Most students in 8th grade science fair projects get their first taste of real research projects when creating 8th grade science fair projects. Students select a scientific question, conduct library/Internet research, and plan an experiment before entering it in the fair.
Discover what makes a balloon remain buoyant when exposed to flame in this exciting experiment, which also serves to introduce students to physics. They can test out various temperature effects on soap bubbles as well as create their own teleidoscope!
Rube Goldberg Machine
Rube Goldberg machines, named for cartoonist Rube Goldberg, use deliberately overcomplicated designs to solve simple tasks in an entertaining and educational way. In particular, these devises provide valuable lessons about energy transference as well as gravity, momentum, and friction physics concepts.
Get students involved by assigning them tasks, then breaking them up into groups. Have each group design its machine on paper before adding one step at a time during class periods.
Groups should present their machine to the class and create a video showing its operation.
UV Beads
UV Beads transform from white to vibrant colors when exposed to sunlight or other ultraviolet (UV) sources, becoming wearable bracelets, zipper pulls, and other wearables to teach students about UV radiation’s harmful effects on living tissue.
Like human skin, beads change color quickly when exposed to UV light sources – alerting students of potential sun damage before it happens. They also react positively with most classroom UV lights sources.
Optical Illusions
Optic illusions aren’t simply entertaining; they can also teach us a great deal about our brain and visual system.
One such illusion is the Hermann grid illusion. Although at first glance it appears as an ordinary black and white grid, when examined closely you will detect dark dots near its intersections as your visual system processes information related to colors that contrast each other.
Other optical illusions distort length, position and curvature – such as the floating ship illusion which recently went viral.
Plants to the Beat
Students can witness plants grow and move to various types of music with this engaging experiment, learning plant biology as well as music and sound science in the process.
Students participating in this project will explore how stress affects body temperature or the effects of fertilizer runoff on plants, and gain an appreciation of how environmental issues can be solved through simple engineering and chemistry techniques as well as tie-in math and social studies coursework.
Tracking Animals
Tracking animals teaches children about them while developing analytical, spatial and symbolic thinking abilities. You can do it at home by scanning your yard for animal signs or at nearby parks and forests.
An effective starting point would be studying the prints of mammals (cats, dogs & deer). Once comfortable with mammals, move onto birds, amphibians or reptiles.
Use a book such as “Animal Skulls of North America” to identify species based on their distinctive features.
Nitrogen-Fixing Plants
Nitrogen is an essential nutrient for plants. Unfortunately, most can’t access nitrogen naturally in their environment and must rely on fertilizers as an external source. Some legumes (beans, peas and clover) form nodules with bacteria that fix nitrogen into nodules in order to access this essential resource.
Other nitrogen fixing plants that make great companions for food crops and forest gardens and permaculture landscapes include ceanothus, lupine, deerweed and California peashrub – native species such as ceanothus, lupine, deerweed and California peashrub can help provide much-needed nitrogen fixes in an ecological manner. As cover crop options in food production fields or with the chop-and-drop method of mulching (see Martin Crawford’s book “Creating a Forest Garden”) these native varieties provide ample nitrogen fixes in this aspect as companion plants for companion food crops while adding depth and diversity to these areas – perfect for forest gardens or permaculture landscapes!
Fingerprinting
Students can discover fingerprinting through this simple project, which can be completed in class using only an available kit. Not only will students gain experience fingerprinting but it will also teach about science, biology and data analysis.
Discover a piece of copper pipe with some neodymium magnets that fit through it, then have your 8th grader use this system to test if certain factors affect reaction times — for instance hunger/fullness levels and using their dominant hand as examples.
Flame-Resistant Balloons
Students participating in this exciting experiment will defy logic and successfully hold a flame to a balloon without it popping. Thanks to thermal conduction – the ability of materials to transfer heat from hotter surfaces to cooler surfaces – they will demonstrate its effectivity and discover an unexpected way of holding onto flame without it going out!
Balloons are typically constructed out of rubber, which is highly susceptible to heat. When filled with water, however, the balloon is better protected from being burned as its surface absorbs some of the heat produced by flame.
Garbage-Growing Plants
Use of trash to grow plants is a fun and educational way to teach kids where food comes from. “Garbage,” in this case, means the discarded roots, pits and seeds that would otherwise end up in landfills. Potting soil or soilless mix may serve as the ideal growing medium – hollowed-out carrots with pea gravel added can become flowering centerpieces; celery can even be coaxed into producing long fern-like stalks!