Engineering design worksheet for a science fair
Building something and making it better? An engineering project has a design goal instead of a hypothesis. Here are the two sheets.
My engineering project
Name ________________________ Fair day ______________
The problem
My design must ______________________________________________
Design goal (how I'll know it works)
It works if it ______________________________________________ (a number I can measure)
Materials and limits
I can use ____________________________ Size or time limit ______________
Three designs, sketched before I build
Testing and improving
What I measure: ______________________ Unit: __________
| Design | Try 1 | Try 2 | Try 3 | Mean | What I'll change next |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Design 1 | |||||
| Design 2 | |||||
| Design 3 |
My best design, and why
Design ____ worked best, because its mean was ________ and ______________________________
Next time I would ______________________________________________________________
My board, in this order
- The problem
- Design goal
- Materials and limits
- Designs I tried
- Test results
- Best design and why
The engineering design process, step by step
- Ask. What problem am I solving? What must my design do, and what are the limits (materials, size, time)?
- Imagine. Sketch three different designs before building any of them.
- Build. Build the first design, using only the materials on the list.
- Test. Test it three times the same way, and write every number down.
- Improve. Change one thing at a time, build the next design and test it again.
- Share. Say which design worked best, show the numbers that prove it, and what you'd change next.
Science project or engineering project?
A science project asks a question about the world and tests a hypothesis: does a steeper ramp make the car go farther? An engineering project solves a problem by building something and making it better: which bridge design holds the most pennies, and how can I make it hold more? Many fairs take both, and judge them a little differently: an engineering entry is judged on its design goal, the designs it tried and how the tests made it better. The board's six places stay the same; the design goal goes where the hypothesis would, and the designs you tried go where the steps would.
Projects that work as engineering entries
- ⛵ Which boat shape carries the most pennies? (1st–5th)
- 🥤 Does a wider base keep a cup tower from tipping? (2nd–8th)
- 🌉 Which paper bridge shape holds the most coins? (2nd–7th)
- 🏛️ Which paper column shape holds the most books? (3rd–8th)
- 🚁 Do longer blades make a spinner fall slower? (3rd–8th)
- 🎯 Does a longer arm make a catapult throw farther? (3rd–8th)
- 🚀 Does a pointed nose make a straw rocket fly farther? (3rd–7th)
- 🛩️ Do bigger hoops make a straw glider fly farther? (3rd–8th)
- 🪂 Does a bigger parachute fall slower? (3rd–8th)
- 🥚 Which padding keeps a dropped egg from cracking? (3rd–8th)
- 🪂 Which material makes the slowest parachute? (4th–8th)
Each one already has its steps, materials and a results table. Use it as your first design, then improve: a wider base, a different fold, more padding, a longer arm. For 6th to 8th grade, test at least three designs three times each, and say which change made the biggest difference. The guide Engineering projects: design, build, test, improve walks one through with a design goal and three designs.
👨👩👧 For grown-ups and teachers: how much to help, the safety rules, and running a school fair. Science fair v0.16.1 · Checked .