HERE IS A FOLDER  teachers might wish to use for ideas on how to implement an independent investigation project in a classroom. These particular lessons were oriented toward 8th graders, middle to advanced level, and used from September to February.  For more remedial classes, I recommend the Science Buddies website to assist the teacher with guidance for students.

It is particularly important for students to journal their thoughts, observations, and data throughout the process - see "Background Research Composition Notebook" in the folder linked above. 

The following videos might also be helpful:

To begin a unit on experimental design

To make trendline equations using google sheets

To use google sheets for charts relevant to science fair

To understand standard deviation and standard error and how they can be used to test significance

Keep in mind this is not an official endorsement of the Science Fair, certainly not the only way to do this... just some ideas that worked for me.  

-Kim Miller, president