape and draw two lines parallel to it that split it in half about five millimeters apart, these will become rocket fins.
Bend the top end of your rocket body into a cone shape and tape it securely shut. Be sure to seal all seams tightly using tape in order to prevent air escaping from seeping out through leaky spots.
Starch
Starch is a polysaccharide produced by plants and can be found primarily in cereal grains like wheat and maize as well as roots tubers and legumes. Starch molecules contain several reactive hydroxyl groups which can be modified chemically through hydrolysis, oxidation or esterification processes.
Students can explore both physical and chemical properties of starch with this straightforward chemistry experiment. Students can also make homemade ice packs from starch to keep hands warm during cold winter days.
Encourage your 8th grader to create their own chemical hand warmers using this simple chemistry project involving iodine and iron filings. This project serves as an excellent demonstration of oxidation’s role in helping fight off bacteria or microorganisms that might cause illness in their environment.
Solar Ovens
Solar ovens provide an engaging way for children to learn about renewable and non-renewable resources, solar energy and how heat travels, as well as how it can be used to cook food.
This science experiment can be used to demonstrate engineering design process. This project includes detailed instructions for creating a solar box cooker.
Use this science fair project to show how solar energy can be harnessed for cooking and heating. Solar power provides most of our planet’s energy source – and can also be harnessed to heat water or make s’mores!
Shampoo
Shampoo is a part of everyday life for many, yet many have questions as to whether it delivers what is promised. Students put shampoo to the test in this engaging science fair project!
Students research six brands of shampoo before conducting an experiment to measure its pH value and its effect on cooking oil using a handout for guidance.
Science fair projects for more squeamish students! Students don lab coats and use scalpels to dissect a flower, learning its intricate anatomy along the way. This project would make an excellent science fair entry in classes that enjoy gardening or horticulture!
Car Races
Young scientists can perform an intriguing experiment demonstrating which surfaces produce the greatest friction for an engaging physics science fair project, also learning chemistry and engineering along the way!
Plant enthusiasts and kids can learn the effects of different kinds of soil on plant growth with this science fair project idea. Water, other liquids, and different soil types on growth.
Engage forensic science through this project that explores fingerprints. Perfect for 8th grade science fair projects, this science fair project could inspire future detectives!
Learn all about DNA with this classic science fair project involving extracting it from onions! It will surely engage any middle schooler.