Experiment VS. Scientific Investigation - SC.5.N.1.2

Four students are planning to do science projects. Only one of the projects is an experiment.

Which student is doing an experiment?

• Selene

• Walden

• My

• Sasha

Asela places a thermometer in sunlight for 5 minutes and then reads it. Next, she places the thermometer in the shade for 5 minutes and then reads it.

How can you tell that Asela is NOT doing an experiment?

• She did not repeat the activity.

• She did not write anything down

• It is not a carefully controlled test

• There are no variables being explored.

Tammy is investigating whether a person’s height remains the same all day long.

She is going to measure the heights of 5 of her friends at different times of the day.

What best describes the type of investigation Tammy is doing?

• demonstration

• experiment

• interview

• survey

Francisco is doing an experiment to see what materials complete a circuit.

Which activity will NOT be part of his experiment?

• recording observations

• gathering opinions

• interpreting data

• making a plan

What type of investigation did Hugo most likely do to get the information he needed?

• search reliable resources

• conduct an experiment

• observe behavior

• conduct a survey

Eric wrote the following plan for his investigation.

The Question: Which brand of paper towel breaks down fastest?

The Plan: For each brand of paper towel, put 1 sheet in 1 cup of water.

Soak for 2 hours.

Strain through a fine sieve.

Observe what remains of the paper towel.

What type of investigation will he do to answer the question?

• demonstration

• experiement

• interview

• survey

Chloe wonders what type of string is best for growing crystals. She uses 4 four types of string. She puts them all in glasses with the same baking-powder solution. Then she

observes the crystal growth.

How do you know that Chloe is doing an experiment?

• She will form a conclusion about the type of string that is best.

• She is observing how well crystals grow on each string

• All conditions except string type are constant

• Before she started, she made a plan.

Alexander has a new type of liquid fertilizer for his house plants. He wonders what solution of fertilizer and water will make his plants grow best tallest?

What is the best way to investigate the question?

• look in his gardening books

• interview the local nursery owner

• take a survey of people coming out of the nursery

• do an experiment with different percent fertilizer solutions

Madison did an investigation to find out how many Earth days it takes for each planet to rotate on its axis. She made this graph to show the results of her investigation.

What type of investigation did Madison do?

• conducted an experiment

• observed planet behavior

• performed a demonstration

• searched reliable resources

Madison did an investigation to find out how many Earth days it takes for each planet to rotate on its axis. She made this graph to show the results of her investigation.

What type of investigation did Madison do?

• conducted an experiment

• observed planet behavior

• performed a demonstration

• searched reliable resources