Characteristics of Life Design Your Own Lab

(DYO Lab)

• You will draw which pair of objects you will design an experiment to test:A rock and a seed ORA fake flower and a real flower

• You will design an experiment to demonstrate which object is living and which is non-living.

• I probably have most of the materials you will need, but ask before you assume. Any materials that the school doesn’t have, you will need to supply.

• If you have the rock and seed, you will receive a rock and a fast growing plant seed (radish or nasturtium).

• If you have the fake flower and real flower, you will receive a fake flower and a cut daisy or carnation (white).

Steps• Write your lab question.• Decide which characteristic(s) of life you

are looking for and how you will recognize them.

• Write a hypothesis in the “If . . . then . . . because . . .” format.Your hypothesis must tell what results you expect to see from each object based upon the treatment you give it. (Your hypothesis should NOT address whether it is living or not, that is a conclusion NOT a prediction.)

Hypothesis

If . . . then . . . because . . . format

If we do this, then this will happen, because give the scientific reason.

If we do this

• Tell what you will do to both groups.

• Ex: If I feed one goldfish fish food and one goldfish worms

Then this will happen

• Tell the results that will occur for both groups

• Then the goldfish that eats fish food will not grow as large as the goldfish that eats worms

• Notice that I am comparing the two goldfish, not just telling what happens to one

because

• Provide the scientific reason that backs up your prediction

• Because fish food does not have as many nutrients as worms

• Write your materials list. Check with me that all materials are available.

• Write your procedure. Your procedure must be checked before you are allowed to start your experiment tomorrow.