SCIENTIFIC

RESEARCH
Water drops on a
penny
Miss Chi
 I. SCIENTIFIC METHOD
Knowledge Road

1. Scientific Method is a process to gain knowledge or a way of

finding answers to questions that we ask.
I. THE SCIENTIFIC METHOD
An orderly and systematic way to solve a problem

1.Question- What do you want to know?

2.Hypothesis- Make an educated guess at your question

3.Experiment- A planned way to solve the question

4.Data- Collecting the outcome of the experiment

5.Analysis- Examining the data

6.Conclusion- Comparing the hypothesis to the results

How did Miss Chi find her phone?

1. Purpose • I woke up this morning and I could not find

my phone.
2. Hypothesis • I guessed I put it in my backpack.
• I looked in my backpack.
3. Experiment
• Sadly, my phone wasn’t in my backpack.
4. Data • I tried again and remember I might leave it in
my clothes’ pocket.
5. Analysis • After searching my dirty clothes, I found my
6. Conclusion phone.
 Step 1: Ask a
“TESTABLE QUESTION”

Testable questions
are always about changing
ONE thing to see what the effect is on ANOTHER
thing.
Testable Questions have TWO parts:

Cause Effect
(independent variable) (dependent variable)
Sample Testable Question

DoesAmount
a lackof of sleep
sleep can
= CAUSE

make youAmount
gain of
weight?
weight

= EFFECT
 Is this a Testable Question?

“What makes plants grow best?”

No, because:
• There is NO independent variable.
• There is NO dependent variable.
 Is this a Testable Question?

Does changing the height of the ramp affect

the speed of a car going down the ramp?
 Scientific Methods

Step 1: Question Step 2: Hypothesis

What question are we trying to What do we think will happen?

answer?
Make an educated guess
 Writing a hypothesis
IF ___, THEN ___.
What will be changed – Show the possible results – the
the independent variable. dependent variable.

If the water is stirred, then the sugar will dissolve

faster.
 Examples of hypothesis
If you drop a ball,
then it will fall toward the ground.

If you drop a ball,

then it will __________________________.
F o r e a c h h y p o t h e s i s b e l o w, s p e c i f y t h e
independent and dependent variables.

John was investigating how the amount of

=sunlight
CAUSE affects the size of the leaves of a tree.
= EFFECT
F o r e a c h h y p o t h e s i s b e l o w, s p e c i f y t h e
independent and dependent variables.

Amount of exercise= CAUSE

After exercising daily, miss Chi lost weight.

= EFFECT
F o r e a c h h y p o t h e s i s b e l o w, s p e c i f y t h e
independent and dependent variables.

= CAUSE
The warmer the temperature is outside, the

Number of mosquitoes = EFFECT

more mosquitoes they are flying around.
Question: What is the difference between a question
and a hypothesis?

A question follows from an interesting observation and the hypothesis is an

A
educated guess or answer to that question.

A question is an assumption, and the hypothesis is the answer to the

B
assumption.

A question is the summary of data collected and the hypothesis is the

C
interpretation of the data.

A question is what you end up with after the test and the hypothesis is a
D
summary of the conclusions.
II. WATER
DROPS ON A
PENNY
Miss Chi
INVESTIGATION
Materials
1. A coin (a 1-cent coin or 500VNĐ coin)
2. An eyedropper (pipette)
3. Plain water
4. Soapy water
5. Paper towel
6. A tray
7. A worksheet
Key Questions
Before the experiment:
1. How many drops of water they think a coin can hold?
2. Does it matter if the coin is heads or tails?
3. Will soapy water hold more or less drops than plain water?
After the experiment:
4. How many drops of plain water/ soapy water can fit on a penny based on
your experiment?
5. Were your predictions correct?
6. What were possible sources of errors in this experiment?