The Scientific Method in Earth Science Step of the Scientific Method

Make an Observation Simply put you use your senses, hear, touch, smell, taste, & sight to observe something Simply put you use your senses, hear, touch, smell, taste, & sight to observe something When you cook something and taste it you are making an observation When you cook something and taste it you are making an observation When you watch the news you are making an observation When you watch the news you are making an observation

Ask a Question After you make an observation you might ask a question about what you observed After you make an observation you might ask a question about what you observed Believe it or not when you ask a question you are using the scientific method and don’t even know it Believe it or not when you ask a question you are using the scientific method and don’t even know it When you ask questions about science you are using the scientific method When you ask questions about science you are using the scientific method

Form a Hypothesis Hypothesis is a possible explanation or answer to the question or an (educated guess) Hypothesis is a possible explanation or answer to the question or an (educated guess) A Hypothesis has to be a testable explanation to the question A Hypothesis has to be a testable explanation to the question

Test Your Hypothesis Once a hypothesis is established, it must be tested Once a hypothesis is established, it must be tested To test a hypothesis you must gather data or research it To test a hypothesis you must gather data or research it Then you create an experiment to prove your hypothesis (sometimes it is not supported by the experiment) Then you create an experiment to prove your hypothesis (sometimes it is not supported by the experiment)

Analyze the Results This is where you organize your information so you can make sense of it This is where you organize your information so you can make sense of it Make graphs Make graphs Make tables and charts Make tables and charts Look at the pictures that you took of the experiment Look at the pictures that you took of the experiment

Draw Conclusion After analyzing the results of their tests scientists can draw conclusions After analyzing the results of their tests scientists can draw conclusions They must decide if the test supports their hypothesis or not They must decide if the test supports their hypothesis or not If it doesn’t it could lead to another question or they may repeat the experiment to check for errors If it doesn’t it could lead to another question or they may repeat the experiment to check for errors If it support the hypothesis they must communicate their results If it support the hypothesis they must communicate their results