Scientific Method

• What is the Scientific Method?

• The Scientific Method: 6 steps to experimentation.

• The Scientific Method: procedures involving observation and identification of a problem, formulation and testing of a hypothesis, data collection through experimentation and analysis and communication of results. (Was the hypothesis accepted or rejected?)

Step 1 (red)

Identify problem & Ask Question

• Purpose: What interests you or what do you want to find out?

• Question: Put your topic into a question that will be answered by research. This is also called “writing a problem”.

Step 1 (continued)

How do you write the Problem?

• State the problem as an open ended question.

• You should NOT be able to answer with a “yes” or “no”.

• This is the first step to designing an experiment.

Step 2Research (orange)

• Research

• Observations

• What do you already know about the topic? Do you need to find more info?

• Can be based on research, the results of a previous experiment, or observations of the world around you.

• Qualitative – Using your senses to make an appropriate description of an object. Qualitative observations are general in nature.

• Quantitative – Observations involving the measurement of quantity or an amount. Specific in nature.

Step 3

Form a Hypotheses

• Answer your problem or question, by writing a hypothesis. Make an educated guess.

• A hypothesis is an idea than can and must be tested.

• A hypothesis does NOT have to be right.

Step 3 continued

• Form a hypothesis

• Must be written in if… then… formatWhere “if” is the IV or cause and “then” is the effect (response)

• If I study more, then I will earn better grades.

Step 4Experiment • An actual

experiment that you will conduct.

• Contain step-by-step procedures using verbs.

• Gather info and test hypothesis.

Step 4 continued

• Develop a procedure

• What materials do you need?

• Written in short, easy to follow steps.

• Have steps that begin with verbs.

• Be clear and detailed enough so someone can reproduce your study. (like a recipe!)

Step 4 continued

• Variables• Independent Variable – the

manipulated (changed) variable in an experiment that determined the effect on something else. (cause)

• Dependent Variable – Measured or observed variable(s) in experiments in which changes are always in response to the independent variable. (effect)

• Control Variable – the variable(s) that remains the same (constant) in an experiment.

Step 5

Analysis • This is the data that you have collected.• Displayed in a

graph, table, picture, or combo of many.

Step 6

Conclusion

• Written in paragraph form.• Answer the original question.• Was hypothesis accepted or

rejected? Why or why not? Explain.

• Don’t worry about negative or unexpected results.

• Evaluate your data and communicate results.

• What would you do differently?

Your assignment

• You will write a descriptive process analysis paragraph about a question or problem you solved (unknowingly) using the Scientific Method.

• You must identify each step of the Scientific Method somehow. You can color code by underlining the sentences that go with each step. You can indicate in the margins where each step begins. Be creative.

State problem or Ask a question

• Which cupcake will I like the best?

Red Velvet Vanilla Carrot

Must be open ended, Which, How, Why! Not Do or Does. Must be testable, can’t be answered Yes or No.

ResearchBackground knowledge

What do you already know?

• I love cake and I love chocolate. Vanilla tends to be bland to me. I am pretty picky when it comes to Carrot Cake.

• However, the Red Velvet and Carrot have Cream Cheese frosting and the Vanilla has Buttercream frosting. I love Cream Cheese frosting.

Hypothesis

• A Hypothesis does not need to be correct!• Use prior knowledge to make an educated

guess.• If I try these cupcakes, then the Red Velvet will

be the best one.

Experiment

• Try the cupcakes (test your hypothesis)• Remember this is just a descriptive piece of

writing about you using the scientific method to form a conclusion about something. There aren’t necessarily procedures and variables that need to be discussed.

Analysis/Results

• Data: Carrot was the best, then Red Velvet and last was Vanilla.

Conclusion• Was hypothesis correct? Why or why not? Did

anything weird happen during the experiment?