SCIENTIFIC METHOD
What is the Scientific Method?
1) Ask A Question2) Do Background ResearchFollowing the scientific method, we come up with a question that we want to answer, we do some initial research, and then before we set out to answer the question by performing an experiment and observing what happens, we first clearly identify what we "think" will happen.
3) Construct a HypothesisWe make an "educated guess." We write a hypothesis. What you "think" will happen, of course, should be based on your preliminary research and your understanding of the science and scientific principles involved in your proposed experiment or study. In other words, you don't simply "guess." You're not taking a shot in the dark. You're not pulling your statement out of thin air. Instead, you make an "educated guess" based on what you already know and what you have already learned from your research.
How to Create a Hypothesis
"If _____[I do this] _____, then ____[this]____ will happen." In order to write a solid hypothesis, you need to understand what your variables are for your project. And remember your predictions need to be easy to measure.
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Variables
Explore what a variable in an experiment is. Then take the Variables Quiz in your Google Classroom.
Scientists try to figure out how the natural world works. In doing so, they use experiments to search for cause and effect relationships. Cause and effect relationships explain why things happen and allow you to reliably predict what will happen if you do something. In other words, scientists design an experiment so that they can observe or measure if changes to one thing cause something else to vary in a repeatable way.
The things that are changing in an experiment are called variables. A variable is any factor, trait, or condition that can exist in differing amounts or types. An experiment usually has three kinds of variables: independent, dependent, and controlled.
The things that are changing in an experiment are called variables. A variable is any factor, trait, or condition that can exist in differing amounts or types. An experiment usually has three kinds of variables: independent, dependent, and controlled.
- The independent variable is the one that is changed by the scientist.
- The dependent variables are the things that the scientist focuses his or her observations on to see how they respond to the change made to the independent variable.
- Experiments also have controlled variables. Controlled variables are quantities that a scientist wants to remain constant, and she or he must observe them as carefully as the dependent variables.
- In the best experiments, the scientist must be able to measure the values for each variable.
4) Test Your Hypothesis by Doing an Experiment:
Next we set out to prove or disprove the hypothesis.
Your experiment tests whether your prediction is accurate and thus your hypothesis is supported or not. 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.
Your experiment tests whether your prediction is accurate and thus your hypothesis is supported or not. 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.
5) Analyze Your Data and Draw a Conclusion
Once your experiment is complete, you collect your measurements and analyze them to see if they support your hypothesis or not.
- Summarize your science fair project results in a few sentences and use this summary to support your conclusion. Include key facts from your background research to help explain your results as needed.
- State whether your results support or contradict your hypothesis. (Engineering & programming projects should state whether they met their design criteria.)
- If appropriate, state the relationship between the independent and dependent variable.
- Summarize and evaluate your experimental procedure, making comments about its success and effectiveness.
- Suggest changes in the experimental procedure (or design) and/or possibilities for further study.
6) Communicate Your Results
Next you will communicate your results to others in a final report and/or a display board. Professional scientists do almost exactly the same thing by publishing their final report in a scientific journal or by presenting their results