Experimental Design Guide - Matanuska-Susitna Borough School ...

MATANUSKA-SUSITNA BOROUGH SCHOOL DISTRICT501 N Gulkana StreetPalmer, Alaska 99645Phone: 907-746-9212 Fax: 907-746-9292www.matsuk12.usMSBSD Middle School Experimental Design LabOutline/Guide“The mission of middle school science is to provide developmentallyappropriate, standards-based middle level science instruction for ourstudents by connecting science content and process skills through aninquiry based, student centered approach, so that they can applyscientific habits of mind as successful, responsible participants in arapidly changing world.”The Matanuska-Susitna Borough School District has adopted the attached ExperimentalDesign Lab Outline based on the Alaska State Middle School Science PerformanceStandards for Science as Inquiry and Process.Using this method, students will develop an understanding of the processes of scienceused to investigate problems, design and conduct repeatable investigations, and defendscientific arguments.The 2006-2007 Middle School Science Writing Team has agreed upon the followingformat that is designed to be used as a guide/general format.TitleExperimental QuestionHypothesisVariablesMaterialsProcedureData TableGraphExperimental ErrorsConclusionDeveloped by MS Science Writing TeamJune 2007

Matanuska-Susitna Borough School DistrictExperimental Design Lab Outline/Guide1. Title: This should be descriptive and fairly short.2. Experimental question:“What effect does (Independent Variable- I.V.) have on (Dependent Variable- D.V.) ?”3. Hypothesis:“If _(How is I.V. changed?) , then (How is D.V. affected?) , because (Explain why ).”4. Variables:Independent (manipulated) variable (graphed on X axis):___________________Dependant (responding) variable (graphed on Y axis):______________________Constants (what stays the same in every trial?):____________________________5. Materials: List all materials you need to complete this lab (complete paragraph notnecessary.)6. Procedure: A sequential list is better than complete paragraphs.A. Describe each stepB. Repeat trialsC. Draw a diagram to help explain your experiment.7. Data Table:A. Separate the trials.B. Use the following format:Independent Variable (IV)Dependent Variable (DV)8. GraphA. Use a simple yet descriptive title.B. Label both axes with title and units. For example, “Time (sec.)”C. Use an appropriate scale.9. Possible Experimental Errors:A. Identify possible sources of error or bias.B. Explain how these errors or bias could have affected your results.10. Conclusions:A. Remember to restate your hypothesis: “The hypothesis was…..”B. Discuss whether the data supports your hypothesis or not. (Use “supported” or “notsupported” instead of “right” or “wrong.”) How do you know? Discuss how the graphshows your conclusion.C. Make recommendations for future experiments. How could you improve thisexperiment so the information would be more reliable? What related experimentscould you recommend to future researchers?Developed by MS Science Writing TeamJune 2007