Formatting is a crucial element in any academic writing. It makes your arguments easier to understand and eliminates confusion. This allows your readers and supervisors to concentrate on your content. It is also easier to trace information cited, follow the flow of ideas and read more about the subject from your reference materials. Here are rules to follow when formatting a paper for your science fair in APA style.
The page captures the name or title of the paper as a running header, name of institution, name and details of the author and a note about the paper. The note indicates the reason for engaging in research which could be to fulfill certain academic accreditation. Do not use abbreviations or words that have no purpose. Center the page and use 12pts font size unless instructed otherwise.
The title of this section is ‘Abstract’ which should be written in capital letters, centered and with no quotations. The section should summarize the paper by introducing the topic, the questions you seek to answer, approach given and conclusion drawn.
It contains an introduction that opens the debate. The body includes such sections as literature review, data presentation, data analysis, and discussion. Cite all the works referred to and provided full details of the citation at the end of your paper.
Provide full details of books, journals, papers and articles, among other materials used in supporting your discussion. Use an alphabetical order and the right presentation beginning with the name of the author. It must begin on a new page on your document.
APA formatting for your science fair research paper should be consistent. Failure to be inconsistent leads to confusion. You will also be penalized for mixing formatting styles.