K-12 Top 12 Free Science Fair Projects Websites

Top 12 sites for a terrific science fair project or experiment

Are you looking for science project ideas, plans and advice? Students will find hundreds of science fair projects, experiments, and help at these 12 free websites. Some help you find ideas. Some give you step-by-step instructions for conducting experiments. Some provide advice on creating projects -- including award-winning ones -- for science fairs. And some have help forums where you can get help when you're stuck. Many of these sites have videos to illustrate their experiments.

You may need more background in the topic area of your project. There are lots of free websites for that too. Scoot over to my website LearningReviews.com > Science and choose your topic area under the Science section.

Above all, have fun! There are so many free resources at your fingertips to help you.

Some of these sites have forums, which require registration with an email address. Children under age 13 need parent approval to register and submit questions to these forums.

#1 Science Buddies

Kenneth Lafferty Hess Family Charitable Foundation

I most often recommend Science Buddies to students and parents starting work on a science fair project. This is an award-winning site with several valuable resources.

First is the Project Ideas section where you can browse a list of projects by area of study. Or try the Topic Selection Wizard. You answer a series of questions about your science interests and grade level, then you get a list of potential projects.

The projects are very detailed. Each includes the background, questions to consider, a list of required supplies and equipment, and step-by-step instructions for the experimental procedure.

The next helpful resource is an extensive Science Fair Project Guide. Here you'll learn more about how to use the scientific method to build your project, how to write your report, and how to display your work. There is also advice on safety procedures, selecting supplies, and techniques.

Finally, you can go to the Ask an Expert Forum if you need more assistance. Look to see if another student has asked a similar question that answers yours. If you've been unable to resolve your problem with the help of a teacher or parent, this group of volunteer scientists will do their best to help you.

The Science Buddies site is easy to navigate. And and the extent of their resources is incomparable.

#2 Cool-Science-Projects.com

by Cool-Science-Projects.com

The folks at Cool-Science-Projects.com will walk you through all the steps of creating a science project. You'll find advice and resources for simpler projects for a homework assignment, as well as advice on creating show-stopper competition projects.

There are lots of ideas here by grade level. A few of the ideas have step-by-step instructions for carrying them out. The site's biggest strength is the section it devotes to advice on creating a winning science fair project.

#3 Steve Spangler's Science Experiments

by Steve Spangler

Steve Spangler's Science Experiments is a particularly useful website for science teachers and homeschool parents. Steve is a teacher's teacher who is televised weekly in Denver and who has appeared on nationally televised shows, demonstrating experiments and explaining the science behind them. He also conducts teacher training seminars throughout the country.

On this site, you can access his collection of science experiments, recipes and projects. His library of projects is accompanied by videos of how to use materials and equipment to conduct experiments. He also has an online store of supplies and equipment.

Steve's delight in science experiments is entertaining, and he'll get you and your kids excited about their experiments too!

#4 Reeko's Mad Scientist Lab

by Reeko

Reeko is passionate about science. His passion is contagious at Reeko's Mad Scientist Lab. Reeko takes a humorous and engaging approach to getting kids interested in science.

Reeko's focus is science experiments. He does not provide guidance for school science projects. But his experiments are a breeding ground for science project ideas.

This award-winning site has games, puzzles and quizzes. And there is a new forum where you can ask a question if you're having problems with your experiment or science in general.

#5 test toob

TestToob, Inc.

Test toob is a new experiment-sharing website for middle school (ages 13-17) students, teachers and parents. The site's objective is to encourage creativity and get kids excited about science.

You videotape your science experiment and upload it to the site. There you share it with students around the world to get their feedback and to learn from each other.

You need to register to access their resources. And registration requires approval of a parent.

#6 Science Fair Ideas Exchange

Bill Beaty of The Science Club

Science Fair Ideas Exchange provides dozens of ideas for projects and experiments. If you need more than written explanations and illustrations, look here.

Many projects are accompanied by a video that shows the key steps in creating your experiment or device. Projects are categorized as simple, medium and advanced.

Some of the video-taped experiments are hazardous, and should be supervised by an adult or conducted only by science teachers.

Take a break for experiment identification

Steve Spangler Science 2007 Highlights

Short clips from a few of Steve Spangler's television appearances in 2007.

Runtime: 2:15
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#7 Science Fair Information

by Make It Solar

The Make It Solar Science Fair Information provides detailed information on carrying out a project using the scientific method and steps illustrated here. For teachers who have a website, Make It Solar provides the code to put the illustration at the right into your site with a link to its science fair info.

You'll also find planning guides, research tips, illustrations of display layouts. The site's focus is solar energy, so they furnish details on how to create several solar energy science projects.

#8 MadSci Network

by MadSci Network & Third Sector New England

MadSci Network is a great place to get answers to your science questions. Their extensive Q&A archive can help you as you build your project.

The MadSci Library provides links to other resources by topic area. Look for answers to common science fair questions at the MadSci FAQ page.

If you can't find an answer in their archives of past questions, submit your own question.

#9 ZOOMsci

by PBS Kids & WGBH

ZOOMsci has dozens of science activities for children in grades K-8. The emphasis is on having fun with science experiments, as opposed to a rigorous scientific method.

Pick an activity, carry it out, then record your observations and comments on the ZOOMsci site. Personally identifiable information is not collected here.

#10 Scientific Methods at pppst.com

by Mr. Donn

Teachers and homeschool parents can make use of the resources for elementary and middle school students at Scientific Methods at pppst.com. There are presentations to use when teaching the scientific method, as well as printable materials.

For kids, there are links numerous resources to help them learn and remember the steps contained in the scientific method.

One of Mr. Donn's greatest strengths is that his material is readable at the upper elementary age level. So adults don't have to do a lot of interpretation.

#11 Hands-on Activities

by Exploratorium

At Exploratorium's Hands-on Activities page, you'll find lots of ideas for experiments and science projects. Activities are grouped by topic such as food, living things, or sports science.

Each activity provides a list of needed materials and step-by-step instructions. Illustrations and photos accompany the instructions. A few even have videos.

Note that some of the activities are not true "activities" but rather information on how something, like cycling, works.

If you are making a model of the solar system to scale, you have to take a look at the Build a Solar System activity. There is a scale calculator that uses the diameter of the sun you plan to create to calculate the dimensions for all of the planets and orbit radius of each planet.

#12 Step-by-Step Science Fair Success

by Lily Ning, middle school science teacher

Step-by-Step Science Fair Success is a guide for teachers and schools to use in planning a science fair. Ning discusses:

Preplanning, sending out letters, and rules for group projects
Creating guidelines, submission categories, and scientific methodology to be used
Student tasks in proposing, planning, carrying out, and displaying project results
Assessment using a rubric and grading sheets for the notebook, paper, and display
Judging rubric