Environmental Science Lesson {TEMPLATE}

The Scientific Method

How Does Science Work?

Have you ever lost your phone? Ever wonder why something you cooked did not taste quite right? Do you try to win at video games? These are some questions you may come across in your day to day life. Did you know you can use the scientific method to help you with these questions and more?

The Scientific Method

Before we spend time reviewing the steps of the scientific method, take a look at the following graphic organizer to help guide you through the information.

Scientific Method Steps

1. Observation: Using our senses (sight, hearing, taste, touch, and smell) to collect information about the problem we are trying to solve.
2. Hypothesis: A possible solution to a problem that can be tested. It is usually written in the If..then..statement. This means that “if X changes, then Y results”.
3. Experimentation: A scientist will then conduct a series of steps to test his or her hypothesis. In this class, the experiments you conduct will be controlled experiments. This means that only one variable will change and you measure the results of changes in that variable.
   1. Independent Variable: What the experimenter changes.
   2. Dependent Variable: The results from changes in the independent variable.
4. Collect Information: Data is information collected during an experiment. The scientist should avoid bias (personal opinion) when collecting data.
   1. Quantitative Data: Information involving numbers and the metric system.
   2. Qualitative Data: Information that cannot be easily measured or counted.
5. Organize: Arrange the data into an easy to read format, like a table.
6. Interpret: Create a graph to see if there is a pattern or relationship between the variables.
7. Conclusion: Was the hypothesis supported by the data collected? If it was refuted (the data did not support the hypothesis), what are some possible reasons why? What are some possible sources of error? What would be a good follow up experiment?
8. Communicate Results: Share information with others and present findings to the scientific community. Other scientists may try to repeat the experiment to see if similar results are obtained.

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