Science Fair Project Ideas for Growing Bean Seeds in Liquids

This project examines what will happen if you take the standard liquid given to plants and just tweak it slightly. Nearly all children are aware that water is necessary to grow most forms of plant life, but many children aren't sure how varieties of water will affect a bean seed. Gather as many varieties of water as you're interested in testing: tap water, bottled water, mineral water, vitamin water and carbonated water. Fill plastic cups with 8 ounces of each variety and place a seed in each cup. After the student states his hypothesis, the majority of the process should involve documenting the progress of the seeds with tables, charts, photographs and other items, recording results at every step.

Discuss the effects of caffeine with kids and what happens to people when they consume liquids containing caffeine. Ask kids if too much caffeine could possibly have a detrimental effect on a growing plant, and what the possible effects could be. Gather a number of beverages that contain caffeine such as coffee, espresso, tea, energy drinks and cola. Fill plastic cups with 8 ounces of each beverage and place a bean seed in each. The remainder of the project will involve checking on the growth of each bean seed for changes and documenting the progress of each seed. Kids should display final results on a graph or chart.

Let students get truly creative and experimental with the liquids that they choose. For example let them gather liquids like vinegar, orange juice, milk, aloe vera juice, wheat grass juice, olive oil and other imaginative liquids with which they'd like to experiment. As usual, the student should fill plastic cups with 8 ounces of each and see how this wide variety of liquids affects the growth of each bean seed, after she has stated her thesis. The remainder of the project involves recording and charting data.