| S C I E N T I F I C M E T H O D |
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| scientific method |
| There are six steps in the Scientific Method. Okay, well, depending upon whom you speak to there could be upwards of 14 steps in the Scientific Method. For our purposes here in the Fifth Grade we will stick to 6 basic steps. |
| 1st Step Problem / Purpose You have a question and need to find an answer. You will need to conduct an experiment to solve the problem. For example: When there is a lot of activity around horses, I have often noticed that their ears move back and forth a great deal. And you know what, the two ears of cats and dogs do the same thing when they are trying to finrd out where a sound is coming from. I wonder, can you tell where a sound is coming from as well with only one ear as opposed to using two ears. |
| 2nd Step Hypothesis A hypothesis is simply an educated guess, inference or prediction. This is what you think the answer to your problem is going to be. It is typically based on prior knowledge and past experiences. For example: I believe that one ear will not quite work as well as two ears in determining the direction from which a sound comes. Two is better than one, right? [By the way, a hypothesis does not have to be correct in order to be a good one. As long as the hypothesis can be tested (it is investigatable) then it is a good hypothesis.] |
| 3rd Step Materials This is a list of supplies, equipment, tools, gear, etc., that you will need in order to complete your experiment and solve your problem. For example: I need a leader (to guide me through the steps), a coin, a volunteer, a tennis ball, and a garbage can. (nothing too fancy here) |
| 4th Step Experiment / Procedures This is the step-by-step experiment that you design to either prove or disprove your hypothesis. For example: Step 1: Put your head down and close your eyes. Step 2: The leader will toss a coin into the room. Step 3: When the coin lands continue to keep your eyes closed, but point to where you think the coin landed. Step 4: Wait until the leader tells you to, and then raise your head and open your eyes, but keep pointing to where you think the coin landed. Etc. |
| 5th Step Data Collection / Observations This is when you record your results. Write down what happened, what you saw, heard, smelled, felt, tasted, experienced, etc. What really happened? For example: When I used both ears to listen for the coin to land on the floor, I was able to locate it with a fair amount of ease and got it correct 10 out of 10 times. When I covered one of my ears and tried to listen for the location of the coin when it hit the floor I found it to be much more difficult, and got the location wrong 90% of the time. |
| 6th Step Conclusion Was your hypothesis correct? Why or why not? For example: My hypothesis that one ear will not quite work as well as two ears in determining the direction from which a sound comes was absolutely correct. During the investigation I collected data that proved that I could located the direction from which the sound was coming when the coin hit the floor 100% of the time while using two ears, but only 10% of the time when using only one ear. |