One of the most common pitfalls of starting with a science project is that you are not specific enough about exactly what it is that you wish to do. When you decide to plant trees in your garden, do you say to yourself  “I’ll plant a few fruit trees in my garden” or “I’ll plant one banana tree in the rear garden, one orange tree in the area below my bedroom window and one apricot tree near the gate”?

See what I’m getting at? If you know you what you want you can get it faster. Suppose you went to buy tree saplings and at the nursery the gardener asked you what plant you wanted how would you respond? If you were not specific about the trees you wanted before you went to buy them, you would waste time.

You would look at what all was available and wonder what would look good in the garden at home. Naturally you would still get the same trees you wanted, but the process would take much longer. This is because in the first instance you were not specific about exactly what you wanted.

It is the same with any science project that you may undertake. The more specific you are the easier it is for you to implement your idea and make the project. This is why you must have an eye for details. When you get a fledgling idea, whet it out for all the details that you can think of. That way you will save time at a later date. Besides the project will flow faster as well.

One of the easiest ways to learn more about how things around us work is by experimenting with them. What do you do when you get a new toy? You try to see what it can do. What do the buttons on it make it do? Does it have flashing lights? Can it make interesting sounds? As you explore your toy you learn all that it is capable of.

Learning about science is a similar process. You hear about a scientific principle or fact. May be something as simple as the principle of heat. Do you take it for granted when your Mom tells you that the cup of milk is hot? No you don’t. You will immediately touch the cup to check just how hot it is. That’s part of the scientific exploration of the principle of heat.

Next you check if the temperature has gone down by blowing on the milk in the cup. If the steam that emerges is not too hot, you will venture forth to take a little sip of the milk.  If that sip seems cool enough, the next sip will be bigger. In this way the hot cup of milk has been consumed without blistering your toungue.

Picking a science project topic is also similar. You go with little steps along the way till you get a good idea. Then you choose the right path to go down with that idea. And then bit by bit your science project comes to life. So start off with any ideas you have and explore them to see just how they work out for you.

I was about three years old when I first remember handling a magnet. The two long magnets that would attract and repel at opposite ends were fascinating. I knew nothing about the north pole and south pole on a magnet at that time. I was just delighted that I could make one magnet move without even touching it by merely bring the second one close to it.

As I grew up and studied the principles behind the phenomena the mystery diminished some what about the magnets, but the fascination did not. I still love to play with magnets if I have the time. They come in so many different shapes and sizes. Be they round or rectangular, all I need is a set of iron filings around so make a game out of them.

There are so many easy and simple games that you can play. You can even convert it into a science project. Trying to see how many pins you can attach to the end of a magnetized pin is great fun. And if you use magnets of different shapes ans sizes you will be able to get enough statistical data to actually make a science project out of your playful experiments.

Magnets are a great base to make a science fair project. They are not very expensive, are easily available and can contribute to many safe experiments. Use your magnets in this project on Electromagnetism to prove that there’s more to the magnet than just fun and games.

Do you think revolving restaurants are clever? Have you ever been to one? Just imagine you sit down to your meal facing one direction and by the time its over you are facing a different one. Considering that most of them are constructed at a certain height and have glass windows all around the experience can be fun. They too can be inspiration for a science project.

Guess what that’s got to do with Emperor Nero? Yes the Roman Emperor most famous for fiddling while Rome burnt. Recently archeological evidence has turned up at a dig on top of Palatine Hill that might suggest that Emperor Nero was the founder of the revolving restaurant. The dig at his banquest hall has thrown up the foundation room, and the mechanism for rotating the area, besides parts of the royal kitchen.

The rotating space built to impress the Emperor’s guests was to imitate the Earth’s movement. It is believed to have rotated constantly, night and day. That has to be the best science project that the Emperor Nero undertook. Naturally he had the resources and help to make it possible at that large a scale.

Even if you can’t make a science experiment that makes your room rotate, there are others that you can do using the same principle. If you are stuck for ideas feel free to check out some here. I’m sure you’ll find something to your liking. Even if it isn’t quite as grand as the science project that Emperor Nero constructed!

“Twinkle Twinkle Little Star” is amongst the first few nursery rhymes that we learn. There is a fascination with the night sky for all children. Not many get scared when they are preschoolers, its only the human influence that teaches them to be scared of the dark later. Then again that phase passes by and another fascination with the heavenly objects begins.

Space travel, science fiction and astronomy are all efforts to try and understand our place in the universe a bit better. There is a reason why children want to be astronauts and join NASA. It comes from the urge to understand where we have come from, so that we can better know where we are to go. Also the state of the art gadgets are great fun to play with.

Even if you are being home schooled by your parent or guardian, it is still possible to undertake interesting science projects on the subject of astronomy. The stars and constellations visible by the naked eye can contribute to a perfectly satisfactory sicnec project. Although if you do have a telescope the scope of your study of the stars will leap into another dimension.

When you gaze up into the magical and twinkling lights in the sky at night, what do you really see? Even if you don’t have a telescope you can use a regualr pair of bird watching binoculars to get a closer look at the mystical night sky. Here’s an article that will help you do more with your binoculars.

