1. Scientific Inquiry

2. Scientific Inquiry Think about the experiment you did yesterday.
Do you recall any special steps that you followed to complete the lab?
What are some of these steps?

3. Scientific Inquiry The Steps of the Scientific Method are…
Recognize the Problem
Observe and Infer
Form a Hypothesis
Test Your Hypothesis
Plan the Experiment
Do the Experiment
Analyze Your Data
Draw Conclusions
Communicate Findings

4. Recognize the Problem
A scientific problem is simply a question you do not know the answer to.
To solve the problem, you must do research using sources of information such as books and the internet. Can you think of other resources?

5. Observe and Infer
Observations can be bits of information you gather with your senses. Most scientific observations are made with your 5 senses. What are the 5 senses?

6. Observe and Infer An inference is a conclusion about an observation.
You use prior knowledge to form a conclusion about an observation.
What can you infer from this ad?

7. Observe and Infer
Observation – It tastes sweet. It has a texture like bread. It smells like chocolate. (Using your senses)
Inference – It is chocolate cake (use prior knowledge to form a conclusion)

8. Form a Hypothesis
After a problem is identified, a scientist might make a hypothesis.
A hypothesis is a statement that can be tested.
Hypotheses are based on observations, research, and prior knowledge of a problem.

9. Scientific Terms Hypothesis – A statement that can be tested.
Theory – An explanation supported by results of many experiments. Theories try to explain why something happens.
Law – Describes the behavior of something in nature. Laws predict or describe what will happen in a given situation, but they don’t always explain why it happens.

10. Test Your Hypothesis
An experimental investigation is a series of carefully planned steps used to test a hypothesis.

11. Test Your Hypothesis
The one factor that you change in an experiment is called the independent variable.
A dependent variable is the factor, or outcome, that will be measured in an experiment.
In this experiment the scientist wanted to know if growing a plant in the dark would affect how much it grows.
What is the Independent Variable?
What is the Dependent Variable?
Putting the plant in the dark.
How much the plant grew.

12. Plan the Experiment
When planning the experiment scientists often use constants to test only one variable at a time.
Constants are factors in an experiment that stay the same.
Experimental investigations also have a control. A control is the one test that is not changed.
In this experiment the same types of containers, soil, plants, and water were used.
What are the constants?
Did this experiment use a control
Containers, soil, plants, and water
Yes, the plant that grew in light.

13. Do the Experiment Write down a plan to follow.
Gather all materials needed for the experiment.
Set up your experiment
Record your observations in a journal.
Use data tables or charts to record your measurements.

14. Analyze Your Data Data are collected during an experiment.
(Data – plural, Datum – singular)
An scientist must record and study the data collected before he or she can draw conclusions about an experiment.

15. Analyze Your Data
Data can be measurements like length, time, distance.
Other data you collect may include observations that use adjectives and phrases such as faster, smaller, not as well as, and greener.

16. Draw Your Conclusions
A conclusion is a statement based on what was observed.

17. Communicate Findings
An important step in the scientific process is to communicate the results of an investigation.
When results of experiments are communicated, other researchers can determine what to do next to help solve a problem.

18. Vocabulary Scientific Method – Observation – Inference – Hypothesis –
Independent Variable –
Dependent Variable –
Control –
Conclusion –