Scientific Method Stations

Size: px

Start display at page:

Download "Scientific Method Stations"

Virgil Summers
5 years ago
Views:

1 Stations Mandatory Things You will need: Station instructions and questions. (Attached) Student Response Sheet (Print one from the blog if you were absent or misplaced your copy) Instructions: Follow the directions at each station. Read and digest the information, going at your own pace. Re-read and re-watch if necessary. Remember that the goal is not to finish first, but to LEARN new information by organizing it in your brain and attaching it to things you already know. Write your answers on your student response sheet. Complete all input stations in any order, then complete all output stations in any order.

Input - Read Scientists use experiments to learn about something. They change only one thing at a time and then see how this change influences the outcome.

2 Input - Read Scientists use experiments to learn about something. They change only one thing at a time and then see how this change influences the outcome. This is sometimes called a Cause and Effect relationship. The cause is the one thing that they change and the effect is what happens in the end. These changing things are called VARIABLES. An experiment usually has three kinds of variables. An INDEPENDENT VARIABLE is the one thing that the scientist changes on purpose. (Remember that I for independent looks like a 1 for one thing.) To make sure the test is fair, a good experiment has only one independent variable. As the scientist changes the independent variable, he or she observes what happens to the dependent variable. A DEPENDENT VARIABLE is sometimes called the responding variable, because it responds to the change the scientist made on purpose. It is the outcome of the experiment, or the data produced by the experiment. (D for dependent, D for data.) The number of dependent variables in an experiment can be just one or many. CONTROLLED VARIABLES in an experiment are things that the scientist wants to keep the same for all parts of the experiment to make the test fair. These are also called constants. These constants must be kept the same or they might influence the outcome of the experiment. Most experiments have many controlled variables. For instance, if you write with a crayon and change the pressure of the crayon pushing on the paper (the independent variable) the line will respond or change by getting darker and wider (the dependent variables) when more pressure is applied. If you were conducting this little experiment, you would want to keep the type of paper constant for both the light pressure test and the deep pressure test because, as we all know, crayons write differently on printer paper than on construction paper. Using different types of paper would not be a fair test of pressure. Science experiments can only test things which are measureable. Weight or mass or completion time are examples of good things to measure in an experiment. Something like love can t really be measured, so this isn t something we can learn about using science we have to use one of the other ways of knowing. Questions: (answer on your response sheet) 1. What are the three types of variables in an experiment? 2. How many independent variables should be in a fair experiment? 3. Which variable is also known as the responding variable? 4. Which of these variables could be measured and tested in an experiment? a. mass b. distance c. growth d. all of these Your experiment might look like this: (Try it!)

3 Input - Watch Go to: (URL is case-sensitive) Click play on the video, watch it, then answer these questions: 1. What is the scientific method? 2. According to the video, what are the 6 steps in the scientific method. 3. Explain why the scientific method may not follow the exact same steps each time through the process. Input - Research Go to (case sensitive) Click on the begin button. Read through the information there about how to use the program, then click the TUTORIAL button. Read the information, stories, and situations on each screen and answer the on-screen questions as they appear. Click the next button after you have completed each page. Question 1: (Answer on your response sheet) What is your hypothesis about why Karen was fired? Question 2: (Answer on your response sheet) What was the secret number? How many guesses did it take to discover that number? Question 3: (Answer on your response sheet) Name the 2 suggestions for Step 5? Question 4: (Answer on your response sheet) What is the best problem statement for the cricket experiment? **Please conduct an experiment for EACH of the 5 possible independent variables which might affect chirping rate and take note of the results.** Question 5: (Answer on your response sheet) According to your experiment data, does Air Temperature change cricket chirping rate? Question 6: (Answer on your response sheet) According to your experiment data, does Atmospheric Pressure change cricket chirping rate? Question 7: (Answer on your response sheet) According to your experiment data, does Humidity change cricket chirping rate? Question 8: (Answer on your response sheet) According to your experiment data, does the number of crickets nearby change cricket chirping rate? Question 9: (Answer on your response sheet) According to your experiment data, does the wind speed change cricket chirping rate?

Input - Explore called dependent variables or responding variables. They depend on changes from something else. 3- What is the dependent variable for this experiment? Write it on your response sheet.

