1. Writing reports

2. Writing reports
Scientists carry out their investigations in the laboratory and in the field to answer questions they have. Scientists plan their investigations carefully and make careful and detailed observations. An observation is something you find out with your senses. Scientists also make measurements during investigations and record the results in a data table.
As well and planning and conducting investigations, scientists write a report about how they conducted the investigation, their observations, their findings and their conclusions.
A report is important because other people can find out what was done and what was discovered.

3. a Report has 7 headings A report is organised into 7 headings: TITLE
AIM
MATERIALS
METHOD and LABELLED DIAGRAM
RESULTS
DISCUSSION
CONCLUSION

4. The 7 headings in a report…
TITLE
AIM
MATERIALS
At the top of the report you need to write down:
The name of the investigation
Your name
The date
Next you need to say why you did this investigation. Sometimes this is a question called a hypothesis.
Next you need to list all the materials you used. This includes the equipment and the chemicals.

5. The 7 headings in a report…
METHOD
RESULTS
DISCUSSION
Here you write down what you did in the investigation in numbered steps.
When ever possible include a large neat and labelled diagram of the apparatus (set up).
In your results you record data. Data includes qualitative observations (words) and measurements (numbers).
Usually these are recorded in a data table. This makes the data easier to read.
In your discussion you try to explain your results, and list any problems that you experienced. You might also explain how you could improve the investigation.

6. The 7 headings in a report…
CONCLUSION
Finally, you must include a conclusion in which you answer the question posed in the aim.
Sometimes in your conclusion you can write a generalisation (a general statement) – one that seems true in most cases. I.E. “The heavier the truck the longer it takes to stop”.