1. What do scientists do?

2. Scientists observe.
Scientists observe the world around them and how it works.
They look, listen, and pay close attention to what is going on around them!

3. Scientists ask questions – for example:
Why are things the way they are?
How do things work?
How does the environment affect living things?
How do living things affect the environment?
What can I change?
How can I change it?
Can I find or invent something new?

4. Scientists do research.
They try to find information to help them answer their questions.
What have people already found out that could help them discover more?

5. Scientists try new things.
After they’ve done their research, scientists come up with their own ideas and ways to test them.

6. Scientists make mistakes.
Part of trying something new is trying all kinds of things that probably aren’t going to work!

7. Scientists keep trying.
Thomas Edison, who invented the light bulb (among other things), once said,
“I have not failed. I've just found 10,000 ways that won't work.”

8. Scientists write! Scientists keep track of: Questions Ideas
Experiments
Results

9. Scientists keep notebooks!
Notebooks help scientists record and remember what they have done.
A notebook may have notes, charts, drawings – all kinds of information!
Take a look at these science notebooks:

10. One of Thomas Edison’s notebooks (he had THOUSANDS!)

11. This science notebook belonged to Albert Einstein – he was working on his theory of gravitation at the time, back in

12. This was Alexander Graham Bell’s notebook, with his drawings of what his design for a new invention called the “telephone” would look like. See how his ideas changed from how they looked here at the beginning?

13. A page from one of Galileo’s science notebooks from the early 1500s; these were some of his observations that he recorded as he came to the conclusion that the Earth was not the center of the universe, and that it and all the other planets revolved around the sun.

14. And Leonardo da Vinci? Check this out:
Turning the Pages: Leonardo Da Vinci's notebooks

15. All of these scientists went through exactly the same steps that you will follow:
Observe
Ask questions
Do research
Try new ideas
Make mistakes
Try again!!
And most of all…

16. Keep a science notebook!
It’s the MOST important tool to help scientists do what they do.

17. How should my science notebook look?
It should ALWAYS have:
A Table of Contents
Page numbers
Date & Time for each entry
Purpose for each lesson – what are you learning about and/or doing?

18. It should USUALLY have:
A question that you will answer with an experiment/exploration
Observations & recording of data
A conclusion about what you observed
“Line of Learning” – your teacher will help you summarize the class’ learning and give you any other information you need