1. WHAT IS SCIENCE?

2. WHAT IS SCIENCE?
Science is investigating things

3. WHAT IS SCIENCE?
What is investigation?
Investigation involves
1)observing things;
2)asking questions;
3)proposing solutions;
4)testing these solutions.

4. WHAT IS SCIENCE?
What is a hypothesis?
A hypothesis is a
prediction.
It’s also been called
an “educated guess”

5. WHAT IS SCIENCE?
The scientific
method follows
this flow chart.
Everything you
learn from
science class
came from this
method.

6. WHAT IS SCIENCE?

7. WHAT IS SCIENCE?
Problem:
How do you make a paper
airplane fly as far as possible?
With a partner, make a paper
airplane that flies the farthest.
Goal: You will compete against
other paper planes. The airplane
that flies the farthest wins.

8. WHAT IS SCIENCE?
Rules:
-Each group gets to make one
airplane
-Your paper airplane can only be
made of paper

9. WHAT IS SCIENCE?
So what affects how far a paper airplane flies?

10. WHAT IS SCIENCE?
-size -weight -slimness -sharpness
-balance -winglets -wingspan etc…
So what affects how far a paper airplane flies?

11. WHAT IS SCIENCE?
Is it size, weight,
slimness, sharpness,
balance, winglets,
wingspan, etc… ?
Some paper
airplanes fly farther
than others
If the nose of the
plane is heavier,
then it will fly farther
Fly the plane, see if it
flies far
If the plane flies far,
then the heavier
nose did help the
plane fly farther
If the plane doesn’t
fly far, then the
heavier nose didn’t
do anything
This is the scientific method!

12. WHAT IS SCIENCE?
A cartoon representation of the scientific method:

13. WHAT IS SCIENCE?
You must report your findings in a formal lab report
The formal lab report follows the scientific method

14. WHAT IS SCIENCE?
Part 1: Title
Should be written as the
“independent variable
versus the dependant
variable”.
Example: Amount of Fast
Food Eaten Vs. Body Weight

15. WHAT IS SCIENCE?
Part 2: Purpose
Explain why you are doing
the experiment.
It is written as “The
purpose of this
experiment is…”
Example: The purpose of this
experiment is to determine
the relationship between the
amount of fast food eaten
and body weight.

16. WHAT IS SCIENCE?
Part 3: Hypothesis
What do you think will
happen?
Written in the form on an “if-
then” statement
Example: If the amount of
fast food eaten is increased,
then the amount of weight
gained will increase.

17. WHAT IS SCIENCE?
Part 4: Materials
To conduct an experiment,
you need materials. What
materials are needed?
All materials are listed in
point form.
Example:
-Big Mac burgers
-100 volunteers
-Ikea brand bathroom scale
-McDonald’s fries
-Coca Cola cans

18. WHAT IS SCIENCE?
Part 5: Procedure
Explain what you are doing.
The procedure is written in
past tense with a passive
voice.
Example:
Fifty volunteers were given
three Big Macs, three cans of
Coca Cola, and three
medium fries daily for thirty
days.

19. WHAT IS SCIENCE?
Past tense:
A description of events that happened in the past
 Example:
Present tense: The dog is going for a walk
Past tense: The dog went for a walk.

20. WHAT IS SCIENCE?
Passive Voice:
The words I, you, we, he/she, etc. are not used.
 Example:
Active Voice: Jane threw the ball
Passive Voice:
Active Voice: We made observations
Passive Voice:
The ball was thrown
Observations were made

21. WHAT IS SCIENCE?
Why is a passive voice important?
Science aims to be objective, which means that it is not
influenced by emotions, identity, or bias; these can blind us to
the truth.

22. WHAT IS SCIENCE?
Part 5: Procedure
A clear and concise
procedure is VERY important,
because someone should be
able to repeat your
experiment and get the same
results.
Try the snowflake activity

23. WHAT IS SCIENCE?
Part 6: Observations
Record what you see in a
table. Include charts and
graphs in this section.
Sample calculations go here
as well.
Example:
Average
mass before
experiment
Average
mass after
experiment
Fast food
eaters
180 lb 230 lb
No fast food 180 lb 190 lb

24. WHAT IS SCIENCE?
Part 7: Discussion
What do your results mean
and why?
What are some sources of
error?
Example:
The results suggest that eating
more fast food made people gain
more weight.
This may be because fast food is
high in calories, and increased
calories lead to increased body
weight. …

25. WHAT IS SCIENCE?
Part 7: Discussion
Sources of error?
…A source of error was that it was
not known if the non-fast-food
eaters exercised more than the fast-
food eaters, which may have made
them gain less weight.
Include a suggestion for
improvement:
If this experiment were to be
conducted again, then everyone will
be restricted to doing the same
amount of exercise each day.

26. WHAT IS SCIENCE?
Part 8: Conclusion
Was the hypothesis correct?
Example:
In conclusion, the amount of
weight gain increased when
the amount of fast food eaten
was increased.
Recall the hypothesis:
If the amount of fast food eaten is increased, then
the amount of weight gained will increase.

27. WHAT IS SCIENCE?
Summary:
1)Title
2)Purpose
3)Hypothesis
4)Materials
5)Procedure
6)Observations
7)Discussion
8)Conclusion