Science fair rubrics by grade: a K–2 poster, a 3–5 project and a 6–8 experiment

1 Four rubrics, and what each one is for

There are four science rubrics on the rubric pages, each written in three grade bands. They overlap, but each one scores a different kind of work.

• [Science fair project](/rubric/science-fair-project): the whole fair entry: the question, the plan for the test, the data, the conclusion, the display board and the talk to the judges. This is the judges' sheet.
• [Science project](/rubric/science-project): a project or model that shows a science idea, such as a model of the water cycle. It scores the idea, the model, the explanation, safety and the finished work.
• [Science experiment](/rubric/science-experiment): a hands-on experiment done in class, scored while you walk the room: the question or hypothesis, the procedure and safety, the observations or data, and the conclusion.
• [Poster](/rubric/poster): an informational poster: the title and main idea, the facts, the pictures and labels, and neat work.

Every rubric uses the same three bands. K–2 has three levels, Wow!, Yes and Not yet, with no points by default. Grades 3–5 and 6–8 have four levels, Exceeds, Meets, Approaching and Beginning, worth 4, 3, 2 and 1 points, with one row that counts twice. Each row also has an "I can" line in a student's voice, which prints on its own as a checklist.

The pairing in this guide is a starting point, not a rule. A 4th-grade class doing a true fair-test experiment should use the experiment or fair project rubric, and a 7th grader building a model belongs on the project rubric.

2 K–2: the poster rubric

For the youngest scientists, the board or poster is the project. Most K–2 science fair entries are a question, a simple test done with a grown-up, and a poster that shows what happened. The poster rubric's K–2 band has four short rows a child can follow when you read them aloud:

• Big title: "I can give my poster a big title." Wow! is a big, easy-to-read title that tells the topic.
• My facts: "I can put true facts on my poster." Wow! is three or more true facts; Yes is two.
• Pictures and labels: "I can add pictures with labels." Wow! is pictures that match the facts, all labeled.
• Neat work: "I can make my poster neat and colorful."

The poster rubric checks the poster but not the science behind it. For a fair entry, pair it with the K–2 band of the science fair project rubric, whose five rows are written in the same plain words: My question ("I can ask a question I can test"), My test, What I found, My board and Talking to judges.

3 3–5: the science project rubric

In grades 3 to 5, students are ready to show they understand a science idea, not just a fact. The science project rubric's 3–5 band has five rows, with the science idea counting twice, for 24 points in all:

• Science idea (counts twice): Exceeds shows an accurate idea and explains the cause behind it in the student's own words.
• Model or display: Exceeds matches the real thing in important ways, with every part labeled.
• Explanation: Exceeds uses science words correctly and tells how the model differs from the real thing.
• Safety and care: Exceeds follows the safety steps the teacher gave without reminders and helps others do the same.
• Finished work: Exceeds is complete, sturdy and neat, with a clear title, turned in on time.

If your 3–5 fair asks for a real test instead of a model, use the 3–5 band of the science fair project rubric. It is also 24 points, five rows, with the data counting twice: Question and prediction, Fair test (changes one thing, keeps the rest the same, repeats the test at least three times), Data in a table and a labeled graph, Conclusion, and Board and talk.

The fair test row is where most 3–5 projects win or lose points. Teach "change one thing" before projects go home, with a quick class test such as which paper towel soaks up the most water.

4 6–8: the science experiment rubric

Middle school students should design and run a controlled experiment, and the rubric should ask for the language of one. The science experiment rubric's 6–8 band is 24 points, five rows, with the data counting twice:

• Hypothesis: Exceeds is an if-then hypothesis that names the independent and dependent variables and gives a scientific reason.
• Procedure and controls: Exceeds keeps controlled variables the same, runs repeated trials, and follows the safety steps without reminders.
• Data (counts twice): Exceeds is precise data with units in an organized table, repeated trials averaged, and unexpected results noted.
• Analysis and conclusion: Exceeds uses specific data to support or reject the hypothesis, explains the science, and names sources of error.
• Lab teamwork: Exceeds takes a clear role, shares materials fairly and helps the team finish and clean up.

Use the experiment rubric for the in-class trial runs in the weeks before the fair, and the 6–8 band of the science fair project rubric on the day. That band adds what an independent fair project needs: background research that is cited, a control group, the right kind of graph, sources of error with fixes, and a board and interview where the student answers judges' questions using the data.

If students work alone, drop the Lab teamwork row: it is the last row, so in the maker set the number of criteria to four, and the maximum score updates.

5 Printing for judges and families

Each rubric page shows all three bands, and every band has its own buttons, so you print only the band you need.

• Print prints that band's table on a landscape page.
• Copy for Google Docs copies the band as a real table that pastes into Google Docs or Word; spreadsheets get a tab-separated copy.
• Print the "I can" checklist prints the band's "I can" lines as a student checklist.
• Open in the maker opens that band in the rubric maker, ready to change.

• Print one rubric per project for each judge, plus spares.
• Give judges the rubric a day early, with one sample project to score together, so their scores mean the same thing.
• Ask judges to write one sentence of praise and one question on the back of each sheet.
• Send the checklist home when the project is assigned, not the week of the fair.
• Run a practice fair the week before, with classmates as judges using the same rubric.

Nothing on the rubric pages asks for a student's name, and the rubric maker keeps what you type in your browser. Judges write names on paper, where they belong.

6 Building the project around the rubric

A rubric works best as a map handed out at the start, not a score handed back at the end. The science rubrics are filed under January, February and March, when many schools hold their fairs. Count back from your fair date and check in one row at a time.

1. Week 1: hand out the rubric and the checklist. Read the question row together and have each student write a question they can test.
2. Week 2: check the question and the prediction or hypothesis against the first row. Approve the plan before anyone buys materials.
3. Weeks 3 and 4: the test or build. Check the procedure or fair test row, including the safety steps you gave.
4. Week 5: data. Have students show you their table and graph; this row counts twice on most of these rubrics, so it deserves its own check-in.
5. Week 6: conclusion, board and a practice talk, scored by a partner with the same rubric.

Students who check in row by row arrive at the fair with fewer surprises, and you see trouble while there is still time to fix it. Score the check-ins with the same levels, but treat them as feedback, not grades.

7 Changing a rubric to fit your fair

Every cell can be changed. Open in the maker loads the rubric and band into the free rubric maker, where you can edit any cell and label, change the number of criteria, set how many times a row counts, or switch the kind to single-point.

• Points for K–2: the K–2 band has none by default; the maker's Score column and total box adds them if your school needs a number.
• A school-wide fair: keep the same rows across grades and use each band's cells, so judges see one familiar shape from K to 8.
• Your own safety rules: several rows say "the safety steps the teacher gave"; list your steps on the project letter so that phrase means something specific.
• Research rows: at 6–8 the fair project rubric asks for cited background research. If your students haven't been taught citing yet, rewrite that cell before you hand it out.

For the differences between a grid of levels and a single target with room for comments, see analytic vs single-point rubric. A single-point version of the fair project rubric is a good choice for the check-ins, with the full analytic one saved for the judges.