What is your Objective? THE PROBLEM  Curiosity???????? ???????? Observation is a key element here!!! Stop and Think: On page eight of your INB write 2-3 random observations you’ve made lately. Ex. Why does it seem like the moon is following me.

RESEARCH Gather Information Get some Background about the topic

THE HYPOTHESIS What is a HYPOTHESIS? They can never be completely proven…..but one single experiment can disprove it. IT IS A PREDICTION!! A POSSIBLE EXPLANATION FOR THE OBSERVED SET OF FACTS in the form of a statement.

Procedure - Time to Experiment!!! Plan the design of your Experiment. Write the steps of procedure Consider the following………

Is it a Controlled Experiment or Field Experiment?? Both Types will have Variables that need to be looked at. Independent Variable Dependent Variable Control group Constants

INDEPENDENT VARIABLE (Manipulated Variable) The one you will vary to see how it may affect the dependent variable

DEPENDENT VARIABLE (Responding Variable) The One You Measure as a result of the changing Independent variable (the data)

Stop and Think: On page eight of your INB please write below your observations, the independent and dependent variables of the following scenario. Students of different ages were given the same jigsaw puzzle to put together. They were timed to see how long it took to finish the puzzle.

To do a Fair Test (Controlled Experiment) and Obtain a Valid Conclusion you need to……… KEEP ALL VARIABLES CONSTANT, EXCEPT FOR THE INDEPENDENT VARIABLE. Examples: amount of sunlight, species of plant, amount of water Stop and Think: In your own words what does it mean to keep all variables constant in an experiment. (Do this on page eight of INB below variables)

OTHER FACTORS TO CONSIDER WHEN EXPERIMENTING……. How many individuals will you test? How many trials? What outside environmental factors do you need to keep constant? Safety precautions.

Conduct the Experiment A Experimental Group will be the group with the Independent Variable: In this example, the plants receiving the fertilizer. A Control Group will be the group without the Independent Variable In this example, the plants receiving water only Stop and Think: Why is a control group necessary? (Write answer on page eight of INB)

Observation - GATHERING DATA Make a data table Label the sections of your table. Always put in the correct units given or being used # of Days Height of First Plant Height of Second Plant 15 cm3cm 28cm7 cm 316cm12 cm

RESULTS Always Title graph and label the X and Y axis. What are the Independent and Dependent Variables in this experiment?

Accept or Reject your Hypothesis (Meaning: was your hypothesis supported?) What were the sources of error? What patterns did you observe? WHAT WOULD YOU PUT IN YOUR CONCLUSION?

NOW WHAT???? REPEAT, REPEAT, REPEAT!!!!!

What else do you have to add to the Scientific Method to make it a Lab Report??? The Parts of a Lab Report are: Objective Hypothesis (Question to test) Materials Required Procedure and Observations Data Analysis (Graphical representation, if applied) Discussion and Conclusions