Recommended for high school students! A collection of easy one-day science project ideas
High school students who are struggling to choose a topic for their summer vacation independent research project, this is for you.
If you’re looking for an easy project—like “an experiment that can be done in a short time” or “a research project that looks impressive”—good news! This article introduces independent research ideas packed with the fun of science, focusing on experiments and hands-on builds.
From steam engines to planetariums, these are all projects that will make viewers exclaim, “Wow!” And surprisingly, many are easier to tackle than you’d think.
Find a wonderful project that will become a lasting summer memory!
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Recommended for High School Students! A Collection of Easy One-Day Independent Research Ideas (21–30)
Make plastic from milk
“Can you make plastic from milk?” It’s a title that doesn’t quite make clear what’s going on, isn’t it? But you actually can! Heat the milk until it boils, then add vinegar little by little while stirring.
Don’t pour it in all at once—add it gradually.
The milk will separate into solids and liquid.
The solids are what we commonly call “cheese.” Shape that cheese-like mass and heat it in the microwave several times, and you’ll end up with plastic!
Does water have friction, too?
This is an experiment about energy.
For example, when you rub your hands together, your palms start to feel warm.
That means heat energy is generated by friction.
So what happens if we try this with water? This experiment tests whether heat energy is produced when water is kept in motion for a certain period of time.
Because it’s water, we might imagine it would stay cold.
Let’s try it and summarize the results.
Extract the DNA of vegetables
When you hear the word DNA, you probably think of crime dramas or biology, and it feels incredibly complicated.
This is an experiment to actually extract that DNA—and we’ll do it from vegetables.
By finely chopping and grinding frozen vegetables to break down the fibers, then using an extraction solution of salt and water, a surfactant, and ethanol, you can easily extract DNA.
Observation experiment of the liquefaction phenomenon
Japan experiences many earthquakes, so liquefaction becomes a hot topic every time a major quake occurs.
Many people have heard of liquefaction but may not fully understand how it works.
So let’s make its mechanism the theme of a science project.
You can easily recreate liquefaction by putting water-saturated sand in a tank and applying vibrations.
Making impossible objects
You’ve probably seen images of strange shapes where, for example, a marble seems to roll uphill or a triangle appears twisted.
These are called “impossible objects” or “impossible figures,” and doing a hands-on project to recreate them in the real world is highly recommended.
Figuring out how to make them work and turning them into three-dimensional models is a lot of fun.
Making a storm glass
A storm glass is an instrument that sailors once used for weather forecasting, and today it’s popular as a stylish interior piece that can indicate the weather.
How about making your own storm glass and exploring how it works? The materials you’ll need are ammonium chloride, potassium nitrate, and camphor; if potassium nitrate is hard to obtain, you can substitute potassium chloride and ammonium nitrate.
Portable cloud
Clouds are an essential part of everyday scenery, but I don’t think many people understand the principles behind them in detail.
So let’s research how clouds form and try to recreate that inside a plastic bottle as an independent study project.
All you need are a plastic bottle and an incense stick! Clouds form when water droplets gather around tiny particles, so we’ll use incense smoke as a substitute for those particles.