There are a number of science projects that can be easily done at home by homeschoolers. The fact that there is no formal science laboratory at home can actually help you get more creative with your science experiments. After all the application of science is not limited to the limited area in the science laboratory at school.

Just as sure as there is oxygen in the air everywhere, there is science all around us. All you need to do is tap into that deep resevoir and find the best way to make use of your resources. In fact there are any number of cool science projects that you can do at home, which you may not be able to do in school. Ones involving a microwave oven for instance.

A word of caution here, when you do science experiments around the home you must have a parent around. An adult at hand can tell you what things may be potentially dangerous. So do make sure that you inform them about your science expereimentation beforehand. In fact it would make sense to include them in your plans so that you can do more complex experiments.

If you are looking for ideas for homeschool science projects take a look at this article here. It will help you have some fun based on G-Force which is the gravitational force experienced by professionals such as astronaughts and formula one race car drivers. You can even develop your own home made accelerometer. Make sure you check it out and have fun.

Thinking of science projects? Think of making up something yummy to eat. No I’ve not lost it! Who says science experiments can’t be eaten? I know not all of them can be eaten! Naturally a set of circuits and wires can surely not be eaten, but how about making your own ice cream as part of a science project. Naturally you get to eat that!

In a way when you think about it cooking is also merely experimenting. Add a little heat and the food changes form to get cooked. Think of how you make pop corn? Isn’t that a science experiment dealing with heat and pressure? Sure it is and its results are wholly edible. After all we have eaten pop corn and its many variations.

Those too are mere experiments on the same theme using heat and pressure. It was first butter pop corn and then caramel pop corn and even chocolate pop corn. All these variations are a result of experiments. So you can eat your experiments as long as the material you use for them is consumable.

Here the experiment on ice cream that you will love to do and the result that you will love to eat. Just make sure that your parents are around and approve. There is a possiblility that the experiment may go wrong, so make sure that you don’t eat it then. In any case there is any number of edible experiments waiting to be done. Get creative.

While some students like to go into meticulous detail while researching their science fair projects, the majority will be happy to do a quick and easy project. Fortunately there is no shortage of these science projects to go around. You can do a quick study about any gadget and have a science project ready.

For instance take the microwave oven. It is present in each home and so availability is not a problem. There is a considerable amount of theory behind its functioning which can make an interesting science project.The whole range of radioactive waves can be used in the project. A comparative study would be easy and quick to do.

Or if you prefer something more interactive you can use the microwave  oven to heat various fluids.  Here’s a project that you can do. Take the same amount of different fluids and then heat it for the same duration. Now measure the temperatures of the fluids. Do a comparative study of which fluids heated up faster. Now try and trace the reason why this happens.

The whole experiment will not take you more than a couple of hours. Add a couple more to do the project report and your whole science fair project is done with no hassles in under five hours. Here is an interesting and quick project on Paper Chromatography. Again it is a quick one to do. You may choose to do this one instead of the microwave oven one. Or you can choose to do an experiment all your own. Just have fun doing it and it will turn out grand.

There are any number of science projects possible. After all each part of the world has been examined by a scientific principle. So there are many potential science fair projects hiding in the world. All you need to do is ferret them out and use them. Here are a few topics that you can use.

Earth and the Universe : The solar system is not the only project that you can make here. While it may be the most common. Think big and try out a galaxy for size. Or limit yourself to Sol, the star we call our sun. There are enough facts that the sun generates to make a full science project on.

Insects and Animals : In this day and age there is considerable interest in nature and conserving it. There are many insects and animals which are endangered. A study of a few select ones could also make a good project for the science fair.

Human Body : There is so much still being discovered about the Human Body and its functions. Each year new research is done by scientists and new medicines and treatment techniques are discovered. Even the study of a single organ of the human body in detail will have you submit a great science project.

Plants : There are some similarities and many differences between the plant and animal kingdom. Just exploring these would give you a great project. Make sure you have a focus in your research or you will be inundated with data and not know what to do with it.

There is so much you can do for a science project. All you need to do is head in a direction that interests you. Then find what you want to do there. Here’s another article that you might find informative. It will help you narrow down your search for the ideal project.

Making a mess and learning science often go together. Unless you create a mess  you will never learn what works well and what does not. The trick is not to get scared when you make a mess. Also it helps if you limit making a mess to a single room, so that your mother doesn’t get too tired picking up after you. And if you help tidy up the mess as soon as you’ve made it, I’m sure she would not mind you making another one.

The truth is that is is fun doing science experiments which may turn out messy. Not for nothing are the jokes about explosions in chemistry labs funny. Remember how often Archie Andrews gets into trouble over his science projects with Professor Flutesnoot? It is his messy experiments that teach him what he should not do the next time. Not that making explosions is the ideal way to learn chemistry.

If you are likely to do an experiment which has a chemical component, do make sure that there is an adult supervisor present. And make sure that potentially hazzardous experiments are only done in the presence of adequate safety precasutions. Unlike Archie Andrews you will not suddenly heal up in the next picture.  So remember safety first and if possible no dangerous  chemicals.

Given here is an experiment that will be fun and can be messy too. Best of all its about something that all of us find fascinating…Rockets! So take a look at this potential science project idea and see how much fun you can have with it.