Method to the Madness

M’Adele Carson, Ed.D.Bennett Russell Elementary

Santa Rosa County

There’s

a

UWF Science Ed-Venture

Saturday, September 13, 2008

Background

FCAT. It’s always about FCAT.

Bill Nye

First year and cut scores.

Second year and what we learned from the cut scores.

Embedding the Scientific Method in every lesson/chapter/unit.

Boston NSTA-Nova Eisenhower 5th grade teacher

Going beyond the book , doing what you know is right, and having kids love science.

The Scientific Method

1. State the Problem2. Gather Information3. Form a Hypothesis4. Procedure5. Record and Analyze Data6. Draw a Conclusion

1. State the ProblemThe problem should be stated in the form of a question.

• How does__________affect_________?

• What is the effect of______on________?

• Which _____________ is _____________?

• If ____________then______________?How does/do Which/is

What is If, then

2. Gather Information Researching a topic

An educated hypothesis cannot be made without some basic knowledge about the topic.

First round of research should give backgroundinformation, vocabulary,word meaning, & explanations

of how something works, etc.

3. Form a HypothesisAn Educated Guess

A hypothesis is an educated guess about the results of your project. An educated guess can be made only after research has been done.

• I predict that ____________will occur when I_____________.• My hypothesis is ______________ will ________ when

_______________.• If _______________ then ________________.

VariablesAll the factors that have an effect on your experiment.

Independent variables are those that you change or test.Dependent variables are those that respond to the changed

independent variable.Control/constant variables are those

that you keep the same or constant.

Independent-changeControl-keep the same

Dependent-response

4. Procedures

Procedures are step-by-step instructions on completing an experiment.

Another person should be able to read your procedures and duplicate your experiment exactly.

It is important to have a lot of detail in your procedures.

Procedure, Part II-Materials

A material list is a detailed list of everything that you need to complete an experiment.

List everything (even the things you think might be unimportant)

How many of each? Brands/kinds used?

Items needed for measurement

5. Record and Analyze DataAs you perform your experiment you will need to record your results.

Your results are gathered by observation.You observe by: measuring, counting, and describing. Use a journal or a table/chart to record your observations.

• What are you observing to gather your results? • What happened in your experiment?

6. Draw a ConclusionWhat have you learned?

A conclusion can be an explanation of why something happened during the experiment.

Your conclusion should include:• Hypothesis• Actual results• Explanation of why results turned out the way they did• Facts that can help you explain your results• Practical application• Future possible questions to investigate

Galileo’s ExperimentGalileo’s Experiment

In the late sixteenth century, it was generally believed that heavier objects would fall faster than lighter objects.

Galileo’s hypothesis --two objects will fall at the same rate regardless of their mass.

Legend has it that in 1590, Galileo planned out an experiment. He climbed to the top of the Leaning Tower of Pisa and dropped several large objects to test his theory.

Leaning Tower of Pisa ExperimentLeaning Tower of Pisa Experiment

What happens when you drop objects from the tower?

Blowing Bubbles

What is holding a bubble together?

What are the basic ingredients in a bubble solution?

Can adding other ingredients make the solution better for blowing bubbles?

Better Bubbles?

Designing an experiment

Steps of the scientific method

Variables

Chart for recording data

Experiment/trials

Conclusion

Is there such thing as a no-soap bubble?

Gliders• Background—100th Anniversary

• Paper airplanes

• Designing a better glider

• Defining Better—length of flight or time of flight

• Must use all three parts

BrainPop

Tim and MobyScientific Inquiry

Does adding salt help water to boil faster?

Go to www.brainpop.com and sign up for afree trial subscription. Cost is $195 a year

for one teacher/one classroom.

Mini-Science Projects

• Simple experiments

• Science fair prep

• Classes/Small groups/individual

• SSS –not just the Scientific Method

• Thinking about science,

• writing about science,

• not hating science!