School
Science fair volunteer sign-up
Science fair morning needs judges who know which hour they’re in the gym, and a setup crew that is not the same as the judges. Those are different slots.
Why the group text fails
A form that asks “can you judge?” gives you a pile of maybes. You still have to build the schedule by hand and email it back. Start with the blocks.
What the sheet should do
- Judging blocks have a capacity that matches the number of projects you can cover.
- Setup and check-in are earlier slots, so they don’t depend on judges arriving early.
- CSV export is your name-tag list.
Tips from running this kind of sheet
- Say how long a judge spends per project and whether they need a science background. Many good judges are just careful adults.
- Don’t publish student project titles tied to student names on a public link if you can avoid it.
- Feed the judges. A hospitality slot is how that happens.
- Add a float slot for the project whose student is late. Someone needs to be unassigned.
Starter slots
Judging is 8:30–11:30 in two blocks. You don’t need to be a scientist. Please don’t photograph projects. Setup is the day before. The button below copies these into a new sheet you can edit before anyone sees it.
Setup, afternoon before
Tables, extension cords, project numbers
6 people
Judge, block A
8:30–10:00
10 people
Judge, block B
10:00–11:30
10 people
Check-in table
Name tags and the map
3 people
Judge hospitality
Coffee and a quiet corner
2 people
Questions
Can judges sign up without a school email?
Yes. Any email works. They don’t create a password.
What if we need more judges after projects are counted?
Increase the capacity. Waitlisted judges are promoted when you save a higher number.