Scientific MethodThe process of science in every day life

1. The Broken Phone You woke up to find that your cell phone

is not working.

What do you do?!?

Scientific Method

The scientific method is a series of steps taken to investigate issues and discover possible solutions.

6 Steps of the scientific method:QuestionResearchHypothesisExperimentDataConclusion

Situation Observation: obtaining information

by using the senses.

This plant seem to be healthy, but it’s the same size as it was last year.

What is the initial observation that is leading to questioning?

What questions pop into your head?

1. Question What should our question be?

Will this plant grow bigger if I use a better, more expensive dirt?

2. Research

What type of research should we do? What does a soil contain that makes a

plant grow? What types of soils are there? What makes one better than the other?

3. HypothesisA hypothesis is a proposed explanation or an educated guess.

Found in “If… then… “form.

Take 15 seconds and write down a possible hypothesis.

*Vocabulary* What is a Variable?

A variable is a factor that is of interest. Person or group of people Materials, objects or items Non-material things like

Age or height Minutes or days Miles or liters

*Vocabulary*Independent Variable

Variable that is being tested

Cause Action Before

Dependent Variable

Variable that is measured at the end

Effect Reaction After

Identify the Independent and dependent variables in your hypothesis.

*Vocabulary*Experimental Group

Group or subject that is being tested

Control Group

Group or subject that the experimental group is being compared to

Identify the experimental and control groups in your experiment

*Vocabulary* Control Variable(s) are variables that

must stay the same between the experimental group and the control group. Same amount of dirt Same amount of water Same type and size of plant Same amount of sunlight Same pot size…

Identify the control variables in our experiment.

Before we start!What materials do we need?

2 Identical Plants WaterSunlightOld dirtExpensive dirtPencil & Paper

4. ExperimentExperimental Group

Small house fern in a small pot

Regular dirt 100 mL of

water/wk Some sunlight

Control Group Small house fern

in a pot New expensive

dirt 50 mL of water/wk Full sunlight

4. ExperimentExperimental Group

Small house fern in a pot

New Expensive dirt

100 mL of water/wk

Full sunlight

Control Group Small house fern

in a pot Regular old dirt 100 mL of

water/wk Full sunlight

5. Data After 5 weeks, this is what we see:

Left – regular dirt; Right – expensive dirt.

*Vocabulary* What is ‘Validity?’

Being logically and factually sound and acceptable.

6. Conclusion Look back at your hypothesis. Is it valid? What did you observe? Was your hypothesis correct? Why or Why not?

A Good Conclusion Has Confirmed or Unsupported hypothesis

Restate some important facts/definitions

State all observations

State why these observations happened using facts, definitions, key terms

How to present data: There are three ways to present your

data:

Pie graph

Line graph

Bar graph

PIE GRAPH

Parts of a Whole

GreenD. GrayOrangeLight Gray

LINE GRAPH:change vs. time

Category 1

Category 2

Category 3

Category 4

0

1

2

3

4

5

6

Series 1Series 2Series 3

BAR GRAPH

Categ

ory

1

Categ

ory

3012345

Series 1

Series 1

Category vs Value