Harold's Science Fair Fiasco
A hilarious school experiment gone wrong
About the Book
Harold builds a volcano for the school science fair. Armed with too much baking soda and zero common sense, he creates an unforgettable disaster.
Sneak Peek
Read the opening chapter below.
Meet Hazardous Harold
Harold Mitchell is nine years old, his mum calls "all elbows and knees"—which was a nice way of saying he was tall, gangly, and he tripped over his own feet at least three times a day. His light brown hair never stayed combed for more than five minutes, and his shoelaces had a magical ability to untie themselves whenever he wasn't looking.
His best friend Murphy said Harold was the king of last-minute ideas. His teacher, Mrs. Chen, said he had "untapped potential" (which was teacher code for "could do better if he actually tried"). And his mum said he was "creatively spontaneous" (which pretty much meant he left everything until the last possible second).
But here's the thing: Harold always figured things out. Eventually. Usually. Well... most of the time.
This is the story of the time he didn't figure things out. At least, not the way he planned.
This is the story of the MEGA 3000—the most spectacularly disastrous science fair project in Bondi Primary School history.
And it all started because Harold thought he had plenty of time.
Chapter 1: The Overview
(Or: Harold Has Plenty of Time... Or Does He?)
"Harold!" Mum called from the kitchen. "Don't you have that science fair project due tomorrow?"
Harold was sprawled on the couch, halfway through the best level of Space Warrior III, his controller warm in his hands. Behind him, the kitchen calendar showed Tuesday circled in bright red marker with "SCIENCE FAIR!!!" written in Mum's handwriting.
"Plenty of time, Mum!" Harold called back, not taking his eyes off the screen. "I've totally got this."
He could practically hear her eyebrow raising. Mums had a special talent for communicating disappointment without saying a word. But Harold was confident. He'd pulled off last-minute projects before. Remember that book report he'd written in one night? Sure, he'd spelled the main character's name three different ways, but Mrs. Chen said it showed "creative interpretation."
"Harold James Mitchell," Mum said, appearing in the doorway with her arms crossed.
That was when Harold knew he was in trouble. The full name. Never a good sign.
He paused his game and looked up at her. "I've got a plan... probably."
"Probably?"
"Definitely! I mean, probably definitely. How hard can a science project be? I'll just whip something up tonight. Easy!"
Mum sighed one of those long, patient sighs that parents use when they've seen this movie before and know exactly how it ends. "Harold, you've had three weeks."
"I know, but—"
"Three. Weeks."
"Yes, but I was going to start, and then Murphy invited me over, and then there was that thing at school, and then the weekend happened..." Harold was aware that his excuses were getting weaker with each word.
Mum just looked at him with that knowing expression. The look that said she wasn't going to tell him what to do because he needed to learn this lesson himself.
"Fine," she said. "But remember, Harold—shortcuts usually lead to long delays."
Harold had no idea what that meant, but it sounded like one of those wise parent sayings that would make sense later. Probably. Maybe.
After dinner, Harold finally dragged himself to the kitchen table and pulled out the crumpled science fair guidelines from his backpack. The paper was covered in doodles of spaceships and dinosaurs (he'd been thinking about the project, just not actually doing it).
Requirements:
Demonstrate a scientific principle
Include a hypothesis
Show your work
Present findings to judges
DUE: TOMORROW
Tomorrow. As in, not-three-weeks-from-now tomorrow. As in, less-than-twelve-hours-from-now tomorrow.
"Okay, think, Harold," he muttered to himself, tapping his pencil against the table. "What's easy? What's impressive? What can I build in one night?"
Then it hit him like a lightning bolt of genius: A VOLCANO!
Everyone loved volcanoes! They were flashy, they were dramatic, and most importantly, they were simple. Just mix some stuff together, pour it in, and BOOM—instant science! He'd seen Murphy's older brother make one last year. How hard could it be?
Harold grabbed his notebook and started scribbling:
Harold's Amazing Volcano Project Hypothesis: Vinegar + baking soda = awesome eruption Materials needed: bottle, baking soda, vinegar, red food coloring, cardboard Time needed: Like, two hours? Maybe three?
Perfect! He had this totally under control. He pushed away the tiny voice in his head that whispered, You should have started earlier. Tiny voices in heads don't know anything. Harold Mitchell was the master of last-minute projects! What could possibly go wrong?
-
Chapter 2: The Last-Minute Hasty Decisions
(Or: When Midnight Approaches Too Quickly)
By nine o'clock, Harold was in full project mode. By "full project mode," he meant he was standing in the garage surrounded by random supplies, trying to remember what a volcano actually-looked-like.
