sciberpalooza :: Scoop

What is an outstanding science fair project?

One that shows that science is built layer by layer. Have you done background research? Do you understand the results you got?
One that uses the scientific method well. Do you understand the concepts of "controls" and "variables"?
One that displays the meaning of science. Does your project explain why or how something happened?

Who can enter sciberpalooza! ?

Only students whose parents have submitted a parental consent form, and only 6th grade students at public or private non- profit 501 (c) (3) schools in California.

What’s the scoop on sciberpalooza! ?

sciberpalooza! is just like a science fair at your school.

Once your parents have provided consent you are ready to submit a sciberpalooza! entry form. You’ll answer some questions about yourself, your school and your adult “guide” and then answer some questions about your project—just as you would answer questions asked by a judge, in person.

And here is the fun part: you’ll record a video of yourself (not longer than four minutes) explaining your project, as you would if you were presenting the project before your class or to your teacher or to a science fair judge. You’ll upload the video to YouTube and submit your entry form. Our judges will review each submission, and each video, and choose up to 15 "Best of sciberpalooza!" winners.

What’s the scoop about my video?

It’s a piece of cake. Get a camera and cover the key points (see “What do I say in the video?” below). You can use any type of camera or recorder. You can read the questions (but not the answers) from a piece of paper, or you can have a friend, parent or teacher ask you the questions, just as in the sample video we’ve provided.

THIS IS IMPORTANT: With your board in plain view, make concise statements about your project. Discuss your hypothesis, experiment, variables, data and conclusions. THE JUDGES WILL WANT TO SEE YOUR DATA, so be sure to zoom in on your charts or graphs.

The video can be no longer than four minutes. Be sure that the audio is clear so the judges can hear your presentation.

Do I need my parent’s permission to participate in sciberpalooza! ?

Yes absolutely! Before you can submit an entry to sciberpalooza!, your parent must provide permission.

What projects are not allowed in sciberpalooza! ?

Projects involving human subjects and other vertebrate animals, including projects involving behavioral data, are PROHIBITED and will not be accepted for entry in sciberpalooza!

What do I say in the video?

Here are the key points:

Tell us your first name (do not include your last name or your school).
What led you to choose this topic?
What is your hypothesis (or question) that you are examining?
Tell us about your experiment and the data you collected.
Show and tell us about any of your charts or graphs (have the camera zoom in on them)
Did your experiment work?
What did you learn?
What could you do to improve the experiment?

Sample Video Below:

How do I get my video on YouTube?

Click the Upload link at the top of any YouTube page.
Click the "Browse" button to browse for the video file you'd like to upload to our site. Select the file you want to upload.
Click the 'Upload Video' button to start the uploading process.
As the video file is uploading, enter as much information about your video as possible in the relevant fields (including Title, Description, Tags, and Category). You're not required to provide specific information, but the more information you include, the easier it is for users to find your video!
Click the 'Save changes' button to save the updates you've made to the video file.

Please note: your video must meet our uploading requirements: no larger than 2GB and no more than four minutes in length. If your video does not meet these requirements you will need to re-edit the video file on your computer and then upload the new file to our site.

Have more than one video file to upload?

Not a problem! You can upload up to 10 video files in a single uploading session.

Is there a checklist that lists the steps to enter sciberpalooza!

Right here!

Be a 6th grade student at a public or private non-profit 501 (c) (3) school in California.
Have your parent submit a sciberpalooza! Parental Consent Form
Decide who your “adult guide” will be (probably either a parent or teacher)
Record your video
Fill out the sciberpalooza! entry form
Submit the form and upload your video to YouTube.
Congratulations! Now sit back and let the judges do their work.