For even more free science ideas and printables, head to our science hub! You’ll find resources in every science subject for middle and high school.
The cool thing about high school is that kids are old enough to tackle some pretty amazing science experiments and projects. Some science experiments for high school are just advanced versions of simpler projects they did when they were younger, with detailed calculations or fewer instructions. Other projects involve fire, chemicals, or other materials they weren’t old enough to use before.
Many of these projects can be used as classroom labs or science fair projects. Feel free to adapt them as needed for students’ individual projects, or use them as full-class activities. However you plan to use the projects, just consider variables that you can change up, like materials or other parameters.
To make it easier to find the right high school science experiment for you, we’ve rated all the projects by difficulty and the materials needed:
Difficulty:
Easy: Low or no-prep experiments you can do pretty much anytime
Medium: These take a little more setup or a longer time to complete
Advanced: Experiments like these take a fairly big commitment of time or effort
Materials:
Basic: Simple items you probably already have around the house
Medium: Items that you might not already have but are easy to get your hands on
Advanced: These require specialized or more expensive supplies to complete
Difficulty: Medium / Materials: Easy (Everything is provided for you!)
In this activity, your students will step into the shoes of an R&D intern at an agricultural biotech company. They’ll dig into a new plant crop virus and brainstorm solutions to tackle it.
Ward’s Science Engage Kits are an amazing way to bring more inquiry-based activities into your classroom. The kits come with everything you need to complete hands-on labs with your class. Your students will develop their critical questioning, research, and teamwork skills while working to solve problems that feel real and important.
You don’t need a lot of supplies to perform this experiment, but it’s impressive nonetheless. Turn this into a science fair project by trying it with other fruits and vegetables too.
Make plants move with light
Difficulty: Medium / Materials: Medium
By this age, kids know that many plants move toward sunlight, a process known as phototropism. So high school science fair projects on this topic need to introduce variables into the process, like covering seedling parts with different materials to see the effects.
Test the 5-second rule
Difficulty: Medium / Materials: Medium
We’d all like to know the answer to this one: Is it really safe to eat food you’ve dropped on the floor? Design and conduct an experiment to find out (although we think we might already know the answer).
Find out if color affects taste
Difficulty: Medium / Materials: Medium
Just how interlinked are all our senses? Does the sight of food affect how it tastes? Find out with a fun food science fair project like this one!
Home Science Tools
See the effects of antibiotics on bacteria
Difficulty: Medium / Materials: Advanced
Bacteria can be divided into two groups: gram-positive and gram-negative. In this experiment, students first determine the two groups, then try the effects of various antibiotics on them.
Experiment with the effects of light on the carbon cycle. Make this science fair project even more interesting by adding some small aquatic animals like snails or fish into the mix.
Cell mitosis (division) is actually easy to see in action when you look at onion root tips under a microscope. Students will be amazed to see science theory become science reality right before their eyes. Adapt this lab into a high school science fair project by applying the process to other organisms too.
Amy Brown Science
Test the effects of disinfectants
Difficulty: Medium / Materials: Advanced
Grow bacteria in a petri dish along with paper disks soaked in various antiseptics and disinfectants. You’ll be able to see which ones effectively inhibit bacteria growth.
Gregor Mendel’s pea plant experiments were some of the first to explore inherited traits and genetics. Try your own cross-pollination experiments with fast-growing plants like peas or beans.
Pit hydroponics against soil
Difficulty: Medium / Materials: Medium
Growing vegetables without soil (hydroponics) is a popular trend that allows people to garden just about anywhere.
Life is a Garden
Research soil erosion
Difficulty: Medium / Materials: Easy
Learn about the factors that contribute to soil erosion, and create a demonstration of how soil erosion does, and doesn’t occur. Make this more advanced by increasing the number of variables that students investigate and discuss.
Growing mold is something that students may have done already, but increase the rigor of this experiment by adding in control variables and turning the experiment on its head to study what might prevent mold growth. Once students know where mold spores are, what should we do about it? How can we prevent mold growth?
More Life Sciences and Biology Science Fair Projects and Experiments for High School
Use these questions and ideas to design your own experiment:
What are the most accurate methods of predicting various weather patterns?
Try out various fertilization methods to find the best and safest way to increase crop yield.
Does exposure to smoke or other air pollutants affect plant growth?
Compare the chemical and/or bacterial content of various water sources (bottled, tap, spring, well water, etc.).
Explore ways to clean up after an oil spill on land or water.
Conduct a wildlife field survey in a given area and compare it to results from previous surveys.
