Young people are often told not to do the things they enjoy. Playing video games, for example, is often discouraged because it detracts from study time, prevents children from playing outdoors and can expose them to violence or other adult content. However, a passionate video game enthusiast may create a persuasive display that argues in favor of some recreational gaming. Video games which require reading and problem solving, as well as popular puzzle games in which the player must employ real physics to solve levels, can be put forth as examples of the beneficial potential of video games. While the Internet can be a perilous place for unsupervised children, it may also serve as a learning tool. You child may make a presentation on how search engines work, or how Web pages are created. If she is more advanced and has access to a computer, she can even learn how to write HTML code and produce her own Web pages as part of the presentation.
You child can focus on older, more established technology like the internal combustion engine or the simple machines that propel bicycles. He may also focus on more recent technology, such as digital broadcasting and tablet computers. The primary focus of these projects is for the child to learn the scientific principles which apply to his chosen piece of technology, and to share them with others. Also, if he uses the Internet to locate and research information from credible sources, he may even choose to make that his chosen subject. As he utilizes search engines, online journals and academic archives, he is both using and learning about a modern technological aspect of life which he can then share with others at the technology fair.
When kids apply their imagination to existing technology, they can think up any number of new approaches and ideas. One middle school student attempted to apply the mathematical sequence that determines the spacing between tree branches to solar panel technology. He had hoped to emulate trees' positioning of leaves in a solar panel array to harness more solar energy and, while his initial invention did not produce the desired results, he earned a Young Naturist Award for his innovation and insight. A high school student used magnetic bacteria to create a battery. When the bacteria spun, they generated a magnetic field which he then used to generate energy in the same way that spinning magnetic generators are used in windmills. If your student possesses the materials and the imagination, she can attempt to build better technology as well. If materials are unavailable, she can still create a display and give a presentation on the inspiration and science behind her project.
Failing new inventions, demonstrations and persuasive presentations, kids can also take part in the technology fair simply by sharing their knowledge with others via posters, dioramas and other informative displays. He might construct a display that traces humanity's use of transportation technology, from the oldest known use of the wheel to modern day space exploration. He could also trace development from the oldest known alphabets to printed scrolls and books, and from there to the printing press and the modern digital storage and global transfer of information.