1029 science project ideas, from class 1 to college.

What it shows

Variables keep score and lives, and a forever loop with an if block checks again and again whether the fruit touched the bowl. This is the core idea of every simple video game.

You will need

• A computer, laptop or phone with a browser (free)
• Scratch 3 in the browser at scratch.mit.edu (free, no sign-in needed to code)
• Sprites from the Scratch library: a Bowl (or Basket) and an Apple
• A notebook and a pencil

Take it further: Add a second sprite, a rotten fruit, that takes away a life if the bowl touches it, and let the fall speed grow as the score rises.

What it shows

The sprite reads the colour under it with the touching colour block, so you can draw any maze and the game still works. It shows how input from the keyboard turns into movement.

You will need

• A computer, laptop or phone with a browser (free)
• Scratch 3 in the browser at scratch.mit.edu (free, no sign-in needed to code)
• A paint-style backdrop made in the Scratch editor
• A notebook and a pencil

Take it further: Add a Timer display using the timer reporter and keep the best time in a variable.

What it shows

A loop asks random multiplication questions, reads what you type with the answer block and compares it with the right product. It shows how a program takes input and makes decisions.

You will need

• A computer, laptop or phone with a browser (free)
• Scratch 3 in the browser at scratch.mit.edu (free, no sign-in needed to code)
• A friendly sprite such as a Teacher or a Cat
• A notebook and a pencil

Take it further: Add a list called wrong sums and add each missed question to it, then show them at the end for revision.

What it shows

Broadcast messages let sprites talk to each other, so scenes happen in order without anyone clicking. It shows how separate scripts cooperate in one program.

You will need

• A computer, laptop or phone with a browser (free)
• Scratch 3 in the browser at scratch.mit.edu (free, no sign-in needed to code)
• Backdrops and sprites from the Scratch library: a child, a cloud, rain and a rainbow
• A notebook and a pencil

Take it further: Add a second ending chosen by pressing a key, using two different broadcasts, so the story can finish in two ways.

What it shows

A loop inside a loop draws a square 36 times, each turned a little, and the result is a rangoli-like flower. It shows how repeating a simple shape with a small turn builds complex patterns.

You will need

• A computer, laptop or phone with a browser (free)
• Scratch 3 in the browser at scratch.mit.edu (free, no sign-in needed to code)
• The Pen extension (add it with the blue Add Extension button at bottom left)
• A notebook and a pencil

Take it further: Make a custom block called petal with an input for size, and draw a flower of five petal sizes using it.

What it shows

A speed variable that keeps decreasing acts like gravity, and a key press resets it upward. It teaches how simple rules about speed produce natural-looking motion.

You will need

• A computer, laptop or phone with a browser (free)
• Scratch 3 in the browser at scratch.mit.edu (free, no sign-in needed to code)
• A Parrot or Bird sprite and a pipe drawn as a green rectangle in the Paint Editor
• A notebook and a pencil

Take it further: Make two pipes, one at the top and one at the bottom, with a gap between them, and speed them up after every five points.

What it shows

Three hands are turned by formulas using the current hour, minute and second from the computer’s clock. It links maths on angles to coding.

You will need

• A computer, laptop or phone with a browser (free)
• Scratch 3 in the browser at scratch.mit.edu (free, no sign-in needed to code)
• Three sprites drawn as lines: hour, minute and second hand
• A round clock face drawn as a backdrop with numbers 1 to 12
• A notebook and a pencil

Take it further: Add a digital clock using join blocks with current hour, minute and second, and show it beside the analogue clock.

What it shows

A signal sprite changes between stop and walk using wait blocks, and a child sprite checks the signal before moving. It teaches road safety and conditional logic together.

You will need

• A computer, laptop or phone with a browser (free)
• Scratch 3 in the browser at scratch.mit.edu (free, no sign-in needed to code)
• A road backdrop, a child sprite, and a signal sprite with two costumes named stop and walk
• A notebook and a pencil

Take it further: Add a car sprite that glides across only while the signal is stop and make the child lose a life if touched.

What it shows

The ball bounces off the walls and the paddles by changing its direction. It teaches how direction angles work and how two players share one program.

You will need

• A computer, laptop or phone with a browser (free)
• Scratch 3 in the browser at scratch.mit.edu (free, no sign-in needed to code)
• Three sprites: a Ball and two paddles drawn as thin rectangles
• A notebook and a pencil

Take it further: Increase the ball speed by 0.5 after each paddle hit using a speed variable instead of the fixed move 6.

What it shows

Two lists hold matching words at the same positions, and the program picks a random position to ask a question. It shows how lists store related data in order.

You will need

• A computer, laptop or phone with a browser (free)
• Scratch 3 in the browser at scratch.mit.edu (free, no sign-in needed to code)
• A list of 10 Hindi words in English letters with their English meanings (for example paani and water)
• A notebook and a pencil

Take it further: Let the player add new word pairs with ask blocks and add them to the two lists while the game runs.

What it shows

The program waits a random time, changes the colour, and measures how long you take to press a key. It shows how the timer block measures short intervals and how a list can store results.

You will need

• A computer, laptop or phone with a browser (free)
• Scratch 3 in the browser at scratch.mit.edu (free, no sign-in needed to code)
• A sprite with two costumes, red and green circles
• Five friends or family members to test
• A notebook and a pencil

Take it further: Compare reaction time before and after 20 minutes of a video game or before and after sleep, and record the results in a table.

What it shows

A dictionary stores questions with their answers, a for loop asks them one by one, and an if statement compares answers. It is the first full program most students write.

