An engaging science fair project can be an engaging way for your student to explore a topic from science. All experiments can be completed quickly with common household items.
Conduct an experiment that explores friction between interleaved books for an easy yet fun engineering challenge. Or use colored fire to see how different hues change its chemical makeup of materials.
Biology
8th grade biology science fair projects provide 8th graders with many opportunities for exploration. From conducting simple chemical experiments on food items like starch content analysis, to performing scientific lung capacity tests – there’s something here for those interested in food and health!
Others biology-related science fair projects could involve testing the pH level of local water sources and finding ways to filter or purify them, testing different liquids’ effect on pea plants’ growth, or using red onions and iodine to demonstrate cellular respiration.
An engaging solar oven project brings together science, engineering, and culinary arts in an engaging package. Kids will gain knowledge on heat transfer and energy as they experiment with creating their own recipes in an off-grid solar cooker. Students may also explore environmental chemistry through fertilizer runoff studies; and for something a bit different they could use oxidation to make chemical hand warmers and then compare their creations against store-bought versions!
Chemistry
8th grade students typically enjoy greater independence when selecting projects. This makes 8th grade an ideal time for them to explore chemistry experiments involving chemical reactions, isotopes and matter properties.
An acid-base experiment is a fun and easy way to demonstrate how different substances react, while 8th graders find exploration of DNA fascinating.
An air vortex project combines physics and chemistry by using everyday household items to make an air vortex, or another fun electrolysis-related experiment to demonstrate how water forms out of hydrogen and oxygen atoms. Challenge your students to engineer a device capable of holding two cups of water safely for five minutes in five minutes! It will push their creativity as well as engineering capabilities.
Physics
Selecting an engaging project for students will enable them to appear more passionate when discussing it at the science fair, and can keep them involved throughout its entirety. For instance, students interested in chemistry might enjoy exploring ways of changing fire colors using common items found at supermarkets.
If they are more drawn to science than art, they could use this project to demonstrate how different parachutes protect an egg while it drops from an elevated place. They could also use this project to demonstrate how solar energy helps cook food with a simple cardboard box solar oven.
Alternative projects could include developing a magnetic levitation kit to test how different materials affect magnets’ ability to hold objects, and devising a magnetic levitation kit in order to test how different soil types impact pH levels of water samples, determining earthworm chemical makeup and testing foods impacting electrolyte content, testing how different soil types impact water pH levels or using an acid rain simulator to monitor how acidity impacts statues and buildings; or testing out various ways of measuring force using Hooke’s Law.
Math
Science fairs provide 8th graders with an invaluable opportunity to practice using the scientific method, such as making observations, testing their hypotheses and providing evidence in support of their claims. Furthermore, students enhance their presentation skills when creating posters and discussing projects with judges.
This straightforward experiment helps students grasp the fundamentals of chemistry by showing how mixing dish soap with milk produces hydrophobic and hydrophilic molecules that chase each other across surfaces. Plus, it offers an exciting, delicious way to explore chemical reactions!
This project provides 8th graders with an outstanding opportunity to learn about the water cycle through biology and physics. Students can test water quality in their neighborhoods, swimming pools and homes using this simple kit with pH meter and other supplies. Students can demonstrate how plants seek sunlight by creating mazes to demonstrate this behavior while also learning if certain plants perform better under light or dark conditions.