An effective science fair project board can make or break your experiment. Don’t underestimate its significance! Investing the time in creating the perfect board is crucial!
Most projects will employ a tri-fold display board that unfolds to 36″ tall by 48″, so here are some tips for designing an outstanding science fair project board.
Layouts
Science fair participants must present an appealing and informative display to stand out among hundreds of competitors at science fair. A quality project board will allow the student to be memorable.
Photos and diagrams can help a science fair display communicate quickly and efficiently to its viewers, but should only be used sparingly to avoid cluttering up a science fair board too much. Furthermore, photos should come accompanied with summary captions so their viewers understand their content better.
Charts and graphs can also provide an effective means of communicating the details of a scientific project. When using these visual aids on a science fair board, make sure they are large enough to clearly depict all of the data represented by them.
Graphics
Science fair project displays should be both visually captivating and easy for people to read. Most readers tend to scan from left to right and top to bottom when reading posters; therefore it would be beneficial if your information were organized in this fashion.
Use graphs and diagrams to demonstrate your results. If displaying lots of data, consider creating an additional “buddy board”, which would display this data separately but remain prominently displayed within your main display.
Visual items may not be essential to every science fair project, but they can certainly add visual interest. Here, the student used images of actual popcorn kernels as well as an eye-catching 3D title to capture people’s attention and make his board even more memorable, showing his creativity and innovation.
Text
Students presenting science fair projects often need to prepare a display board in order to effectively communicate their work to an audience. An eye-catching title that accurately describes their project should be the focal point.
Creative, amusing or captivating titles will help the judges remain engaged with your board and its contents.
On a presentation, judges will want to hear details about your experiment, such as which hypothesis was tested and your conclusions. Before your speech, make sure to practice with someone and discuss every stage of the project together so they can ask any pertinent questions. Also keep a copy of your lab notebook handy.
Colors
Utilizing color to highlight different sections of a project can help the judges quickly locate its key components. For example, using colored paper borders around diagrams, graphs and tables of your project can make them stand out. Colored paper also works well as background material. Be wary of using too many vivid hues that could distract judges.
For example, this project board features an eye-catching dramatic header and is visually interesting. However, its simplicity still allows students’ work and papers to shine while popcorn kernals serve to draw in judges. When attaching items onto posters using glues such as rubber cement or Aleene’s white glue can prevent wrinkles when dry.
Images
Images and props can help make your project board visually appealing. This approach is particularly effective for models or other apparatus that can be displayed. Just be sure to ask your teacher first if the use of certain images or objects in your presentation is allowed.
Appointing the perfect name to your project is key, as it will either catch judges’ eyes or turn them away. Try coming up with something creative, funny or intriguing that describes what your project entails while drawing judges in.
This science fair board stands out from others with its large image background and unique header featuring actual popcorn kernels that is both visually appealing and informative.