You will need

• A computer, laptop or phone with a browser (free)
• Python 3 with IDLE, or the free Thonny editor, or an online Python runner (all free)
• A notebook and a pencil

Take it further: Shuffle the questions with random.shuffle on a list of the keys so that each game has a different order.

What it shows

Each operation is a separate function, a while loop keeps showing a menu, and an if check stops division by zero. It shows how to organise code into reusable parts.

You will need

• A computer, laptop or phone with a browser (free)
• Python 3 with IDLE, or the free Thonny editor, or an online Python runner (all free)
• A notebook and a pencil

Take it further: Add power and remainder operations and use try and except to handle a letter typed instead of a number.

What it shows

Tasks are written to a file and read back, so the list is still there the next time the program runs. It teaches file handling and lists.

You will need

• A computer, laptop or phone with a browser (free)
• Python 3 with IDLE, or the free Thonny editor, or an online Python runner (all free)
• An empty folder to keep todo.py and the todo.txt file that the program will create
• A notebook and a pencil

Take it further: Store a due date with each task and sort the list so the nearest date comes first.

What it shows

The computer picks a secret number with the random module and gives too high or too low hints. Using the hints well is a binary search, which finds a number in about seven guesses out of 100.

You will need

• A computer, laptop or phone with a browser (free)
• Python 3 with IDLE, or the free Thonny editor, or an online Python runner (all free)
• A notebook and a pencil

Take it further: Let the player choose the upper limit and calculate with math.ceil(math.log2(limit)) how many tries are enough.

What it shows

Python’s turtle module draws on a window. Drawing 72 circles with a 5 degree turn each time makes a spirograph, which shows how loops and angles create patterns.

You will need

• A computer, laptop or phone with a browser (free)
• Python 3 with IDLE, or the free Thonny editor, or an online Python runner (all free)
• Turtle comes built in with Python, nothing extra to install

Take it further: Ask the user for the number of circles with input, calculate the turn angle as 360 divided by that number, and draw any pattern.

What it shows

A dictionary of rooms links each place to the others, and a loop moves the player between them. It shows how data structures can describe a whole game world.

You will need

• A computer, laptop or phone with a browser (free)
• Python 3 with IDLE, or the free Thonny editor, or an online Python runner (all free)
• A rough map of six rooms drawn on paper
• A notebook and a pencil

Take it further: Add an inventory list and objects in rooms that the player can take with a take command.

What it shows

The program appends each entry with today’s date to a file and can print the whole diary. It teaches the date module and the append and read modes of files.

You will need

• A computer, laptop or phone with a browser (free)
• Python 3 with IDLE, or the free Thonny editor, or an online Python runner (all free)
• A notebook and a pencil

Take it further: Add a password check at the start using a stored word so that only you can read the diary.

What it shows

The program reads marks from a CSV file and finds the mean, median, highest, lowest and pass percentage. It shows how code can analyse data that a spreadsheet also holds.

You will need

• A computer, laptop or phone with a browser (free)
• Python 3 with IDLE, or the free Thonny editor, or an online Python runner (all free)
• A CSV file marks.csv made in Notepad or a spreadsheet with a header name,maths and about 20 made-up students
• A notebook and a pencil

Take it further: Add a second subject column and print the student with the best total, and draw a bar of stars for each mark range.

What it shows

The bot scans your sentence for keywords and picks a stored reply. It shows how simple chatbots work and why they fail on things they have no rule for, which is a good lesson for AI literacy.

You will need

• A computer, laptop or phone with a browser (free)
• Python 3 with IDLE, or the free Thonny editor, or an online Python runner (all free)
• A notebook and a pencil

Take it further: Use random.choice on a list of replies for each keyword so the bot does not repeat itself.

What it shows

The computer picks randomly and a dictionary stores what beats what, so the winner is found without a long list of if statements. It shows how data can replace repeated code.

You will need

• A computer, laptop or phone with a browser (free)
• Python 3 with IDLE, or the free Thonny editor, or an online Python runner (all free)
• A notebook and a pencil

Take it further: Add lizard and Spock with their rules and check by simulation that the game stays fair.

What it shows

The program scores a password on length, capital letters, small letters, digits and symbols. It shows how longer and mixed passwords are harder to guess and how string methods work.

You will need

• A computer, laptop or phone with a browser (free)
• Python 3 with IDLE, or the free Thonny editor, or an online Python runner (all free)
• A list of 10 made-up practice passwords (never type your real password)
• A notebook and a pencil

Safety: Test only with made-up passwords. Never type a real password into any program you are testing.

Take it further: Calculate the number of possible passwords as the pool size raised to the length and print it with the score.

What it shows

The program converts between units using stored factors and the Celsius to Fahrenheit formula. It combines maths with menus and functions.

You will need

• A computer, laptop or phone with a browser (free)
• Python 3 with IDLE, or the free Thonny editor, or an online Python runner (all free)
• A notebook and a pencil

Take it further: Add a speed conversion from km/h to m/s by dividing by 3.6 and explain why that factor works.

What it shows

A set stores guessed letters, a join expression shows the word with blanks and a lives counter ends the game. It combines strings, sets, loops and conditions in one program.

You will need

• A computer, laptop or phone with a browser (free)
• Python 3 with IDLE, or the free Thonny editor, or an online Python runner (all free)
• A list of 10 school-related words such as monsoon, library, science
• A notebook and a pencil

Take it further: Read the word list from a text file and add a drawing of the hangman with turtle.