The resources on this page have been selected to support educators in finding CREST project ideas that require little equipment, can be run outside of a lab or at home, and use equipment that doesn’t require much sharing.
Find out more about the different CREST Award levels here: CREST Awards.
At primary level, our curated home learning packs don’t require many resources so they’re perfect to use either in the classroom or at home. For Primary teachers who have CLEAPSS access, we recommend this piece on doing Practical activities within your bubble.
At secondary level, each project brief has an overall challenge, ideas for getting started and a list of resources you might need. Read the health and safety section carefully before you begin. Young people should create a plan for their project and a risk assessment before they begin any practical activity. You can use the CLEAPSS student safety sheets as well as the rest of the CLEAPSS website to help them.
If you are looking for further advice on how to get started with CREST, visit our help centre and check out our FAQs.
If you are looking for ideas for running CREST at home, many of the below resources are suitable, and you can still access our Star and SuperStar Home Learning packs below. If you need further support, check out the CREST at home section of the Help Centre.
Click to edit project description
How healthy is your spread? In this project you will investigate the fat and salt contents of various types of spread. At the end you should suggest which type of spread should be used by a patient with coronary heart disease. Before you start any tests, you should research the disease. Find out about the effects of high cholesterol and high blood pressure, and what in turn can cause these symptoms. Getting Started You should start this project with some research. Try finding out about the various different types of spread that are available - for example, butter, margarine and their numerous alternatives (low-fat, no-added salt etc.) Things to think about You could search for just how low in fat something has to be before it can claim to be low-fat on its label. Also find out what saturated and unsaturated fat means. Ask people which spread they buy, and ask for their reasons. You now have to choose some spreads to test (about six should be enough). Try to get a wide variety. Find out, from the labels, how much salt and fat each one contains. Write down how much of each fat is saturated and unsaturated. Testing your spread: You’re now going to carry out some tests to find (a) the fat content of your different spreads, (b) the salt content of your spreads, and (c) how unsaturated the fats are in the spreads. • Techniques to try include: • Fat content – Gravimetric analysis • Salt content – Chloride titrations • Unsaturation – Bromine water titration The results: Use the information gained from your results, together with your previous research, to decide which spreads would be best for somebody with heart disease. Explain why. Click to edit project description How did your results compare to the values given on the spreads’ packaging? Can you explain why there were any discrepancies? Suggest some improvements to your methods. Useful Resources You may need some help from your teacher to find out how to do the tests.
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These challenges take about an hour each. Once you have completed eight of them you can get a CREST SuperStar Award. Start by downloading the Passport. Children can use this to record each activity they complete.
Our curated packs for home learning require very little equipment or resources, so are ideal now that you are back in the classroom. They also add flexibility as students can finish their Star or SuperStar Award at home, if needed.
Each challenge has an organiser card and an activity card. All the instructions to set up the activity are in the organiser card. Read the 'watch out' section carefully before you begin. Children can use the activity card or you can read it through together.
Find out more about Star and SuperStar levels here.
Each of these projects take between ten and thirty hours to complete. The project briefs have an overall challenge, ideas for getting started and a list of resources students might need. Before they begin, students should read the health and safety section carefully. Once students have completed their projects, they can get a CREST Discovery, Bronze, Silver or Gold Award. The amount of time spent on the project and how well they met the CREST criteria determines the level students will be awarded.
Start by downloading the relevant Workbook or Profile Form below. Young people can use these to help them complete their project and record their progress.
Young people should create a plan for their project and a risk assessment before they begin any practical activity, which should be checked by a teacher. You can use the CLEAPSS student safety sheets as well as the rest of the CLEAPSS website to help them.
For Bronze projects, once a student has completed their project, you can sign up to assess it and order their personalised certificate here. Bronze assessment is incredibly easy and can also be adapted for at-home learning if needed due to unexpected lockdowns, meaning parents can always assess when teachers cannot. Check out how to assess a Bronze project here
For Silver and Gold projects student work will need to be submitted online and will be assessed by a CREST assessor. Learn more about assessment for Silver Awards here
Find out more about Bronze level here.
Find out more about Silver level here.
Find out more about Gold level here.
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