Need help - science project display board

[jlaspoq]

Help! My DD10 is doing a science experiment (4th grade) and has all the pieces done and ready to put on the display board. It's a large corrugated cardboard trifold thing from the office supply store.

Do we cover it? With what? She mentioned contact paper - but I'm afraid it will go on with lots of lumps and wrinkles?

And how do you attach stuff to the board? Glue, doublestick tape, or what?

Any help would be much appreciated by this not so creative mom! We're just looking for basic advice here! Thanks!

 

[Allie322]

We have always spray painted backboards. It was never required but it looked nicer and stood out. I can't imagine trying to cover it with paper or contact paper. We attach the pieces with a hot glue gun. One year the kids used glue sticks and pieces were falling off as they brought them into school. Good luck!

 

[Sparx]

I had to do a project with one, I cut up pieces of thin construction board, and covered it with that, I think four peices should work. I had alot of text and big pictures on mine, so no one noticed the seams. I used a glue stick, and a stapler (around the border) for mine. G'luck!

 

[MaryAnnDVC]

Go to www.michaels.com and do a search for "science". You'll get all sorts of advice on Science Fair projects and display boards.

 

[grlpwrd]

Hi, neighbor - I'm in Hampton.

Wallpaper, fabric, or contact paper are good.

Don't use white glue because it wrinkles the paper and gives that "lumpy" look. Rubber cement or double sided tape are better to use.

You can buy self-adhesive letters or print letters/phrases out on your computer and then apply to the board with rubber cement or double sided tape.

I notice a lot of kids used a scrapbooking approach to their display boards with the title/words printed on one color or a printout of a picture/graph/etc then applied to a separate sheet of paper using a different background color and then applied to the board. That really made their display "pop out."

HTH and GL!

 

[Stitchfans]

My DD10 has been participating in the Science Fairs since 1st grade. We never put anything to completely cover the board. We only put up the actual report and pictures to support the experiment. The whole idea is see what the child has learned. We add color to make the board more interesting to look at with our pictures. I take pictures of her "doing" the experiment. Good luck and have fun.

 

[jlaspoq]

Hi back grlpwrd! Who would have thought I'd find help so close by!

I knew these boards would be my best source of help! Thanks for such quick responses!

My daughter printed everything out already, so we just have to put it together.

I like the idea of spray painting - fast and easy - or the background color sheets. And I like the rubber cement or double stick tape or hot glue.

Any more ideas?

 

[jlaspoq]

My DD10 has been participating in the Science Fairs since 1st grade. We never put anything to completely cover the board. We only put up the actual report and pictures to support the experiment. The whole idea is see what the child has learned. We add color to make the board more interesting to look at with our pictures. I take pictures of her "doing" the experiment. Good luck and have fun.

Yes, this is not even for an official science fair - this is a fun project for her TAG science class. So I don't want to go overboard - just trying to get ideas for her.

How do you attach stuff to the plain board? We did take pictures of her and her experiment materials, etc.

 

[Stitchfans]

Everything else failed for us except the cement glue. What is nice about it is that you can remove it and reuse the board a couple more times.

 

[jackskellingtonsgirl]

We printed out our different sections (hypothesis, procedure, materials, etc.) on plain white paper, then glued them onto colored backing (like poster board). Then we attached them to the plain board with glue. There is this really cool adhesive that comes in a roll-on thing. If you have seen the roll-on white out it looks similar to that. It is at office supply stores. Very quick and VERY sticky. Can't remember the brand, though! The dispenser is small enough to fit in your hand and it is "paisley" shaped, for lack of a better word. Just glide it on the back of whatever you are gluing and stick it down.

Good luck! Science Fair is my nemesis!!

 

[Planogirl]

Science fairs! Brrrr....

We always bought the already colored display boards and used the backing like some posters have already mentioned. I like the idea of spray painting it but be sure to use the right kind of paint. And don't use a glue stick. That stuff is worthless.

Good luck. I'm sure that it will look really nice.

 

[Jockaroo]

I don't know if you want to go in this direction, but Spray Mount Artist's Adhesive by 3M is a great product. You just spray the adhesive on the back of the paper, let it dry a few seconds, and then put it on the board. It is kind of like spraying hairspray. But this stuff is pretty toxic and will gum up any surrounding surfaces, so you may not want a child using it. Protect any surrounding areas by spraying on a spread out trash bag, in an old box, or on scrap paper.

Another adhesive that could work well is paper cement. It is thinner than rubber cement and fairly easy to use. Coat one side of each object to attach, let it dry, then press the paper to the board. You can roll off any excess with a rubber cement eraser.

 

[chager]

We just complted our Science Fair. Nick used wrapping paper to coverthe boards. We used double-sided tape to attach EVERYTHING!! That way we could readjust things very carefully without too much hassle. Other boards had been painted or just left white. His project was on optical illusions so we used wrapping paper that had depth to it and changed depending on how you looked at it. He ended up with a 3rd place ribbon and award!
Good luck on the project you are helping with! We have already started thinking about next years project.

 

[jlaspoq]

Thanks to everyone for the great ideas - I have tucked some of them away for future years!

Time is of the essence - it's due Friday! So we decided to keep it simple (this is 4th grade remember!) My DD10 used flourescent papers behind her printed purpose, hypothesis, materials, procedure, etc..... and is attaching all with double stick poster tape (3m). So far so good, and it does look great with the flourescent paper to jazz it up a bit. Best of all, she can do it herself, which is what I wanted.

It is incredible what you can find out on these boards! Thanks again!