To the teacher: Although this book is intended as a guide for your students, NSTA has you covered as well! Science Fair Warm-Up, Teachers Guide: Learning the Practice of Scientists provides all of the information you need to guide your students through the activities included in this book. To the student: If you have used the other books in the Science Fair Warm-Up series, you already have an idea of what a science fair project and real scientific investigation is like; if not, don't worry. Science Fair Warm-Up, Grades 8- 12 provides you with the opportunity to choose a great project. For instance, you might carry out experiments that explore the pollution of our planet's water or the possibility of growing plants on the Moon. If you prefer, you can select an inquiry of your own and even work with a partner. As you work on your project, your teacher will give you help along the way. Together you will explore some of the challenging problems other students have encountered: problems of designing and carrying out experiments, collecting and making sense of your findings, and sharing and presenting what you have learned. As you follow in the footsteps of scientists, you will learn about the ways in which scientists carry out scientific research and begin to understand how they have uncovered so much about how our universe works.

After completing his PhD in chemistry at Cambridge University, John Haysom taught science in a variety of schools before becoming a member of the faculties of education at five universities: Oxford University, Reading University (UK), University of the West Indies, Mount Saint Vincent University (Canada) and Saint Mary's University (Canada), where he is Professor Emeritus. John has gained an international reputation as a teacher-educator and curriculum developer. In the UK, he was the coordinator of the groundbreaking Science Teacher Education Project, funded by the Nuffield Foundation. This was probably the first teacher education curriculum project in the world and was adapted for use in Australia, Canada, Israel, and other countries. At the University of the West Indies, he was responsible for the design and implementation of an innovative, theme-based inservice B.Ed. curriculum. As professor of education at Saint Mary's University, he initiated and helped lead the Atlantic Science Curriculum Project's SciencePlus textbook series. This curriculum was highly rated and became widely adopted in the United States. He has acted as a science curriculum consultant to the government of Trinidad and Tobago and to a number of projects in the United States. John is the author of many books for teacher educators, teachers, and schoolchildren, as well as academic papers in curriculum design, evaluation and implementation, and teacher education. His most recent work includes Predict, Observe, Explain: Activities Enhancing Scientific Understanding (with Michael Bowen; NSTA 2010) and " Science Curriculum Research and Development in Atlantic Canada: A Retrospective," an article prepared for the Canadian Journal of Science, Mathematics and Technology Education (in press). John has long been interested in science fairs, both as a teacher and a judge, and was elected to the board of directors of the Youth Science Foundation, the national body responsible for science fairs in Canada.