My name is Maille, which is Gaelic and pronounced “Molly”.
I won my first science fair in 6th grade at Joseph Case Junior High School in Swansea, Massachusetts. My project was called “The effect of acid rain on house plants”. As luck would have it my science teacher (Mr. Fonseca) was also my soccer coach. I loved doing projects and did a science fair project every year (required or not) up through my senior year. I enjoyed it so much, that I eventually pursued a career in science and now get to do the grown-up equivalent of science fair projects almost every day.
Today I am environmental microbiologist specializing in aquatic bacteria (which means I can only respond to posts at night and on week-ends). I have a Bachelor of Science Degree in Biology from the University of Massachusetts (UMD), a Master’s Degree in Biology from University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA), a post-graduate certification in Epidemiology and Biostatistics from Drexel, and a Ph.D. in Oceanography from the University of Connecticut (UCONN).
My passion for science fair projects was recently rekindled when a friend asked me to help her, help her son. He was in 5th grade and required to do a project. The teachers expected it done at home because they didn’t have time to do it in class. My friend is very smart, but since she is not trained in science she struggled with the confusing “informational packet” sent home to guide the students. I was more than happy to help and soon word spread that I loved helping kids with projects. Before I knew it, I was coaching as many kids as I could find from several schools and several grade levels. My own kids are now too old for projects, so I look for curious kids who need help – and that is why I started this website!
I can say from personal experience that Maille knows what she is doing. She coached my daughter’s 8th grade project and we went on to regional and state science fairs. Maille made the experience educational and more importantly to my daughter, fun! If you are looking for ideas, Maille is the BEST resource for you!!! She is a true coach…not doing it for you, but being there with ideas and advice every step of the way!
Great site Maille . Lots of practical information. Wish we had a useful resource like this when we were in high school. ………Dave Correia ExxonMobil Northeast Ops
Did your family, especially younger siblings, contribute to your need to aid the youth? I bet they were indeed the brightest students in town.
All but one
I’ve just discovered your excellent website and will be posting it as a resource for parents and teachers at SciSpark.com
Thank you!
Excuse me, but I attempted to email you in regard to an issue on your webpage but the given e-mail address did not work. Is there an alternate place I might contact you?
Anyone can contact me at: maille.lyons@gmail.com and follow me on twitter: @ScienceFairInfo
Would love for you to write an article for my blog or site. You can put a link in it to your coaching site.
You also may be interested in joining http://www.myblogguest.com to trade one of a kind articles.
Thanks, Madeline
Science Fair Blog
Great site Maille . very good practical information i learn many things from your website
all science fair projects are informative
thanks for ur guidence
Dear Maille
i am looking for coaching for my 6th grade eCybermission project. Interested in scientific trending topics that will benefit my community and the military,
I am currently reaching out to my network of Scientists and Military advisors.
I am located in Las Vegas. This is a 3-4 member group effort and i might end up leading this group.
can you assist me and my parents get started? and maybe more
thank you
Ethan French
Dear Ethan,
I can absolutely help with find questions, format and structure of experiments, and probably data collection/analysis and survey design (I have an advanced degree in Epidemiology/Biostatistics), but eCyber-stuff isn’t my specialty. Post your questions here and I’ll do my best.
Cheers,
Maille
Dear Maille, My best friend, Karla and i are doing the science fair together. We are in 6th grade. We are looking for some good, easy ( yes, i said easy and we are in the smartest classes in 6th grade!) cheap, and of course,…… Fun!!!! We need it soon!!! plz email us some ideas by Wednesday, November 14 2012!!!!! thanks!!! ps: We love your website!!!
If the project is DUE by Wednesday – then look at the ideas for popcorn, bubblegum, or airplanes on this site. If the idea is due by Wednesday – then think about the Ocean Acidification project or a Biomimicry project if you are looking for originality (but those require work) or the coffee project if you just want a good grade and just want to get it done.
Good Luck!
I found your website and I LOVE IT!!!! Finally, some good, solid, accessible Scientific Method information out there. My background is in Molecular Biology and we have encouraged our kids to do science projects for fairs each year since Kindergarten age. I run a Science and other topic blog, and started a science club at our elementary this year…so last night the teacher assigned to run the science fair called me and …asked to run the science fair this year. I have judged two fairs and was in them in high school, but I was wondering if you can post some helps for running an AWESOME science fair!
I see that you mention giving awards like “Best in Chemistry”- I like that. What other things have stood out to you that made certain science fairs GREAT!
Thank you so much!!!
I think you’re great to share your knowledge with others!
Lisa
SMMARTideas.blogspot.com
I think the WORST fairs are those that do not allow the kids to talk to people about what they did. I’ve judged some that just have the kids bring in a completed back board which are then set up, judged, and sent back home. The kids (usually) have worked hard on the project – they should be given a chance to tell other kids, parents, teachers, etc. about what they have done.
I think the BEST fairs I have judged included more than just 1, 2, 3 place. There are many ways to recognize the work the kids have done. I like ones that recognize the TOP TEN and then pull them out and display them together so that other kids can see what was done to earn a top 10 spot. So often, parents automatically assume “that kid won because their mom is a teacher/scientist/doctor etc.”) – but I have found that if you separate out the top ten projects – it usually becomes obvious why those projects were recognized.
I also like fairs that have a family night or science night where kids can stand in front of their projects and tell people what they did.
Other ideas for awards:
Best in chemistry, physics, math, engineering, microbiology, biology, marine biology, environmental sciences etc. Most creative, most unique, most unusual, etc. Best graphing, Best use of math, Best display, Best presentation, Best photographs, Best use of the Scientific Method, Best Question, etc.
Hope that helps! If you have tips for others – post them here!
Hi! Fantastic site. I, too, will be posting it as a resource for our Science Day. Thanks!
Sandy
I am doing a grade 9 science expo testing the 5 second rule. I am comparing 4 different foods, and have cultivated the bacteria before and after I dropped the food for five seconds. I am not sure how to analyse my results as the bacteria has grown differently in each sample. Some are easy to count the colonies. One is just one very large colony, one had lots of bacteria on it before!!! I am confused.. Gabi
First, I am glad you were interested in doing (and got approval for) a microbiology experiment – most schools and states have banned them.
But now you have discovered that something as simple as counting bacteria is more complicated than it sounds. You did not describe how you plated the samples, but the proper plating method requires a liquid sample, spread evenly onto an agar plate with the idea that each viable bacterial cell is spread out and will form its own colony (thus the unit for bacterial counts is cfu = colony forming units per volume).
Assuming that you probably touched the food to the agar plate, it is not surprising that the bacteria have overgrow each other and now you don’t have individual colonies to count. The only way you might be able to get something to compare would be to (1) photograph the agar plate and do a visual, qualitative comparison and/or (2) using a grid, estimate the percent coverage of the growth.