"Right," he said to himself, hands on his hips. "First, I need a container for the volcano."
He scanned the garage. Dad's toolbox? Too small. The recycling bin? Too big. Mum's fancy plant pot? Too-much—would get him grounded.
Then he spotted it: the empty water cooler bottle from last month's neighborhood barbecue. It was huge, clear plastic, and absolutely perfect. Plus, bigger was always better, right? If he was making a volcano, he was making a MEGA volcano!
Harold hauled the bottle to his workspace (the garage floor) and started gathering supplies: cardboard boxes from the recycling, packing tape (SO much packing tape), scissors, a funnel from the kitchen, and red food coloring.
"Now for the crucial ingredient," he muttered, heading to the pantry. "Baking soda."
He opened the cupboard and started searching. Flour... sugar... pasta... baking powder... baking powder... more baking powder...
Wait.
Harold checked again, moving containers aside, looking behind things, even checking the top shelf on his tiptoes. No baking soda. Anywhere.
"No, no, no," he whispered, his stomach starting to feel funny.
The clock on the wall showed 9:30 PM. Hardware stores were closed. The supermarket was closed. He couldn't exactly knock on the neighbor's door and ask to borrow science project supplies at this hour.
Think, Harold, think!
His eyes landed back on the baking powder. Two full boxes of baking powder actually. He picked one up and read the label:
BAKING POWDER Contains: Sodium bicarbonate, cream of tartar, cornstarch
Harold squinted at it. Sodium bicarbonate... wasn't that the fancy chemistry name for baking soda? And hey, the first ingredient was basically baking soda plus bonus stuff!
"Close enough," he decided, grabbing both boxes. "It's all chemistry stuff anyway, right? And if a little baking soda makes a good eruption, then baking powder, which contains baking soda, should work just as well. Maybe even better!"
This was brilliant problem-solving! He was practically a scientist already!
(He should mention here that he wasn't really, a scientist. At all. Not even close.)
Back in the garage, Harold got to work. Using the funnel, he carefully poured both entire boxes of baking powder into the water cooler bottle. The white powder settled at the bottom like snow.
"Perfect," he said, even though he had no idea if it was perfect or not.
Next, he added four litters of water from the tap, watching it swirl and cloud as it mixed with the powder. Then he squeezed in an entire bottle of red food coloring—he wanted that lava to look realistic. The mixture turned a murky pink color that looked less like lava and more like strawberry milk, but he figured it would look better when it erupted.
Now came the artistic part: building the volcano shell. Harold cut up cardboard boxes, taping pieces together in a cone shape around the water cooler bottle. It didn't look very volcano-like at first—more like a cardboard tower with a bottle stuck in it—but he kept adding more cardboard, more tape, more structural support (which meant "extra tape in random places").
"Looking good, Harold," he told himself, stepping back to admire his work.
The volcano was... well, it was big. Really big. Way bigger than he'd planned. The cardboard cone was taller than his waist, and it wobbled slightly when he touched it.
"Just needs more tape," he decided, wrapping another layer around the base.
By eleven PM, Harold was covered in sticky tape residue, cardboard dust, and pink food coloring splatters. But the MEGA 3000 was complete! It was magnificent. Okay, it was magnificently wobbly, but still magnificent!
There was just one small problem: it was way too big and heavy to carry.
Harold stared at his creation, then looked around the garage. How was he supposed to get this to school? His eyes landed on the old garden trolley in the corner—the kind with four wheels that you use for hauling bags of soil around.
"Perfect!" He grabbed the trolley and, with considerable effort (and some worrying cracking sounds from the cardboard), he loaded the MEGA 3000 onto it. The volcano overlapped the edges of the trolley. It tilted slightly to one side. When he gave it a test push, the whole thing swayed like it was dancing.
"Totally stable," he lied to himself.
Harold checked the clock: 12:07 AM. He yawned so big his jaw cracked. His eyes felt like sandpaper. But he'd done it! He'd built a science fair project in one night! Take that, three-weeks-of-planning!
As he trudged up to bed, leaving the MEGA 3000 in the garage, he felt a warm glow of satisfaction. Sure, he'd left it until the last minute. Sure, he'd had to improvise with the ingredients. Sure, it looked a bit... unconventional. But it was done! And it was going to be epic.
Tomorrow, everyone at Bondi Primary School was going to see what Harold Mitchell could accomplish with a little creativity and determination. He just had no idea how right he was about the "epic" part. Or how wrong everything else was going to go.
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Bonuses
When you buy this book, don't forget your extras!
· Harold's Circle of Friends (free bonus chapters & sneak peeks)
· Exclusive Coloring Pages
· Educator Notes Pack (lesson plans & guides)