Method

Key components

MATERIALS

List with relevant details such as size, quantity, etc. of each item.

DIAGRAMS / PHOTOGRAPHS

Relevant illustration(s) of set-up. Illustrations must be numbered.

Do not include photographs of individual items but show the equipment set up as used

PROCEDURE/ METHOD

Sequential list of brief statements including reference to diagrams/photographs

Describe what you did in such a way that it could be repeated by someone else

Be specific about sizes, quantities, volumes, concentrations, masses, etc.

Include special precautions regarding method and equipment use at relevant step

Guidance

Your procedure should be a numbered list.

• NOT: words like ‘then…’ or ‘firstly…’ or ‘after that…’ or ‘next…’.
• TRY: 1. 2. 3.

Instructions should begin with an imperative verb such as ‘add’, ‘stir’, ‘heat’, ‘drag’, ‘measure’, ‘repeat’, ‘calculate’.

Add…

Measure…

Instructions should be impersonal – no ‘you’, ‘we’, ‘my partner’, ‘our group’.

• NOT: ‘You need to do this test 5 times’
• TRY: ‘Repeat the test five times’
• NOT: ‘Get your partner to stand on a stool and hold the ball 2m above the ground while you have the stopwatch.’
• TRY: ‘Drop the ball from 2m above the ground. Measure the time it takes to fall using a stopwatch.’

Instructions should be listed in the order they need to be done. Describe one test before describing the next one Include:

setting up the apparatus TRY: ‘set up the apparatus as shown in the diagram’

testing: include information about controlling the independent and fixed variables

measuring: what will be measured, when and using what?

observing: is there anything in particular that should be watched for?

repeating the test TRY: ‘repeat steps * to *’

calculating TRY: ‘calculate the average of the 5 tests’

changing the independent variable: what will be different in the next test?

testing again TRY: ‘repeat steps * to *’

Examples

Flying an airplane – initial height vs distance flown

Level 1-2:

Method:

1. Make the paper airplane.
2. Throw the plane from 50 cm. .
3. Measure the distance the plane flew and record in your data table.
4. Repeat steps 2 and 3 twice more for a total of three trials.
5. Repeat steps 2-5 for different heights.

Level 3-4:

Equipment List:

Meter stick

tape

A4 paper for paper airplane

Method:

1. Make the paper airplane according to the following design and use the same plane for the entire experiment: http://www.kidspot.com.au/kids-activities-and-games/Paper-planes+36/How-to-make-a-sleek-traditional-paper-plane+12120.htm
2. Throw the plane from 50 cm. Before throwing be sure that there is no one in the way.
3. Measure the distance the plane flew and record in your data table.
4. Repeat steps 2 and 3 twice more for a total of three trials.
5. Repeat steps 3-5 for different heights such as 50 cm, 100 cm etc.

Level 5-6:

Equipment List:

Measuring tape

Masking tape

A4 paper for paper airplane

Method:

1. Make the paper airplane according to the following design and use the same plane for the entire experiment: http://www.kidspot.com.au/kids-activities-and-games/Paper-planes+36/How-to-make-a-sleek-traditional-paper-plane+12120.htm
2. In the community room, mark the heights given above on the wall using pencil. Measure the heights using a tape measure.
3. Stand in the same initial spot each time to throw your plane.
4. Throw the plane the same way every time from a height of 50 cm. Before throwing be sure that there is no one in the way.
5. Measure the distance from where you threw the plane to where it initially landed (not where it slides to!) using a measuring tape and record in your data table.
6. Repeat steps 4 and 5 twice more for a total of three trials.
7. Repeat steps 4-6 for 8 different heights.

Level 7-8:

Equipment List:

Measuring tape

Masking tape

A4 paper for paper airplane

Method:

1. Make the paper airplane according to the following design and use the same plane for the entire experiment: http://www.kidspot.com.au/kids-activities-and-games/Paper-planes+36/How-to-make-a-sleek-traditional-paper-plane+12120.htm
2. In the community room, mark the heights given above on the wall using pencil. Measure the heights using a tape measure ensuring the tape measure is perfectly vertical.
3. Mark the initial starting point with masking tape that I will measure from as explained above.
4. Throw the plane as described above from a height of 50 cm. Before throwing be sure that there is no one in the way.
5. Measure the distance the plane flew as described above using a measuring tape and record in your data table.
6. Repeat steps 4 and 5 twice more for a total of three trials.
7. Repeat steps 4-6 for the rest of the values of independent variable.