Winning tips: are you ready to present your science project?Are you ready to present your science project? Check out our Q&A for some fast tips! Your science project is practically finished. You've picked a topic, done your research, planned and executed your experiment, and written your research paper. The battle's almost over, right? Wrong! Whether you're competing in a science fair or displaying your project for a "Parents' Science Night" presentation plays an important role in making (or breaking) the grade. For advice on how to present your project, Science World interviewed "experts": Jenny Blickensderfer and Gretchen Vogt, students who recently received superior rankings for their projects in the Ohio State Academy of Science's State Science Day Fair; Jack Johnson Jack Johnson may refer to:
SW: In a science fair, judges spend about 10 minutes to check out student displays. What's the best way to catch their eye? Jack: Make the display as legible leg·i·ble adj. 1. Possible to read or decipher: legible handwriting. 2. Plainly discernible; apparent: legible weaknesses in character and disposition. as possible. Cut the wordy part to a minimum and use easy-to-read graphics. Dan: Clear headings like "Results" and "Conclusions" make the display easy to follow. Teresa: Support your display with photos, graphs, and data. Gretchen: To make the board eye-catching and clear, I used blue borders and black-on-white type. SW: The oral presentation is just as important as the display. How can you prepare to talk with the judges? Gretchen: I practice in front of my dog, the mirror, my friends, and anybody else willing to listen! At the fair, I pretended pre·tend·ed adj. 1. Not genuine or sincere; feigned: a pretended interest in the proceedings. 2. Supposed; alleged: the pretended heir to the throne. I was talking to Noun 1. talking to - a lengthy rebuke; "a good lecture was my father's idea of discipline"; "the teacher gave him a talking to" lecture, speech rebuke, reprehension, reprimand, reproof, reproval - an act or expression of criticism and censure; "he had to my parents to help me stay calm. Jenny: Don't read note cards word-for-word. Reading means you have less eye contact with the judges, and an interruption INTERRUPTION. The effect of some act or circumstance which stops the course of a prescription or act of limitation's. 2. Interruption of the use of a thing is natural or civil. can easily rattle you. Just touch on the main ideas to make your speech more interesting. Also, be loud, clear, and confident. Dan: Be ready to communicate an understanding of your project. SW: What if a judge asks you a question you can't answer? Teresa: We give our students a stock phrase when they don't know Don't know (DK, DKed) "Don't know the trade." A Street expression used whenever one party lacks knowledge of a trade or receives conflicting instructions from the other party. the answer to a judge's questions: "My research didn't give me that information, but I do know..." Gretchen: When that happens, stop and think of an answer. Jack: Be an expert on the subject matter. Many of the judges are science professionals who really know their stuff. SW: Any last-minute advice? Jenny: Be prepared to wait. Teresa: Show a personal interest--be animated, excited, and knowledgeable. Gretchen: Think of it as a performance. Jack: Have fun! |
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