hypothesis Archives - Secondary Sparks https://secondarysparks.com/tag/hypothesis/ A Teaching Blog Tue, 27 Aug 2024 00:48:52 +0000 en-US hourly 1 https://wordpress.org/?v=7.0 https://secondarysparks.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/02/cropped-SubmarkLogo-Final-32x32.png hypothesis Archives - Secondary Sparks https://secondarysparks.com/tag/hypothesis/ 32 32 189191481 Nature of Science Middle School Activities To Try https://secondarysparks.com/nature-of-science-middle-school-activities-to-try/ https://secondarysparks.com/nature-of-science-middle-school-activities-to-try/#respond Fri, 23 Aug 2024 10:00:08 +0000 https://secondarysparks.com/?p=5081 Nature of science middle school activities can be hard to find. These are usually the go-to topics to teach at the beginning of the school year because that content will be sprinkled into the labs that your students perform throughout the school year. Also, if you’re in a state that has standardized testing for science, ... Read More about Nature of Science Middle School Activities To Try

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Nature of science middle school activities can be hard to find. These are usually the go-to topics to teach at the beginning of the school year because that content will be sprinkled into the labs that your students perform throughout the school year. Also, if you’re in a state that has standardized testing for science, you know this is a heavily tested topic. 

Some teachers choose to teach the nature of science throughout the school year instead of focusing an entire unit but I choose to do a little of both. I feel like it needs to be taught in isolation for a bit so that students can truly understand it without focusing on other content from other units during labs, etc. While you’re planning your beginning of the year lessons, give these nature of science middle school activities a try.

Simple Labs

You want students to go through the motions with these labs. You want them to focus on the step by step processes of formulating a hypothesis, creating a procedure, collecting data, analyzing that data and writing a conclusion. Keeping the lab itself simple will allow students to do just that. 

 

One of my favorite labs for this is the ball bounce lab. Students measure the rebound height of a tennis ball, golf ball and bouncy ball to see which has the best rebound height when dropped from the top of a yard stick. It’s quick, easy and students get the idea pretty quickly. Students write their own hypothesis about which ball they think will have the highest rebound, perform the experiment with each, conduct multiple trials, collect data, analyze it and create a conclusion.

Get this Lab
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I have also used a simple alka-seltzer lab to practice the scientific method. Students will use the scientific method to determine how quickly an effervescent/Alka-Seltzer will dissolve in white vinegar, salt water and tap water. You can find that lab here or on TPT.

Review Identifying Variables

All students can benefit from this one. Understanding the difference between an independent variable and dependent variable can be very confusing for students. I have found that practice makes perfect with this one. By presenting students with many different examples and identifying the variables in various experiments has proven to be effective. After a few examples, they will see the pattern. 

 

You can also explain that the independent variable is the “cause” and the dependent variable is the “effect.” My students really like when I break it down for them that way.

Have Students Design Their Own Experiment

This is a little bit more advanced and requires you to give more autonomy to your students, but students will rise up to the challenge! Dedicate a space in your room where you can lay out some materials that students can have access to (safe ones, of course). Tell students to grab a few materials and design their own experiment from start to finish. 

 

Coming up with a question, generating a hypothesis, identifying variables, writing out a procedure, collecting/analyzing data and finally coming up with a conclusion. The whole process – all on their own or with a partner! I simply give them a document that looks like the one below and let them try. As I walk around the room, I can talk to students and help them through the process as needed.

nature of science middle school activities lab report template
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Find the Template Here

Research Famous Experiments

Give students an opportunity to research famous experiments or inventions that led to scientific discoveries that we know of today. Allow students to see that not all science occurs inside a laboratory with lab coats and goggles. Major advancements and theories such as the lightbulb, plate tectonics, cell theory, the microscope, the geocentric/heliocentric models of the solar system, Newton’s Laws, etc. can be very interesting for students!

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