<p>Revised 1999-2000 DT 1 per student, Grade 6 only</p><p>THE SCIENTIFIC METHOD (Steps Scientists Use to Solve a Problem or Conduct an Investigation) PLEASE KEEP THIS ALL YEAR!</p><p>BACKGROUND INFORMATION Def: Before conducting an investigation, you should research information that is already known about your topic. “Background Information” will help you understand your topic better. Notes: 1. Background information may be gathered from books, scientific magazines, TV programs, videos, computers, living experts, your own observations, etc. 2. Background information may be written in either paragraph form or list form. PROBLEM Def: The "problem" is the question you (the scientist) plan to answer by conducting a scientific investigation. In other words, you plan to "solve" this "problem" so the rest of humanity can benefit from what you learn. Notes: The problem, in our class, will always be written in the form of a question. HYPOTHESIS Def: The "hypothesis" is an educated guess or explanation that answers the question in the problem. In other words, it tells how you think the problem might be solved. Notes: The investigation you conduct will test this hypothesis. In our class, the hypothesis may be written as an "if/then" statement. To develop a good hypothesis, you must consider the background information that you have researched, then write the hypothesis like this: If (state a CAUSE of the result you expect), then (state the RESULT you expect to occur). MATERIALS Def: The "materials" are the supplies and equipment you will need to “test” whether your hypothesis is correct or incorrect. Notes: Be specific about sizes, numbers, and types of materials. List materials in columns and rows, not sentences. PROCEDURE Def: The "procedure" is the list of steps that you will follow to prove whether the hypothesis you have written is correct or incorrect. This is the actual scientific "test,” "investigation,” or “experiment.” Notes: The procedure should tell, step by step, exactly what you plan to do to “test” the hypothesis you have written. Each step should be numbered. DATA Def: Anything you observe while conducting your investigation must be recorded as "data." Notes: Data should be recorded in an easy-to-read format such as tables, charts, graphs, diagrams, or labeled sketches. It should not be written in paragraph form. DISCUSSION Def: "Discussion" is the place to record any questions that arise during the investiga- tion. It is also the place to record comments about any unusual happening that you'd like to think more about, any additional hypotheses you came up with, any mistakes you think might have been made, any relationship between what you've done and what other scientists already know, etc. CONCLUSION Def: A "conclusion" is the answer to the problem that you discovered through your scientific investigation. Notes: Your conclusion may be quite different from the hypothesis you wrote. This is not only okay, it is expected to happen MOST of the time. A conclusion is written in a very formal style and must: l. Tell whether the hypothesis is accepted or rejected (Either is okay.) 2. Restate the hypothesis (to remind everyone what it was) 3. Summarize the procedure you used, and discuss any problems you encountered. 4. Analyze (Tell about) the facts (data) collected during the investigation 5. State a new hypothesis for future study (only if original was rejected).</p><p>SAMPLE “LAB REPORT”: Water Drop Investigation</p><p>BACKGROUND INFORMATION 1. A penny is made of copper. (information you found in an encyclopedia) 2. A penny has a "lip" around its edges. (information you observed yourself) PROBLEM How many drops of water can a penny hold? HYPOTHESIS If more than one drop of water is dropped on top of a penny, then the water will spill over the lip of the penny. MATERIALS penny 50mL of water (Notice that this does not say "a little bit of water") eyedropper PROCEDURE 1. Place a clean, dry penny, face up, on a flat surface. 2. Using an eyedropper, drop water, one drop at a time, onto the penny’s face. Record observations. DATA Number of Water Drops Penny Can Hold Hypothesized # Actual # 1 20 DISCUSSION 1. As more and more drops of water were added on top of the penny, a dome-like shape began to appear. What makes this happen? 2. Is the lip on every penny a different height? Are there spots on the lip of the penny that are lower than others? If so, is this where the water first started spilling over? 3. Did the water form a dome shape because of “surface tension”? CONCLUSION The hypothesis is rejected. It stated that "if more than one drop of water is dropped on top of a penny, then the water will spill over the lip of the penny." To test the hypothesis, water was dropped from a dropper onto the surface of a penny, and the number of drops was counted until the water started to spill over the lip of the penny. During the test, it was observed that the penny held 20 drops of water, 19 more than expected. It was also observed that, as each new drop of water was added, the water on top of the penny began to take on a dome-like shape. Therefore, a better hypothesis would be, "If the lip of a penny is .5mm tall, the penny can hold at least 20 drops of water without spillage."</p>