Find a new use for plastic bottles or bags to keep them out of landfills.
Devise a way to desalinate seawater and make it safe to drink.
Chemistry High School Science Fair Projects and Experiments
Bunsen burners, beakers and test tubes, and the possibility of (controlled) explosions? No wonder chemistry experiments are such popular high school science fair projects!
Teaching Without Chairs
Break apart covalent bonds
Difficulty: Medium / Materials: Medium
Break the covalent bond of H2O into H and O with this simple experiment. You only need simple supplies for this one. Turn it into a science fair project by changing up the variables—does the temperature of the water matter? What happens if you try this with other liquids?
Are the calorie counts on your favorite snacks accurate? Build your own calorimeter and find out! This kit from Home Science Tools has all the supplies you’ll need.
Lela Davidson
Detect latent fingerprints
Difficulty: Medium / Materials: Medium
Forensic science is engrossing and can lead to important career opportunities too. Explore the chemistry needed to detect latent (invisible) fingerprints, just like they do for crime scenes!
Tweak this basic concept to create a variety of high school chemistry science fair projects. Change the temperature, surface area, pressure, and more to see how reaction rates change.
Determine whether sports drinks provide more electrolytes than OJ
Difficulty: Medium / Materials: Advanced
Are those pricey sports drinks really worth it? Try this experiment to find out. You’ll need some special equipment for this one.
You’ll need to get your hands on a few different chemicals for this experiment, but the wow factor will make it worth the effort! Make it a science project by seeing if different materials, air temperature, or other factors change the results.
Amy Brown Science
Discover the size of a mole
Difficulty: Medium / Materials: Medium
The mole is a key concept in chemistry, so it’s important to ensure students really understand it. This experiment uses simple materials like salt and chalk to make an abstract concept more concrete. Make it a project by applying the same procedure to a variety of substances, or determining whether outside variables have an effect on the results.
Take a closer look at an everyday item: soap! Use oils and other ingredients to make your own soap, learning about esters and saponification. Tinker with the formula to find one that fits a particular set of parameters.
Another way to show a chemical reaction is the dancing popcorn experiment. This video shows two ways to conduct the reaction, students can explain the science behind each.
Show how vinegar can take the shell off an egg with this experiment. Students can show this experiment in various stages, and talk about what’s happening at the molecular level.
Show a chemical reaction with a lava lamp. This is a great experiment to do at science fairs that have a lot of younger siblings who will be excited to see this experiment come to life.
A Dab of Glue will Do
Cabbage pH experiment
Difficulty: Medium / Materials: Medium
Explain pH using cabbage water and some other household items. Students can set up a pH demonstration and be ready to explain how pH works.
Show how water splits into hydrogen and water in this easy experiment. Make it more complicated by adding pH or adding snap circuits to focus on electricity.
More Chemistry Science Fair Projects and Experiments for High School
These questions and ideas can spark ideas for a unique experiment:
Compare the properties of sugar and artificial sweeteners.
Explore the impact of temperature, concentration, and seeding on crystal growth.
Test various antacids on the market to find the most effective product.
What is the optimum temperature for yeast production when baking bread from scratch?
Compare the vitamin C content of various fruits and vegetables.
How does temperature affect enzyme-catalyzed reactions?
Investigate the effects of pH on an acid-base chemical reaction.
What’s the best way to slow down metal oxidation (form of rust)?
How do changes in ingredients and method affect the results of a baking recipe?
Physics High School Science Fair Projects and Experiments
When you think of physics science projects for high school, the first thing that comes to mind is probably the classic build-a-bridge. But there are plenty of other ways for teens to get hands-on with physics concepts. Here are high school science experiments some to try.
Remove the air in a DIY vacuum chamber
Difficulty: Medium / Materials: Medium
You can use a vacuum chamber to do lots of cool high school science fair projects, but a ready-made one can be expensive. Try this project to make your own with basic supplies.
Put together a mini Tesla coil
Difficulty: Medium / Materials: Medium
Looking for a simple but showy high school science fair project? Build your own mini Tesla coil and wow the crowd!
Boil water in a paper cup
Difficulty: Medium / Materials: Medium
Logic tells us we shouldn’t set a paper cup over a heat source, right? Yet it’s actually possible to boil water in a paper cup without burning the cup up! Learn about heat transfer and thermal conductivity with this experiment. Go deeper by trying other liquids like honey to see what happens.
Build a better light bulb
Difficulty: Medium / Materials: Medium
Emulate Thomas Edison and build your own simple light bulb. You can turn this into a science fair project by experimenting with different types of materials for filaments.
