The Scientific Method (1)

Science is based on wondering. You begin to be a scientist when you ask questions:

You become a scientist when you try to find answers to your questions by using the scientific method.

When you follow the scientific method, your science project begins with a hypothesis—a question and your own informed guess at an answer, which you test by following your procedure. A procedure is the steps you take to do an experiment or field work, which leads you to confirm—or not confirm—your hypothesis. You look at the actual results, compare them with your expectations, and write your conclusion based on what you have found out.

In your report, you describe how you followed the scientific method, step by step. At the end of your report, you will mention new questions you would like to look into and things you would like to try based on what you have learned from your results.

Let's take some time to understand the scientific method, the backbone of a science project. The scientific method has four parts:

Observation

You notice something in the world that you want to know more about. You then ask a question about it. This question is what you try to find an answer to in your science project.

Hypothesis

You predict why, when, where, or how whatever you observed happened, based on information you already have. Sometimes this takes the form of an "if ... then" statement. A hypothesis is often called an "educated guess" because you base your prediction on facts you already know.

Testing

You test your hypothesis with a procedure. You can do either an experiment, where everything except the particular thing being tested is carefully controlled, or field work, where you study your subject in the natural world. Careful observations and measurements are recorded in both testing procedures.

Conclusion

You state whether or not your hypothesis was correct, based on the results of your testing. If your hypothesis is proven wrong, try to explain why. Also, make any further predictions your results could point to, and describe any changes to your procedure you think would give more accurate results or be helpful to further research.