This method of writing up an experiment has been used in colleges for years and gives the student practice in valuable communication skills. When I teach science, I ask my students to get a black and white speckled composition type notebook with graph paper in it. The instructions below apply to any lab science course for completing a science notebook. You may also record your data in your science notebook, but keep it separate (perhaps in a few preceding pages) from the below information, which is a summary of the scientific method as it pertains to your experiment.
- On the first page of the notebook, write your name, course title, and year.
- On the next page, write “Table of Contents” at the top of the page.
- Number the pages of the notebook in the bottom outside corners.
- As you complete experiments, record on the Table of Contents page the title of the experiment and the page upon which it is found.
- Skipping two pages after the Table of Contents, begin with Experiment One
- On the left hand page, write the title of the experiment, the date, and the problem or question you are attempting to solve.
- Next, spell out your hypothesis of what might happen.
- Include a list of materials.
- List the procedures in the experiment. Reference your lab manual.
- The observations step is next; write details of the experiment including everything you noticed about what happened.
- The last step is the conclusion. This is where you will try to answer the question “why did the experiment happen the way it did? I like to see complete conclusions.
- Some lab experiments require additional steps like calculations, or results, or sources of error.
- The signature at the bottom of the page certifies that you truly did all of the above yourself.
- If there are any questions about the experiment required by the lab manual, I have the student write the answers to those questions after the conclusion step.