Measure the speed of light—with your microwave
Difficulty: Medium / Materials: Medium
Grab an egg and head to your microwave for this surprisingly simple experiment. By measuring the distance between cooked portions of egg whites, you’ll be able to calculate the wavelength of the microwaves in your oven and, in turn, the speed of light.
See electricity in action when you generate and capture a Lichtenberg figure with polyethylene sheets, wood, or even acrylic and toner. Change the electrical intensity and materials to see what types of patterns you can create.
Explore the power of friction with sticky-note pads
Difficulty: Medium / Materials: Basic
Ever try to pull a piece of paper out of the middle of a big stack? It’s harder than you’d think! That’s due to the power of friction. In this experiment, students interleave the sheets of two sticky-note pads, then measure how much weight it takes to pull them apart. The results are astonishing!
Build a cloud chamber to prove background radiation
Difficulty: Medium / Materials: Advanced
Ready to dip your toe into particle physics? Learn about background radiation and build a cloud chamber to prove the existence of muons.
Science Project
Measure the effect of temperature on resistance
Difficulty: Medium / Materials: Advanced
This is a popular and classic science fair experiment in physics. You’ll need a few specialized supplies, but they’re pretty easy to find.
A basic bottle rocket is pretty easy to build, but it opens the door to lots of different science fair projects. Design a powerful launcher, alter the rocket so it flies higher or farther, or use only recycled materials for your flyer.
Make a solar oven
Model how solar heating works with a solar oven. Students can make this experiment high school-worthy by testing different type of oven designs, measuring the temperature inside, or determining how much more efficient the solar oven is than a microwave or oven.
Students experiment with acoustics and sound proofing to create a space that’s sound-proofed. This would be a major challenge for a high schooler who has to block out the sounds at a busy science fair.
More Physics Science Fair Projects and Experiments for High School
Design your own experiment in response to these questions and prompts.
What’s the best way to eliminate friction between two objects?
Explore the best methods of insulating an object against heat loss.
What effect does temperature have on batteries when stored for long periods of time?
Test the effects of magnets or electromagnetic fields on plants or other living organisms.
Determine the best angle and speed of a bat swing in baseball.
Explore methods for reducing air resistance in automotive design.
Use the concepts of torque and rotation to perfect a golf swing.
Compare the strength and durability of various building materials.
Engineering High School Science Fair Projects and Experiments
Many schools are changing up their science fairs to STEM fairs to encourage students with an interest in engineering to participate. Many great engineering science experiments for high school start with a STEM challenge, like those shown here. Use these ideas to spark a full-blown project to build something new and amazing!
Supermagnete
Construct a model maglev train
Difficulty: Medium / Materials: Medium
Maglev trains may just be the future of mass transportation. Build a model at home, and explore ways to implement the technology on a wider basis.
Wind energy is renewable, making it a good solution for the fossil fuel problem. For a smart science fair project, experiment to find the most efficient wind turbine design for a given situation.
Student Savvy
Re-create Da Vinci’s flying machine
Difficulty: Medium / Materials: Medium
Da Vinci sketched several models of “flying machines” and hoped to soar through the sky. Do some research into his models and try to reconstruct one of your own.
Smartwatches are ubiquitous these days, so pretty much anyone can wear a heart-rate monitor on their wrist. But do they work any better than one you can build yourself? Get the specialized items you need like the Arduino LilyPad Board on Amazon.
Race cars
Difficulty: Medium / Materials: Advanced
Create cars and race them using balloons or this baking soda experiment. Add more complexity by having students create their cars using 3D printer technology.
Hydroponics is the gardening wave of the future, making it easy to grow plants anywhere with minimal soil required. For a science fair STEM engineering challenge, design and construct your own hydroponic garden capable of growing vegetables to feed a family. This model is just one possible option.
Delve into robotics with this engineering project. This kit includes all the materials you need, with complete video instructions. Once you’ve built the basic structure, tinker around with the design to improve its strength, accuracy, or other traits.
Sci Toys
Construct a crystal radio
Difficulty: Medium / Materials: Advanced
Return to the good old days and build a radio from scratch. This makes a cool science fair project if you experiment with different types of materials for the antenna.
Bridge building is a fun STEM activity that can be made more or less challenging depending on the ultimate goal. The more functional the bridge has to be, the more difficult the project.
Make, test, and showcase a potato battery. The process is simple enough, so students can figure out just how much power their potato has and what they can do with their battery.
Another fun project that high schoolers can revisit now that they know more about physics and engineering is the roller coaster. Students make a roller coaster for a small car or marble.
