Biology Laboratory Report Writing Checklist Write in the 1st person Use pronouns such as “I” and “We” to indicate you performed the experiments. Write succinctly Try to keep your sentences direct and avoid adding in unecessary details. Reference all information acquired from sources other than your own knowledge If you find information in a book, a scientific paper, or your lab manual; you must reference where you obtained the information from. Begin the report with a short abstract An abstract should be a one paragraph summary of your entire lab report, including results and their significance. Provide background in the introduction This is where you introduce the topic of your experiment. Be sure to include references to any sources used. Include your purpose and hypothesis in your introduction Your introduction should conclude with the experimental purpose and your hypotheses for the laboratory. Write the materials & methods in past tense and in paragraph format Enough detail should be provided in this section for someone else to run the experiments. Display tables and figures in your results section Your experimental data should be presented in either a table or a figure. Properly number and label all tables and figures Tables and figures are numbered separately. Each should have its own descriptive title. Titles go above tables and below figures. Write out a brief description of your results This should accompany your tables and figures and be written in paragraph format. Explain your results in the discussion section Use this section to go into detail about what your results mean in reference to the laboratory purpose. Reference tables and figures in your discussion When discussing your results make sure you reference the table or figure you can find that data in. State conclusions in your discussion These should be in reference to the original laboratory purpose and your hypotheses. Include a references section References should be listed in an organized and consistant manner (alphabetical, numbered, etc.) REMEMBER DO NOT - Use emotional language - Explain data in the results section - Quote reference materials - Display data in a table AND a figure