SCIENTIFIC METHOD AND THE SCIENTIFIC INQUIRY PROCESS
Essential Understandings - There is a process by which scientists gain knowledge. Scientists (and people every day) typically ask questions and follow the Science Inquiry Process (aka Scientific Method) to gain knowledge.
Lesson Objectives
8-Step Scientific Inquiry Process, each student will be able to:
The Scientific Inquiry Process
http://bowenpeters.weebly.com/scientific-method.html
1. Question/Purpose - The scientific method starts when you ask a question about something that you observe: How, What, When, Who, Which, Why, or Where? And, in order for the scientific method to answer the question it must be about something that you can measure, preferably with a number.
2. Research - Rather than starting from scratch in putting together a plan for answering your question, you want to be a savvy scientist using library and Internet research to help you find the best way to do things and insure that you don't repeat mistakes from the past.
3. Hypothesis - A hypothesis is an educated guess about how things work. A good hypothesis has two parts: an explanation of what you think will happen and why you think that will happen. You must state your hypothesis in a way that you can easily measure, and of course, your hypothesis should be constructed in a way to help you answer your original question.
4. Experiment/Observation - Your experiment tests whether your hypothesis is true or false. It is important for your experiment to be a fair test. You conduct a fair test by making sure that you change only one factor at a time while keeping all other conditions the same. You should also repeat your experiments several times to make sure that the first results weren't just an accident. Scientists always record observations (what you can see and measure) throughout the experiment.
5. Analysis/Conclusion - Once your experiment is complete, you collect your measurements and analyze them to see if your hypothesis is true or false. Scientists often find that their hypothesis was false, and in such cases they will construct a new hypothesis starting the entire process of the scientific method over again. Even if they find that their hypothesis was true, they may want to test it again in a new way.
PowerPoint Presentations
Scientific Inquiry Process
Worksheets and Handouts
Scientific Method Word Journal
Making Observations - Can you trust your eyes
Testable Questions - 5th Grade
Background Research - Why do cut apples brown over time?
Writing a Good Hypothesis with Dependent and Independent Variables (with answer key)
Links for Media Used in Class
Optical Illusions
Scientific Variables Animation
Biology for Kids - Scientific Inquiry Process
Class Take-Home Assignment
Handout for the Scientific Inquiry Process with a Control
What are we Doing?: Each student will investigate his/her own testable question following the Scientific Inquiry Process.
When is it Due?: The results of this investigation are due January 6th.
How Long Will it Take?: This assignment will need about 30 minutes of preparation time and about one hour to complete the investigation.
Why are We Doing This?: This take home assignment gives each student the opportunity to practice the skills needed to independently conduct an investigation following the Scientific Inquiry Process.
What Did We Do in Class to Prepare for This Assignment?
Standards
C INQ.1 Identify questions that can be answered through scientific investigation
C INQ.2 Read, interpret and examine the credibility of scientific claims in different sources of information
C INQ.3 Design and conduct appropriate types of scientific investigations to answer different questions
C INQ.4 Identify independent and dependent variables, and those variables that are kept constant when designing an experiment.
C INQ.5 Use appropriate tools and techniques to make observations and gather data
C INQ.6 Use mathematical operations to analyze and interpret data.
C INQ.7 Identify and present relationships between variables in appropriate graphs
C INQ.8 Draw conclusions and identify sources of error
C INQ.9 Provide explanations to investigated problems or questions
C INQ.10 Communicate about science in different formats, using relevant science vocabulary, supporting evidence and clear logic.
Lesson Objectives
8-Step Scientific Inquiry Process, each student will be able to:
- Identify and generate testable questions that require verification, research or an experiment
- Develop criteria for evaluating whether a website or other resource provides objective or subjective information
- Define the following: independent variable, dependent variable, control variable, and The Control (if any)
- Create a hypothesis that is in the proper format and makes an educated prediction
- Conduct an experiment, collect data using a table, analyze data using a graph, and make a data-driven conclusion to answer the testable question
- Communicate findings in a lab-report format and recommend further investigations
The Scientific Inquiry Process
http://bowenpeters.weebly.com/scientific-method.html
1. Question/Purpose - The scientific method starts when you ask a question about something that you observe: How, What, When, Who, Which, Why, or Where? And, in order for the scientific method to answer the question it must be about something that you can measure, preferably with a number.
