Scientific Method

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Scientific Method

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The scientific method is a process in which natural
phenomena are examined and tested. While different
sources vary in the number of steps, we will break it down into seven steps.

This bird is trapped in a net so that it can be recorded in a scientific research study

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01

Observe

​Before any experiments or research
are done, first there must be an
observation about a natural
phenomena. These observations
may be done with the five senses or
it may take specialized equipment
to make the observations.

Open Ended

What are the five senses?

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What are some observations
you could make about this
image?

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Question
02

After observations are made
scientific questions can be asked.
These questions may lead to
research or experimentation.
Who, what, when, where, why & how?

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What do plants
need to grow?

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What happens if plants don’t get
enough water?

How do different types of lights
influence plant growth?

What do different water
contaminants do to plant growth?

Possible Questions

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Research
03

After a question has been asked,
research should be done by using
quality resources. This research may
answer the question asked, or it may
guide the process of developing the
hypothesis and an experiment.

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Hypothesis
04

A hypothesis is developed after the
research has been done. A hypothesis is
always a statement. It is a prediction of
what will happen in the experiment. This
prediction must be testable and
falsifiable. Falsifiable means that it can
be determined if it is true or false.

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A hypothesis is often formed using the “if,...then.” format. For example:

If a plant does not obtain enough water, then it will not grow.

If a plant is exposed to different color lights, then it not grow as quickly.

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Experiment
05

An experiment is conducted to test the hypothesis. Sometimes a new experiment must be designed in order to do this. There may already be experimental procedures in place that allow for the testing of a hypothesis.

​

​When scientific research is published, they include their methods, and this allows for other scientists to replicate the experiment to see if they get the same results. During the experiment data will be collected.

​What lab safety protocol is this example violating?

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In order to test the rate of plant growth under different light conditions an experiment was designed using light boxes with color filters.

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Results
06

After the experiment is done and all of the data is collected this information will be analyzed. There are two basic types of
data that might be collected.
Quantitative - numerical (1, 2, 3...)
Qualitative - descriptive (red, blue, tall, short)

Open Ended

What is a QUANTITATIVE observation you can make from this picture?

Open Ended

What is a QUALITATIVE observation you can make from this picture?

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Conclusion
07

After analyzing the data you must decide if your hypothesis is true or false. If your hypothesis is true you have confirmed your prediction. If it is false, you may want to reevaluate your prediction and do another experiment.

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​Results of Plant Growth Experiment

​What could we conclude about the impact of light color on plant growth?

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Today’s Agenda

❏ Warm up - expectations review
❏ Anticipatory - Scientific method discussion
❏ Scientific Method Notes
❏ Guided Practice - Experiment Design
❏ Independent Practice - Newsela Article
❏ Exit Ticket Plickers