Presented at
National Association for Gifted Children
Atlanta, Georgia
November 3, 2000.

Vicky Farrar, Renee' Listenbee, Phyllis Mabowitz.

TimeTable for an Invention Fair

Suggested Time Table

8 weeks before the invention fair

• Set due day for inventions and allow at least eight weeks from the time you begin the activity, "Invention!! Invention!! ", until the day of your invention fair.

• Use the title "Why Not Invent?" for your invention fair. Make a banner with the fair's date.

• Contact school or district personnel to secure a large enough place to display the student's inventions.

• Make provisions for the tables that will be needed (school/parents).

• Make sure students understand the criteria that will be used to judge their inventions.

  innovative	overall presentation	clear information
  (clear)	(look)	(understand)

4 weeks before the invention fair

• Contact three people to be judges (if the inventions are to be judged). Each judge should evaluate independent of the others.

2 weeks before the invention fair

• Contact persons that could volunteer to help set-up tables and inventions.

• Fill-in and run invitations for parents and administration

• Send invitations to parents and administration

1 week before the invention fair

• Make numbered cards to put on the inventions as they arnve. The number of cards needed will be the same as the number of students you have participating.

• Send judges a reminder of place and time.

• Remind parent helpers.

• Double check table availability.

Week of invention fair

• Set-up tables.

• Put a number card on each invention as it arrives.

Invention Fair Day

• As the inventions arrive, tape the numbered cards to the inventions where they can easily be seen by the judges. Record the student's name next to the number on the Student Record Sheet

• Have volunteer parents organize invention display.

• Give each judge a copy of the Judges' Evaluation Sheet

• Collect the judges' forms when they have finished, total the points and record the information on the Student Record Sheet to find your winners. It's a good idea to have at least 6 or 7 winners for every 30 students. (You might want to have all winners equal, no first, second, or third place winners.)