Winning Science Projects – A Straight Flush
We’ve got a lot of winning science projects in our collection of guides. One of our favorite winners is A Straight Flush. This experiment compares the biodegradability of different types of bathroom tissue, and can be classified as a consumer or and environmental science project. 
Some students choose to compare brands of tissue, and others choose to compare types – like one or two ply, scented or non, or pre-moistened. To do this project, you need tissue samples, a scale with close tolerances (that means it shows the weight in very small increments – like ounces or milligrams), jars, water, and a screen. We used the scale at the post office, and yes, we did get some funny looks weighing toilet paper tissue. You could possibly also use the scale at the grocery store or pharmacist if you ask nicely and flash a winning smile.
To do this, you weigh the tissue samples, soak them in water for a period of time, ‘flush’ them through a funnel, let the non-flushed tissue dry, then compare the weight of the pre-soaked tissue to the post-soaked tissue. It’s a very easy and inexpensive project to do. It’s fun and you’ll learn a lot. And, yes, it has been a winner at the science fair!
To get step by step instructions for this experiment – plus reference materials and pre-formatted graphs/charts, get our package of science project guides. Our guides can’t guarantee you’ll win at the science fair, but if you ask us – any time you learn something and learn to love science more – you have a winning science project!
PS Note that this is a 24 Hour Science Project. Get yours now here, and be finished by this time tomorrow!
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Comments
Actually, we have 20 different projects 
, but your question is very valid. Our project guides are not designed to make teachers think the ideas are unique to their students. The guides were all designed with the help and input of teachers and scientists.
Designing an experiment is not easy. Deciding on variables, determining a control, figuring out a way to quantify results – these are just the beginning of the advanced skills that must be learned over time. In most instances, expecting a fourth grader (or a fourth grader’s parent!) to be able to do this is unrealistic. The teachers we worked with on our science guides (and our sons’ teachers) usually provide a variety of resources from which students can get their experiment ideas. They send the kids home with a list of starter ideas, post links on their webpages, and set aside carts of science project books at the library. Our guides are another resource.
They provide a skeleton – a blueprint – of the scientific process, so the student has some guidance on where to start. In our experiences with our boys and our friends, and from the stories we hear from teachers, kids and parents often get so bogged down in the process of creating a science project, that by the time they get around to the fun of experimentation, they are discouraged, rushed, and just ready to get it over with. Our guides are designed to give students and parents a good experience with science, so that they learn to love science as the fascinating subject that it is.
With how popular “4th Grade Science Fair”s seem to be, don’t you think teachers catch-on to 5 different projects (many variations) all with the same style and perfectly answered questions? I’ll admit it sounds like a good idea but it makes me wonder if it’s cheating?