A blueprint for experiment success. Scientific Method A blueprint for experiment success.

What is the scientific method? It is a simple method of common steps scientists use to conduct an investigation. It is a way to ask & answer scientific questions by asking questions & conducting experiments.

I. How does the process start? Make an observation Ask a question about something observed. Why? How? What? Question to be solved. Must be about something measurable.

Observations vs. Inferences Observation – Uses the senses, but can also be of recording data. The car is red. The plant grew 5 cm. Inference – A possible explanation for an observation you have made. Use your prior knowledge

Observations vs. Inferences. Example Observation – The grass on the school’s front lawn is wet. Possible Inferences It rained over night. The sprinklers were just on. There is morning dew on the grass. A dog was there…

Observations vs. Inferences Observation – There is a student sitting in the main office. Make 3 inferences about the situation.

II. Hypothesis Educated guess about how things work or why something happens. Prediction Use If, then statements If ____ [I do this], then _____ [this will happen] because __________(your scientific reasoning)

III. Experiment Tests your hypothesis. Change only one thing (variable) at a time. Use a control or control group (A group that has nothing done to it. Standard used for comparison in an experiment.) Use an experimental group (A group that receives the treatment) In order for results to be valid, conduct multiple trials.

Variables What changes in the experiment Independent Variables What is tested or changed by the scientist Dependent Variables What is observed or measured The effect caused by the independent variable Let's practice identifying variables

III. Experiment Record your data in a data table. Numerical (quantitative) data organized in rows and columns The specific independent variables are listed •The number of trials are listed Blanks are left for the data (dependent variable) to be filled in Not all data is going to be numbers Can be observations using words (qualitative)

III. Experiment Title: Describing the Data Trial Variable 1 Variable 2 3 4 5 AVERAGE

IV. Data Analysis What does the data show? Need to take it from the table to something that is easily readable. Graph/Chart/Diagram Look for trends & relationships.

V. Conclusion Summary of your experiment. After your experiment, analyze your data to see if your hypothesis was accepted or rejected. If hypothesis is rejected, give possible reasons for the difference between your hypothesis and the experimental results.