a process that is used to gather evidence that leads to understanding.

First step in the Scientific Method…..what you want to find out…..written as a question.

You should have at least five observations or facts that may or may not affect the outcome of the experiment.  Your observations could include prior knowledge.

 An educated guess that answers the question/problem.  It should be stated in an If, Then, and Because statement.  If (independent variable or cause) --- Then (dependent variable or effect)

 a complete list of all the materials you will need to conduct the experiment.

step-by-step procedure you will need to follow in order to carry out your experiment to test the hypothesis.  First step is to gather your materials.

Independent variable

 variable that is changed by the experimenter (also called manipulating variable or experimental variable) ….. plotted on x-axis of a graph.

 variable in an experiment that changes in response to choices made by the experimenter (also called responding variable) ….. plotted on y-axis of a graph.

 variables in an experiment that are kept the same throughout the experiment.

Observations

a collection of data on what you observe/measure during the experiment.  Observations usually include a data table and /or graph and sometimes a few sentences about what you saw, heard, felt, etc. during the experiment.

a statement about whether or not your hypothesis was correct and why.  A conclusion could also include a few statements that could lead to other related scientific investigations.

 one or more experiments that are all connected to answering the same basic question.

any situation that is set up to observe and measure something happening.

Controlled experiment

 when one variable is changed and all the others are controlled or stay the same throughout the experiment.

each time an experiment is tried.

  the exact procedure that is followed each time an experiment is repeated (release of car down ramp).

 any observations that can be repeated with the same results.

a system of measuring that uses, for example, distance units of mm, cm, m, and km.

1/10,000,000 the length of Earth’s meridian between the Equator and the North Pole.

a commonly used unit of time; 1/60 of a minute.

 a system of measuring that uses, for example, distance units of inches, yards, and miles.

 the length of space between two points.

 a useful measurement of changes in motion or events; all or part of the past, present, and future.

describes movement from one place to another over time and in a certain direction (speed & direction).

 describes movement from one place to another over time; distance divided by time.