How to Use the Scientific Method
By using the steps of the Scientific Method, you can design your research project.
Scientists follow the scientific method whenever they do an experiment. Below the
description in italics is an example of a snow/water experiment conducted by a 1-2
Class.
1. Make an observation.
5. Develop materials and methods.
2. Research the topic.
3. Ask a narrow question.
6. Do the experiment and keep
detailed records.
7. Analyze the results.
4. Develop the hypothesis.
8. Write the conclusion.
1. Make an Observation
Choose topic about something that interests you. You can develop an interest by
paying attention to the things happening around you. The best projects come from
ideas that are generated by something youʼve noticed in your world. You can go online
to help generate topics too. Narrow down your topic so that you can develop an
answerable question. Keep it simple. If the question is too vague or too big then you
will not have time to find the answer. Make a comparison.
Observation: snow on the coastal trail feels wetter than snow in midtown. How much
water is in snow?
2. Research Your Topic
Conduct some background research on your topic. Read books, magazine articles, and
internet sites. You can also talk with scientists. Your research will help you understand
your topic better and help you develop your question and hypothesis.
Weather related books, articles, sites, NOAA, Natural Resources – “snow water
equivalent”. Density of snow effects water. Science IQ.com etc.
3. Ask a Narrow Question
Make up a very specific question. Your parents and teachers can help you. For
example, if you have an interest in our local snow climate, you might ask:
Which area of Anchorage receives the most snow water equivalent?
4. Develop a Hypothesis
Turn your question into a hypothesis. A hypothesis is an educated guess about what
results the scientist expects from changing the conditions. A hypothesis is a prediction.
An example is:
“Turnagain receives the most snow water equivalent because it is near the ocean.”
5. Develop Materials & Methods
Make a list of materials for your experiment. Ask your parents to check the list and help
collect equipment and supplies. Describe how you will use the materials to do the test.
Youʼll want to think carefully about what you are going to manipulate, what you are
going to measure, and what you will be comparing. Be specific.
Example: Collect 12-oz cup snow samples from Chugach Elementary, East, West,
North, and South Anchorage. Eagle River and Mat-su if possible. Recruit student or
friends to collect samples from the locations on Monday morning (same time each
place). Distribute cups and bring sample to school. Demonstrate how to collect
samples (do not pack snow in cup – find undisturbed area to collect sample). Cups will
be placed in the window sill at school and snow allowed to melt. Tuesday, water levels
will be checked and recorded.
Replication: Conduct the experiment 3 times over 3 weeks, on the same day of the
week, same collection time.
6. Do the Experiment & Keep Records
Testing your hypothesis is at the heart of the scientific method. Here you learn what
happens when you change a condition. Be sure to examine one idea at a time. In our
example we controlled for time by collecting at the same time in every location. The
only thing we varied was the location so that we can answer our question about the
relationship between location on .
Finally, Replicate the experiment multiple times if possible. In our example our
replications are each seedling, so we have 30 replicates. More replicates give more
power to your results.
Keep a log or record book of what you do and see during the investigation. Recordkeeping lets you keep track of the individual events of the experiment. It lets you find
errors that may creep into the experiment. Scientists maintain records of everything they
do during an experiment.
Each cup was brought to the school and researchers measured each water sample with
the same measuring metric unit cup. Data was recorded in a tabular spreadsheet.
7. Analyze the Results
After the data are collected, it is time to analyze that information. What facts or numbers
were produced? Look at the results and begin to formulate a conclusion. What if the
data do not confirm your original hypothesis? That's OK. The original hypothesis was
simply an educated guess based upon information you had at the start of the
experiment. This happens to scientists all the time and is a normal part of the scientific
method. The importance of the experience lies in your opportunity to investigate and
learn. Explain why you think your results were not what you expected.
Analysis: Chugach Elementary sample outside the door near the perennial garden
consistently had the most snow water equivalent average at 236.58 ml. Turnagain
(West sample) was less than Chugach Elementary with an average of 195ml sample.
(List outcome of all data samples and show data in across samples – via numbers and
charts)
8. Draw a Conclusion
The conclusion provides an answer to the original question. The conclusion describes
what you learned. The conclusion should contain a statement on the importance of the
experiment. For example, a student who discovered that a plant grows well in a variety
of lights may conclude that special lights are an unnecessary expense in your home.
The conclusion lets you draw relationships between the experiment and the bigger
world. The conclusion should point logically to the next question.
Summary:
Researchers believed that the water equivalent at Chugach was higher because it was
naturally compacted as it fell off the roof of the school to the ground when compared to
other samples. East side snow water equivalency average sample ranked second, and
West side sample average ranked third.
Future efforts could track weather patters at the time of sampling to see if there are
affects of cloud compression near mountains on water equivalency.