You’ve worked hard on your project…now you need everyone else to understand what you’ve done! The best way to quickly communicate your findings on your project display is with an effective title and big takeaway statement.

A clear, short title

Your project title is the first thing people read, so it should clearly explain what your project is about and your key finding. Keep the wording simple and direct so your audience can quickly understand. Here are some top tips:

• What you did and your results – Use your title to simply state what you did and the outcome. Don’t worry about ‘giving away’ your project results – you want to make it easy for your audience to quickly learn what you did.
• Clear language – Use simple, easy-to-understand language (aim for a grade 7 audience) so that your audience can quickly connect with your project and understand what it is about. Avoid overly technical and scientific jargon – you can explain those terms in the body of your project display.
• Not too long – We recommend no more than 150 characters (your regional STEM fair may have different requirements).
• Be careful using words like “novel” – Using the word “novel” can sound impressive, but it is often overused. The word suggests the research is a totally new approach, material, or finding. While it can suggest originality, many scientific journals consider it “fluff” because all published research is expected to be new.
• Avoid vague words – Words like “things”, “stuff” or “various” aren’t clear enough. Be specific!

A big, bold takeaway statement

Whatever design you choose for your project display, set aside space to use big, easy-to-read text for a takeaway statement: a sentence that summarizes the most important result from your project. When your audience reads it, they should be able to quickly understand what your project is about and the main thing you want them to learn or remember. That way, they will be curious to learn more and can read the rest of your display with some context, instead of hunting through lots of text to understand what your project was even about. Here are some top tips:

• State your main finding – What was the most important finding of your project? That is what you want to quickly teach your audience as they first look at your display. You can explain the specifics with the rest of your display content, but this is your chance to teach someone about your project and what you found in a few seconds.
• Include data – Include specific numbers (percentage, rate of change, efficiency, cost, etc.) to communicate your key finding.
• Clear language – Use simple, easy-to-understand language, just like in your title.
• Avoid “Did you know…” – These are just filler words. Jump straight to your point with a bold statement of your key finding.
• Avoid repetition – Don’t just restate the same thing as your title. This is your spot to share your most interesting data point and teach your audience something.
• Avoid a tagline – Don’t treat your takeaway statement like a tagline. It should teach your audience something specific, not just hint at what your project is about.

Remember

Takeaway statements work for both discovery and innovation projects. For example:

Discovery:

• An increase of 2˚C increases algae growth by 135%.
• Turmeric-infused household cleaner reduced surface bacteria by 28%.
• 15 minutes of daily ping pong improved memory in test-taking students by 31%.

Innovation:

• 3-D printed packing materials are 400x lighter and reduce excess waste by 72%.
• Machine learning model correctly identified skin cancer samples 34% more accurately than specialists.
• Synthetic wax compound decreased cross country ski race times by 17% in slushy conditions.

Title and takeaway statement should work together

To make the biggest impact, make sure your title and takeaway statement compliment each other. Here is an example of an effective title and takeaway statement working together:

Title: Microfilters Catch Microplastics in Washing Machines

Takeaway statement: Washing machines using a microfilter captured 92% more microplastics than a regular drain filter.

The title tells you exactly what the project was about and the outcome (that microplastics were being caught), in easy-to-understand language. The takeaway statement supports the title by giving the most important finding from this project, including a specific data point. This teaches your audience something right away, and encourages them to ask questions and look more closely at the rest of your research to learn more about why you chose this topic, what steps you took to do your project, and how you came up with this finding.

 

Check out our Creating an Effective STEM Project Display resource for more project display information, including a video guide, design guide and display template