Experimental Design

What step does every scientific experiment begin with?

• hypothesis
• question/problem
• procedure or test

• conclusion

Juan is interested in finding out whether hummingbirds are attracted to some flowers more than others. In what order should Juan perform the steps of his experiment?

• Make a prediction about which flowers hummingbirds are most attracted to.

• Create garden of different flowers.

• Observe how many times hummingbirds visit each flowers.

• Record his observations.

• Write a report on his findings.

Tags

NGSS.MS-LS2-2

Nick is conducting a controlled experiment to test whether music helps daisies grow faster. Below are the steps to Nick's experiment. Which group is the control group?

• the green room

• the music

• flowerpot 2

• flowerpot 1

Tags

NGSS.MS-LS1-5

When more than one variable in an experiment is changed at a time, the scientist....

• cannot accurately measure both variables at the same time.

• needs to conduct more trials in order to get conclusive results.

• cannot tell which change produced the results.

• made a systematic error that needs to be corrected.

The parts of the experiment that must be kept the same.

• Constants
• Independent variable

• Dependent variable

• Conclusion

Maya designed an experiment to answer the following question:

How does the amount of water given to a lima

bean seed affect how tall it grows?

In this experiment, what is the independent variable?

• the amount of water

• the kind of plant

• the type of soil

• the amount of sunlight it gets

• how tall it grows

Tags

NGSS.MS-LS1-5

NGSS.MS-LS2-1

How many variables should you change in an experiment?

• none
• only 1

• 2 or more
• depends on the type of experiment

The type of variable that responds to the experiment and is what you measure or count to determine if your hypothesis is true.

• Independent
• Dependent
• Control

Tags

NGSS.MS-PS2-2

Thomas tests different types of liquids to see which will grow his plants the most. He has water, soda, milk, and no liquid at all. What is the control group?

• the one with water

• the one with soda

• the one with milk

• the one with no liquid

Three baseball players investigate to see who can throw a baseball the farthest. They mark off an area on the playground for their investigation. Which should they keep constant?

• height of the players
• color of the balls thrown
• order in which the players throw
• spot from which the players throw

Tags

NGSS.MS-PS2-2