4 Input - Explore called dependent variables or responding variables. They depend on changes from something else. 3- What is the dependent variable for this experiment? Write it on your response sheet. 1- Make some observations about these bananas. Write at least 2 observations on your response sheet. A well-written hypothesis spells out the whole experiment in one sentence. It tells the reader what variable will be changed, what the predicted response will be, and how the response will be measured. A well-written hypothesis usually looks like this: If (the independent variable) is (changed in a particular way) then (the dependent variable) will (respond in this measurable way.) This is sometimes called an if-then-will statement. Example Hypotheses: Photo credit: ProgressiveChef What do you think made the bananas turn brown? Discuss with a partner. (This is the problem statement of our upcoming experiment.) Think of one variable which you could change to answer your question. This is the independent variable. Is sunlight changing the bananas? Is temperature changing the bananas? If the mass of a skateboard rider is increased, then the height of the ollie will decrease. If a snowboard is waxed, then the downhill speed of the snowboard will increase. If lawn grass is watered more frequently, then the height of the grass will increase. 4- Using an if-then-will statement, write out a hypothesis about this banana experiment on your response sheet. Is pressure changing the bananas? Is changing the bananas? The underlined variables from above are examples of independent variables - the one thing you change on purpose in an experiment to see how it affects the outcome. There should be only one independent variable in an experiment. 2- Write your independent variable on your response sheet. What changes do you expect to see in the bananas when you change the independent variable? Variables that respond to changes in the independent variable are Variables that remain unchanged are called controlled variables or constants. You only want to test one thing at a time to make it a fair test. Everything else should stay the same. 5- List at least 3 controlled variables for the banana experiment on your response sheet. As you conduct the experiment, data will be gathered about the dependent variable. When this data is analyzed, usually with a graph, it will either support the hypothesis or not support it. Hypotheses are never wrong.

5 Make sure you have completed all Input stations, then switch to output Output Organize and Illustrate You will need colored pencils and/ or markers to complete this task. Using the information you learned from the input stations, draw a diagram or a flow chart of the scientific method (on your response sheet) which helps you understand the entire process. Make sure to include the terms below and an explanation of each stage. (They are not in order) Question Why does that pattern occur? Experiment Gather data to test predictions Conclusions Logical claim based on experiment data Hypothesis What is the cause of the phenomenon? Observations What do I see in nature? Analysis Refine, alter expand, or reject hypothesis Testable Prediction I expect this to happen

6 Output - Assessment Output - Write Answer the following questions on your response sheet: Question 1: Penelope wants to test how sunlight impacts plant growth over time. She will add varying amounts of light to different sets of plants. The sunlight is a(n). a. controlled variable b. dependent variable c. independent variable d. constant variable Question 2: Which of the following is true about the scientific method? a. It s a series of processes of how scientists discover creativity in the lab. b. It s the list of safety precautions that all students and scientists must use in the lab. c. It can only be used by certified scientists in a lab setting. d. It s a series of processes which allow someone to make predictions, test, and make conclusions about a problem. Question 3: Fred is trying to figure out the best place to put his router in order to get the best signal. Which is not a possible independent variable? a. distance from the router b. signal strength from the computer c. number of walls between the router and computer d. number of devices on the router Answer each of these questions in your own words on your student response sheet. Use complete sentences which have part of the prompt in the answer. For instance, if the prompt was: Name three hobbies which interest you. Your answer should be something like: Three hobbies which interest me are hiking, photography, and reading. Make sure to use your best printing, start each sentence with a capital letter and end with a period. Use proper punctuation and grammar. Remember that people judge you by how you write! Prompt 1: In your own words, describe the scientific method. Prompt 2: What is the difference between independent, dependent, and controlled variables? Prompt 3: Why do you think it s important to learn the scientific method? Question 4: The following statement is an example of a(n) If I post an image on Instagram at 7:00 pm, then I will get over 200 likes. Prompt 4: Explain how there can be more than one scientific method. a. hypothesis b. problem c. experiment d. independent variable a. distance from the router

Paper Airplanes & Scientific Methods

Paper Airplanes & Scientific Methods Scientific Inquiry refers to the many different ways in which scientists investigate the world. Scientific investigations are done to answer questions and solve problems.