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Sacramento
Regional Science & Engineering Fair
March 23-24,
2012
Rosemont High
School
Introduction
We welcome your
participation in the Sacramento Regional Science & Engineering Fair.
Each year, more than 300 students from the Sacramento Region compete
for awards, prizes and college scholarships.
Who Can
Participate in SRSEF?
Students in grades 6 through
12 are eligible to enter the Sacramento
Regional Science & Engineering Fair (SRSEF). The Fair serves
students in public, private and parochial schools in Sacramento, El
Dorado, Placer, San Joaquin, Yolo, Yuba, Sutter, Solano, and Amador
counties and is affiliated with the Intel International Science and
Engineering Fair (ISEF) and the California State Science Fair.
SRSEF complies with the Intel ISEF Rules for Pre-College Science
Research.
Senior Division:
Students in grades 9 through 12 are eligible to enter
individual or teams projects. Team projects may have a maximum of
three members.
Junior Division:
Students in grades 6 through 8 are eligible to enter
individual or team projects. Team projects may have a maximum of
three members.
Important
Dates and Deadlines
*How do I
know if my student’s project needs Pre-Approval by the Scientific
Review Committee (SRC)? Follow the simple instructions and guide at
the SRC section of the
website.
Resources for Parents
Science Buddies is here to help! From coming up with a
strong hypothesis to performing your tests to setting up your display
board, their
Project Guide is a step-by-step resource for participating in a
science fair.
Rules and Regulations
2010-11 Intel ISEF Student Handbook
2010-11 Intel ISEF Rules & Guidelines
Changes and Modifications for Intel ISEF 2010-11
Involved
Parents
Parents play
a vital role in their children's science education. If you think you
need to know a lot about science to help your children with their
science fair project, relax, because you don't! Offering support and
encouragement, proofreading research papers, and attending the
science fair are just a few ways you can make a difference.
To make
science a part of your family's everyday life:
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Don't start with science. Start with
your child's personal interests.
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Tie science into what they know—a
new movie, a favorite book, a hobby.
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Motivate your child by making
science fun.
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Discuss science news and issues at
dinner or breakfast.
Why Are
Science Fairs Important?
A science fair project can give
students the first chance to design his or her own learning
experience, one that allows him or her to innovate, just as
scientists do in the real world. Students will be able to explore
personal interests to select an area for his or her science fair
project, as well as learn the scientific method to answer a
question. Each student will also develop skills above and beyond
science proficiency, such as:
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Reading Comprehension and Writing:
Doing background research and writing a research paper
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Math: Creating graphs
and performing data analysis
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Time Management:
Planning a multi-step project
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Communication:
Presenting and explaining the science fair project
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Ethics Understanding:
Learning about plagiarism and the importance of credit and
citations
The Value of a Project
With the
jam-packed schedules of today's families, why would either a student
or a parent want to add one more major activity? Clearly, any school
project assigned to a student should meet a stringent test for
usefulness. Surprising to some, a science fair project is one of the
best learning experiences a student can undertake. And, if it is
taken seriously, it can be an excellent way to earn significant
prizes, qualify for scholarships, and distinguish a college
application.
Conceptually,
a science fair project is very straightforward. A student chooses a
scientific question he or she would like to answer. Then, library
and Internet research on the question give the student the
background information he or she needs to formulate a hypothesis and
design an experiment. After writing a report to summarize this
research, the student performs the experiment, draws his or her
conclusions, and presents the results to teachers and classmates
using a display board. Most students do their projects for a school
science fair, but in many cases, students can enter that same
project in fairs at the city or county level.
Colleges want
to see what students have done with the opportunities they had
available to them, and science competitions are a fantastic
opportunity. Typically, 2–4 percent of science fair entrants at the
high school level move on to the top level of science fair
competition, the Intel International Science and Engineering Fair (ISEF).
Highlights of a Project
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