The Scientific Method: A Mini Lesson

New Jersey Core Curriculum Standards

• Standard 5.1:  Scientific Processes
  • Develop problem-solving, decision-making and inquiry skills, reflected by formulating usable questions and hypotheses, planning experiments, conducting systematic observations, interpreting and analyzing data, drawing conclusions, and communicating results.

Subject Specific Standards

• In learning the Scientific Method, students will use the aspects of problem-solving, inquiry skills, developing hypotheses, conducting experiments and observations, analyzing data, and forming conclusions found in the New Jersey Core Curriculum Standard 5.1

Behavioral Objectives

• Students will be able to:
  • Identify the steps of the Scientific Method
  • Recall personal former knowledge to formulate a working hypothesis
  • Compare and analyze personal data with the data of peers in order to draw conclusions about a shared problem
  • Transfer data and results into writing through the use of a formal lab report

Materials

• Scientific Method Poster
• Brown Paper Bags
• Cookies (1 package)
• Pretzels (1 bag)
• Raisins (5 boxes)
• Potato Chips (1 bag)
• Scientific Method Worksheets
• Scientific Method Worksheet Overhead
• Overhead Marker
• Overhead Projector
• Chalk

Motivation

• The activity chosen to motivate the students and introduce them to the topic of the scientific method is an analogy comparing the steps of the scientific method to the process of finding a date.
  • Do not tell the students that the scientific method is the lesson
  •  In the beginning of class, mention you saw a flyer for the upcoming school dance

·        Who is going to the school dance?

·        Who has a date?  Who still needs a date?

§         Chose one student who needs a date as a volunteer to base the rest of the discussion off of

·        Do you know who you want to take?

§         Make a list of choices on the board

·        Do you know if they have a date or not?

§         Cross out names that will not be date possibilities

§         Circle the name that will make the best choice

·        What can you do to see if this person will go with you?

·        Would you ask this person to the dance?

§         Explain that if the person says yes to the dance, then the problem is solved, if not try again

Instruction/Activities/Technology

• Connect Scientific Method to Motivation
  • Explain that the procedure used to find a date or solve any problem is called the scientific method
  • Using the Scientific Method poster, define the steps and relate them to the problem used in the motivation section

v     State the Problem: A date is needed for the dance

v     Research the Problem: What do I know, and need to know, about my problem?  Who can I take?  Examine the possibilities, eliminate poor choices, and consider likely choices

v     Form a Hypothesis:  Make a prediction about the answer to the problem;  My date to the dance will be (name)

v     Test the Hypothesis:  Perform an experiment to see if the hypothesis was correct; Ask (name) to the dance

v     Draw Conclusions from the Data:  Data are the results; there are two possibilities, the hypothesis was right (you have a date now) or the hypothesis was wrong; if incorrect, do more research

Ø      What was wrong with the hypothesis?

Ø      Was the experiment flawed?

Ø      Form a new hypothesis

Ø      Test the new hypothesis

Ø      Repeat the procedure until the problem is solved

ü      Group Activity

·        Each student will perform the activity individually, but they will be seated in groups of four in order to discuss

·        Distribute a brown paper bag to each student

·        Give a disclaimer to the students that the next steps of the activity involve food.  Remind students not to each their food products until the entire activity has been completed.

·        Distribute one cookie, one pretzel, one raisin, and one potato chip to each student

·        Explain to students that they will be using the scientific method to determine the fat content of the food products they were given.  Explain that if they gently mash each product, one at a time, with their fists on the brown paper bag that the food products that contain fat will leave a greasy mark. 

·        Have the students discuss with their group members which product they believe will contain the most fat, and thus leave the biggest grease mark.  Students should write down their hypothesis so they remember what they thought.

·        Each student should then carry out the experiment by gently mashing the food products on their brown paper bags.  The students should discuss with their groups what each student discovered.

·        As a group, the students should draw conclusions about which product contained the most fat.  The conclusions should be compared to their hypothesis to see if they were correct or incorrect.  If incorrect, students should discuss why their hypothesis was wrong.

·        Have each group have a spokesman tell the class what their hypothesis was and what their conclusion was

ü      Extending Group Activity to Lab Write Up

o       Distribute a Scientific Method Worksheet to each student

o       Put the Scientific Method Worksheet Overhead up

o       Discuss with students how they conducted the previous activity and simultaneously fill in the overhead.  The students should also fill in the information of their own worksheets.

·        What was our purpose in conducting the experiment?  Why did we do this experiment?  Write this under the Purpose section.

·        What materials did we need to perform this experiment?  Write this under the Materials section.

·        What was your hypothesis?  Chose one group’s hypothesis as an example to write on the overhead.  Have each student write their own hypothesis in the Hypothesis section.

·        What were the steps you did to conduct the experiment?  Write this under the Procedure section.

·        What did you observe and record during the experiment?  Write this under the Data section.

·        Did you find your hypothesis to be correct or incorrect?  Use the same group’s findings you used for the hypothesis to write on the overhead.  Have each student write their own findings in the Conclusion section.

Special Education Modifications

• Address student’s IEP to obtain information on learning modifications which correspond to this lesson.

Assessment

• In class worksheet

§         Students will hand in their worksheets to be checked for completion and comprehension of the Scientific Method.

• Participation

§         Students’ participation in the discussions and group activity will factor into their unit grade.

§         Examples of participation include asking questions, answering questions, and performing the experiment with a group of peers.

• Homework worksheet

§         Real Life Scientific Method

o       Students will be assigned the task of writing up a lab report following the procedure used in class. 

o       Students will come up with an everyday type of problem (ie. What should I wear to school today?) to which the Scientific Method can be applied.

o       Using the Scientific Method Worksheet as a guideline, students will write a lab report in paragraph form making sure to cover each section of the lab (Purpose, Materials, Hypothesis, Procedure, Data, and Conclusion).

o       The lab report will be due the following day in class and will be assessed for completion by the next day’s class, content, and creativity.

 *Designed by Jenn Miller, Alysse Hanlon, and Marissa McCarthy.

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