Scientific Method study guide

For the test, you will need to know some basic vocabulary.

independent variable = the variable that is purposely changed by the scientist in order to see if the dependent variable changes with the independent variable; you can also think of this as the difference in your groups.

dependent variable = the variable observed and/or measured during the experiment to find out if it changes with the independent variable

controlled variables = all the things that could change but the scientist keeps the same to prevent them from interfering with the experiment

hypothesis = a prediction of what you will find in your experiment; a predicted answer to your scientific question; a hypothesis is usually stated as an if/then statement.
Important detail: A scientific hypothesis must be testable.

In our class experiment, we had the question, "Do 7th grade DRMS boys have better hand-eye coordination for throwing than 7th grade DRMS girls?"

Our hypothesis was, "If I compare the accuracy of 7^th grade DRMS males and females at throwing tennis balls into a trash can, then it will be found that males are more accurate than females."

Our independent variable was the gender of the people--boys vs girls.

Our dependent variable was the number of baskets scored by each person.

Our controlled variables included everyone using the same tennis balls, standing the same distance away, throwing at the same trash can, in the same room, having the same number of tries, etc.

Remember that the independent and dependent variables will be in the hypothesis. The "if" part contains the independent variable, and the "then" part contains the dependent variable. In our experiment, the "if" was comparing boys and girls, and the "then" was the number of baskets scored per person.