Every year when the science fair rolls around our family groans. 3 out of 4 of our kids would love to win, the 1 child just wants to get it done so he doesn't fail.
CREED'S PROJECT
Creed's original idea was to do a "myth busters" type deal. He asked his father if they could shoot a gun into the water to see how far the bullet travels. That was probably 45 days before the project was due. Barry agreed. Time passed on and the day before the project was due arrived. We were so very busy by then with guest ranch guests that the gun shooting never happened. Barry explained to Creed he would go down and talk to his teacher and tell her it was his fault the project never happened. Creed looked at him with those big brown eyes, holding back tears and said, "It's okay, I'll just get an F." Is your heart breaking yet? DANG IT!
So at about 7:30 p.m. they came up with this idea:
PROBLEM: What metal will hold it's heat the longest.
HYPETHESIS: I thought the steel nut would sink further because of it's higher weight (density).
PROCEDURE: I heated the metal in the oven for 10 minutes at 350 degrees. Then my dad carefully placed the on a block of wax to measure the heat retention of the pieces.
VARIABLES: The weight of each piece was 40 - 45 grams. They had a slight difference in shape.
RESULTS: My hypothesis was correct. The steel held the heat longer than the copper or brass. The copper cooled the quickest.
SIERRA'S PROJECT
Watch What You Eat!
HYPOTHESIS: I think that Junkfood Jamie will gain the most weight. I also think Soda Sally will gain more weight than Healthy Heather but less than Junkfood Jamie.
PROBLEM: Can eating junk food or drinking soda every day affect your weight?
PURPOSE: The purpose of my project is to show how important it is to watch what you eat. 7 out of 10 Americans are overweight or obese. And 1 out of 3 children are considered overweight or obese.
PROCEDURE: Everyday I feed Healthy Heather the recommended rat diet (3 pellets) and on occasion I gave her a vegetable or a piece of fruit. Every once in a while I did give her a treat like a nut or cheetos.
For the first half I gave Junkfood Jaime 3 pellets of rat food and various junk food treats with occasional soda. The second half I gave her 2 pellets of rat food and to give her various junk food treats, all she could eat or wanted.
Everyday I gave Soda Sally 3 pellets of rat food and approx. 1/4 cup of various non-diet sodas a day.
Different Behaviors
I noticed that Soda Sally would push her shavings into a big pile after I started giving her soda. Junkfood Jamie started exhibiting the same behavior but not as extreme. Heather Healthy did not.
I also noticed that Soda Sally and Junkfood Jamie chewed on their chew toys a lot after changing their diets. Healthy Heather did not.
Soda Sally's
Junkfood Jamie's
Healthy Heather's
RESULTS: Junkfood Jamie gained the most weight, Soda Sally came in second and Healthy Heather pretty much stayed the same.
Healthy Heather had a 4% gain
Soda Sally had a 48% gain
Junkfood Jamie had a 66% gain
This was done over a 30 day period.
CONCLUSION: In conclusion my hypothesis was correct, Junkfood Jamie did gain the most weight. I learned that we should not eat too many sweets or junk food on a daily basis because it can cause you to gain weight. And if may give you attention problems,the rats did show signs of hyper and neurotic behaviors (Soda Sally) along with laziness (Junkfood Jamie).
To stay healthy we must eat a well balanced diet but it is okay to have some treats in moderation from time to time.
Sierra received 1st place in her class and overall winner of the elementary school.
She and Creed will be going to the District Science fair in May.
CODY'S PROJECT
Cody worked on his project for many many days...or maybe not many days. :) His project was to see if you can taste things if you nose it plugged. I think the conclusion was not too many people can.
CAMERON'S PROJECT
Cameron's project was to see if school lunch was meeting the kids health needs. The answer was yes and no... got an 80% on his project. He weighed the school lunch and compared his for quite a while. Still trying to figure out the B grade.
