Scientific Method
Workshop
We only use 10% of our brains
Humans have five senses.
Honey does not spoil. You could feasibly eat 5000 year old
honey
1. The fascination of experts
2. The temptation of vanity
3-4. The comfort of popular opinion and custom
5-6. The ease of equivocation and compromise
7. The over-reliance on rational argument
Science
2. How could Jadaan
know for sure whether
or not what he thinks is
trustworthy?
Fallacy
Scientific Method Lesson Plan
Sequence
1.
Qualitative observations
– (observations based on five senses. eg. “The reaction produced
a purple substance that bubbled violently and smelled like crayons.”)
2.
Measurement
(practice using the specific measuring tool that ; eg. ruler, triple beam
balance, etc.)
3.
Quantitative observations
– numerical data ( eg. “15g of the purple substance was
produced, and it bubbled for 12 seconds.”)
4.
A+ Graphing
(title, axis labeled, correct data representation, equal increment scale, key or
legend if necessary).
Qualitative observations
(teach students how to record this type data in an organized
way via a data table.)
Measurement
Quantitative observations
(teach students how to record this type of data in an organized way
via a data table).
Graphing
Experimentation/
*
Do some
research
if necessary to better
understand
the observation or question.
Important Note
Jadaan Googled “grasshopper side holes” and found
out that those holes are called spiracles and that
2.
Make an Inference/Hypothesis
: “You can’t drown a grasshopper
by
putting its head underwater.”
You can’t drown a grasshopper by putting its head
*
Write hypothesis as an “
If
, “
then
”, “
because
” statement.
Important Note
3.
Test your hypothesis :
Design an experiment to see if your
hypothesis is trustworthy.
1. Independent variable (the thing that the scientist will be changing in the experiment; the “If” statement in the hypothesis; the variable on the x-axis of a graph.)
2. Dependent variable (the thing that the scientist think will respond to a change in the independent variable; the “then” statement in the hypothesis; the variable on the y-axis of a graph.)
3. Groups (Experimental and control) – 8th
grade
4. Controls (things kept the same throughout the experiment in both groups).
5. Material list
4.
Record your results
: Use data charts. As often as
“In this experiment, I tested to see if a grasshopper will drown if placed under water head first. My
hypothesis was that the grasshopper would not drown because it does not breath through its head, but holes on its sides called spiracles. My hypothesis was supported. Holding them by their hind legs (so not to cover their spiracles) I placed 10 live grasshoppers underwater head-first for 3 minutes each. Of the 10 grasshoppers that were placed under water, 9 of them did not drown. One drown because its spiracles were accidently covered. This was unfortunate because our intention was not to harm any grasshoppers. I am confident that had the grasshopper’s spiracles not been covered, it would have survived. While the other 9 grasshoppers did not drown, they all went stiff the moment their head was placed underwater. I found that fascinating and wondered if their reaction was because their antennas were wet and unable to sense vibrations which would cause them to move. If I could do this experiment again, I would make sure that all grasshoppers are fairly the same length. The grasshopper that died was noticeably shorter than the others. As a result, its spiracles were probably lower along its abdomen then others. This experiment has lead me to wonder why the grasshoppers went stiff when place head-first in the water?”
My hypothesis was right. Of the 10 grasshoppers that were placed under
water, 9 of them did not drown. One drown because its spiracles were
accidently covered.
7
. Publish your results:
Share your results with others
scientists for criticism and/or confirmation.
8.
Go to Conference
: meet with other scientists to decide if