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Introduce Primary Students to the Scientific Method - Lesson Plan + Templates

Written by Margo Ensz | Thu, Apr 24, 2014 @ 09:15 PM

This lesson plan is part of our partnership with two super creative educators from The Curriculum Corner, bringing you free Common Core aligned lesson ideas, teacher resources, and templates you can easily print with your VariQuest® Perfecta® Poster Design System - just be sure you have the latest version of the VariQuest Software! 

Lesson: Introduction the Scientific Method

Level: Primary  

Objective: Students will learn the steps of the Scientific Method.

Visuals & Materials:

  • Anchor Chart – Steps of the Scientific Method

  • My Science Lab Notes

  • Five pennies – severely tarnished or “dirty”

  • Five small containers (big enough to hold the a penny and a small amount of liquid)

  • Tablespoon of each of the following: water, dish soap/water mix, glass cleaner, lemon juice and taco sauce (packet from a local fast food restaurant works well)

Click on each image to download the PDF and print to a poster!

             

Preparation:

  • Prepare “Steps of the Scientific Method” anchor chart for mini-lesson.

  • Copy the “My Science Lab Notes” page for each child in the classroom. 

Lesson:

  • Pass out “My Science Lab Notes” to each student.

  • Prepare your Smartboard with a copy of “My Science Lab Notes” so students have a model to work from.

  • Pass around the five pennies and ask students to make some observations about them (round, hard, have writing, flat, dirty, etc). 

  • Next ask the students if they see a problem with the pennies.  Help lead them to the conclusion that they are very dirty and difficult to read.

  • QUESTION - Tell the students that the Scientific Method begins with a question to be answered.  What kinds of questions could they come up with about these pennies?  Discuss several of the questions, but help lead them to the question, “What is the best way to clean a penny?” or something similar.  Fill out the Ask Questions section of “My Science Lab Notes” together.

  • RESEARCH – Since many primary students are still in the beginning stages of learning to research, at this point ask the class what key words /phrases they can think of to search the internet to find an answer to the question.  Fill out the Research the Problem section of “My Science Lab Notes” together and then do some simple research online.

  • FORM A HYPOTHESIS – Ask the class if they have ever heard the word “hypothesis” and discuss answers (if any).  If not volunteered by a student, tell them that a hypothesis is a scientific word for a best guess.  Help them to form a hypothesis similar to “We think that _____________ will clean the penny best because ________________.” Fill out the Form a Hypothesis section of “My Science Lab Notes” together.

  • TEST YOUR HYPOTHESIS – Show and discuss the liquids you have set up to clean the pennies.  Guide them through the steps the class will take to test the hypothesis/clean the pennies.  Fill out the Test Your Hypothesis section of “My Science Lab Notes” together.

  • SHARE YOUR RESULTS – After completing the testing portion of the experiment fill out the Share Your Results section of “My Science Lab Notes” together.  Discuss how in this case your results will simply be shared on the notes page in a sentence format, but that there are other ways to share results too – making a visual or display, making a presentation or writing a paper.

  • CONCLUSION – As a class practice writing a conclusion based on the research done and the actual experiment involved.  Fill out the Draw a Conclusion section of “My Science Lab Notes” together.

Did you like this lesson? Leave a comment and let us know what topics you would like us to cover in future posts and we will work on delivering free resources to help you prepare for your lessons!

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