2. Research - Rather than starting from scratch in putting together a plan for answering your question, you want to be a savvy scientist using library and Internet research to help you find the best way to do things and insure that you don't repeat mistakes from the past.
3. Hypothesis - A hypothesis is an educated guess about how things work. A good hypothesis has two parts: an explanation of what you think will happen and why you think that will happen. You must state your hypothesis in a way that you can easily measure, and of course, your hypothesis should be constructed in a way to help you answer your original question.
4. Experiment/Observation - Your experiment tests whether your hypothesis is true or false. It is important for your experiment to be a fair test. You conduct a fair test by making sure that you change only one factor at a time while keeping all other conditions the same. You should also repeat your experiments several times to make sure that the first results weren't just an accident. Scientists always record observations (what you can see and measure) throughout the experiment.
5. Analysis/Conclusion - Once your experiment is complete, you collect your measurements and analyze them to see if your hypothesis is true or false. Scientists often find that their hypothesis was false, and in such cases they will construct a new hypothesis starting the entire process of the scientific method over again. Even if they find that their hypothesis was true, they may want to test it again in a new way.
PowerPoint Presentations
Scientific Inquiry Process
Worksheets and Handouts
Scientific Method Word Journal
Making Observations - Can you trust your eyes
Testable Questions - 5th Grade
Background Research - Why do cut apples brown over time?
Writing a Good Hypothesis with Dependent and Independent Variables (with answer key)
Links for Media Used in Class
Optical Illusions
Scientific Variables Animation
Biology for Kids - Scientific Inquiry Process
Class Take-Home Assignment
Handout for the Scientific Inquiry Process with a Control
What are we Doing?: Each student will investigate his/her own testable question following the Scientific Inquiry Process.
When is it Due?: The results of this investigation are due January 6th.
How Long Will it Take?: This assignment will need about 30 minutes of preparation time and about one hour to complete the investigation.
Why are We Doing This?: This take home assignment gives each student the opportunity to practice the skills needed to independently conduct an investigation following the Scientific Inquiry Process.
What Did We Do in Class to Prepare for This Assignment?
- We made an observation and brainstormed testable questions: In class we made the observation that cut apples will brown over time. From this observation we brainstormed testable questions related to what could affect an apple turning brown over time. Each student has created a testable question she/he would like to investigate.
- Identified Variables: For his/her experiment, each student has identified the dependent variable (what you measure), the independent variable (what you will change), the controlled variables (what you need to keep the same), and the Control (what you will compare to, typically it would be an apple slice you don't do anything to, just measure how it browns over time).
- Created a Hypothesis: Each student has made an educated prediction about what they think will happen.
- Listed Materials and a Procedure: Each student has made a list of materials needed to complete her/his experiment and created a written plan for carrying out the investigation. It is recommended that a tray be prepared onto which the apple slices can be left to brown, with labels for each independent variable and the Control.
- Discussed the Data to be Recorded: A data chart has been provided in the handout for this assignment. We spoke in class about the type of data each student will collect. Since we are measuring how brown an apple gets over time, most students will be rating the "brownness" of the apple on a scale of 0 (not brown at all) to 5 (dark brown). Please have the student take a picture of the apple slices just before he/she starts the timer and at every time interval that they make an observation. When we evaluate the data together, these pictures will be used to help distinguish between objective and subjective information.
Standards
C INQ.1 Identify questions that can be answered through scientific investigation
C INQ.2 Read, interpret and examine the credibility of scientific claims in different sources of information
C INQ.3 Design and conduct appropriate types of scientific investigations to answer different questions
C INQ.4 Identify independent and dependent variables, and those variables that are kept constant when designing an experiment.
C INQ.5 Use appropriate tools and techniques to make observations and gather data
C INQ.6 Use mathematical operations to analyze and interpret data.
C INQ.7 Identify and present relationships between variables in appropriate graphs
C INQ.8 Draw conclusions and identify sources of error
C INQ.9 Provide explanations to investigated problems or questions
C INQ.10 Communicate about science in different formats, using relevant science vocabulary, supporting evidence and clear logic.