Middle School (Grades 7 – 8, Some Grade 6) Project Information

The Alaska Science & Engineering Fair (ASEF) is open to all middle school students from all places in Alaska.

 

6th Grade Students

6th grade students may either enter as a middle school project or an elementary school project. Middle school projects are often eligible for more special category awards, however the rules and judging rubric are stricter than for elementary school projects. Help for 6th grade registration choice 

Paperwork Info

Middle school students do not have the same paperwork requirements as high school students and no paperwork is required; however, it is strongly recommended that teachers have the students fill out the forms Checklist for Adult Sponsor (1), Student Checklist/Research Plan (1A), and Approval form (1B). To enter the optional Abstract contest, upload a copy of the Abstract form on the zFairs paperwork tab.

Click here to see Middle School forms and schedules

Avoid These Experiment Types

Experimentation involving the following are strongly DISCOURAGED:

• nonhuman vertebrate animals
• controlled substances
• pathogens (all bacteria isolated from the environment are considered pathogenic)
• DNA
• animal tissues
• humans

If you have questions about the appropriateness of an experiment, please contact us. 

Resources

Please see the following resources:

• Middle School Project Checklist
• Judging Guidelines and Evaluation Rubric

Click here to see required Middle School forms and schedules

 

Prepare for your project’s safety check! When you set up your project at Registration, it must have a safety inspection. These pages extracted from the Safety Inspector Training slide show (1.3MB PDF) describe items that may not be on your project display.

You can use items such as glass tubing, vinegar, and plant soil during your research, but please don’t bring such items to the science fair. Take pictures of them! Put the pictures on your display.

Do you need these “unsafe” items at the science fair? No! Do your project ahead of time. At the science fair, describe what you did. The judges care that you can express your understanding of your project; they do not need you to reproduce the work in front of them.

Objects like these belong in a picture on your display board. Do not bring them to the science fair.