Prepare to Do Your Experiment

4 - Test Your Hypothesis by Doing an Experiment

Your experiment tests whether your prediction is accurate and thus your hypothesis is supported or not. It is important for your experiment to be a fair test. You conduct a fair test by making sure that you change only one factor at a time while keeping all other conditions the same. You should also repeat your experiments several times to make sure that the first results weren't just an accident.

Task #4C: Prepare to Do Your Experiment

1. Review the ‘During the Experiment’ and ‘Sample’ sections of Conducting the Experiment for Your Science Fair Project to review important information about what you need to do and document during your experiment.
2. Answer the following questions to check your learning:
   1. What is NOT important to write in your lab notebook during experimentation?
      Detailed observations

      Any problems or changes in procedure

      Numerical measurements

      What you think the results mean
      Correct! Interpreting results is important, but it should be done after collecting and analyzing data, not during the experimentation phase.
      Nice try! Review the section on maintaining a lab notebook to understand what key information should be recorded during experimentation.
   2. Why is it important to take pictures during your experiment?
      To make the lab notebook look more interesting

      To document the experimental process and observations for your display board

      To fill up space in your lab notebook

      To avoid writing detailed notes
      Correct! Taking pictures helps document the experimental process and can enhance your science fair display board.
      Nice try! Review the section on taking pictures during the experiment to understand their importance.
   3. Which of the following best describes the importance of following the procedure carefully to ensure controlled variables stay constant?
      To save time during the experiment

      To ensure that the results are due to changes in the independent variable only

      To make the experiment more interesting

      To avoid repeating the experiment
      Correct! Following the procedure carefully ensures that controlled variables remain constant, so any observed changes can be attributed to the independent variable.
      Nice try! Review the section on following experimental procedures to understand the importance of controlled variables.

   NOTE: Experimentation can take quite a while and may require troubleshooting and adjusting your procedure. Be sure to give yourself enough time, document everything in your lab notebook, and take pictures.

   Your experimentation notes and data collection should go directly into your lab notebook.