Method and Scope of Investigation Hit only the high points, but emphasize instances where you feel you displayed unusual imagination, ingenuity, or resourcefulness. Observations and Data Both are important, but in an exhibit too many data can be dull. Select only those which are essential to the capsule story of your project. Photographs and Illustrations Review the foregoing elements to see where pictures will tell your story as well as (or better than) words. List all photographs you have already taken of your project, ones you can still obtain, and drawings which will illustrate or help narrate your story. Don’t be selective yet. Later, when you are designing your exhibit layout, space limitations will force you to choose. Equipment and Specimens These also help narrate your story. Select objects and apparatus which will provide viewers a good grasp of your project work. Have you hit upon a low-cost substitute for expensive laboratory equipment? Do some of your specimens present clearly visible evidence of points you want to make? Are any of the experimental results or specimens particularly unusual, spectacular, or beautiful? List them for possible use. Handout Brochure An important but frequently overlooked exhibit component is the “handout brochure” to be distributed to interested viewers. Even a single mimeographed page can supply more written information than should be displayed in the limited space of the exhibit. It can provide serious viewers a condensed version of the project report. The brochure provides all viewers a reference when they discuss the science fair and your exhibit with others. Consider the handout brochure while planning your exhibit’s contents because it can contain data and graphs which might otherwise clutter and confuse your exhibit proper. How Exhibits Are Judged Rules for the judging of exhibits vary, but most science fairs stick fairly closely to the criteria and point values used by the National Science Fair-International, which are: I. Creative Ability Total 30 points How much of the work appears to show originality of approach or handling? Judge that which appears to you to be original regardless of the expense of purchased or borrowed equipment. Give weight to ingenious uses of materials, if present. Consider collections creative if they seem to serve a purpose. II. Scientific Thought Total 30 points Does the exhibit disclose organized procedures? Is there a planned system, classification, accurate observation, or controlled experiment? Does exhibit show a verification of laws, or a cause and effect, or present by models or other methods a better understanding of scientific facts or theories? Give weight to probable amount of real study and effort which is represented in the exhibit. Guard against discounting for what might have been added, included, or improved.