1. How to Write a Proper Formal Lab Report!
A quick and easy guide on
How to Write a Proper Formal Lab Report!
L. Bernard, 2015

2. What is a formal lab report?
L. Bernard, 2015

3. What is a formal lab report?
A detailed explanation of your lab experiment including
What was done
Why was it done
How was it done
What did you figure out once you were done
L. Bernard, 2015

4. What sections should be included?
Introduction
Materials List
Procedure
Results
Discussion
Why Did We Do This?
Conclusion
L. Bernard, 2015

5. Introduction (5-8 sentences)
Overview of lab experiment
Purpose of lab
Important background information
What did you know about the subject before you did the experiment?
Hypothesis ONLY IF YOU MADE ONE DURING YOUR EXPERIMENT
L. Bernard, 2015

6. Materials Bulleted list of all materials used in lab experiment
Glassware
Instruments
Chemical compounds
Include units of measurement when necessary
L. Bernard, 2015

7. Procedure Give a quick overview of how the lab was performed
Should be a paragraph, not a numbered list
Does not need to be detailed
L. Bernard, 2015

8. Results WHAT did you find? EXPLAIN your findings
Use tables, charts, graphs if necessary
Include your observations here
L. Bernard, 2015

9. Discussion (8-10 sentences)
WHY were your results like this?
EXPLAIN what caused your data
Connect this section back to background information in introduction
Did your experiment go like you expected it to?
Report error
Use the post-lab questions to help you determine what to write
L. Bernard, 2015

10. Why Did We Do This (2 sentences)
WHY DID WE DO THIS LAB?
L. Bernard, 2015

11. Conclusion (5-8 sentences)
Summary of the entire report
Should be short and to the point
Reflect on the experiment
Did your results match your hypothesis?
What improvements could be made to the experiment?
How could you experiment further?
Real-world applications
L. Bernard, 2015

12. What Should My Report Look Like?
Typed
12 pt font
Times New Roman
Double Spaced
Title
Name, date, and class at top of first page
Header for each section
L. Bernard, 2015

13. Lab Report Etiquette Do not use familiar pronouns
“I”, “my”, “you”, “we”, “us”, etc.
Include enough detail but don’t ramble
If it’s longer than 5 pages, rethink your priorities!
Give credit where credit is due
If you look information up online, include where you got that information!
Plagiarism is BAD!
L. Bernard, 2015