Scientific Method

"Scientific Method" lyrics

Teacher: Ok, class, today we're going to demonstrate the scientific method.

Robot: I enjoy the scientific method

Teacher: To help make it easier to understand, last year's science fair winner, Johnny Gassenwhiffer, will go through all 7 steps of the scientific method with me.

Robot: Step one...IDENTIFY THE PROBLEM

Teacher: So, Johnny, what was the problem you wanted to answer?

Johnny: Uh, why did my living room smell so bad?

Robot: Step two...MAKE OBSERVATIONS

Teacher: What observations did you make about that smelly room, Johnny?

Johnny: Well, Uncle Bill and his dog Beans were in the room.

Robot: Step three...STATE YOUR HYPOTHESIS

Teacher: Your hypothesis is a likely explanation of the problem. What did you think the problem was, Johnny?

Johnny: It smelled like somebody farted!

Robot: Step four...TEST YOUR HYPOTHESIS

Teacher: To test your hypothesis, you have to set up your experiment so that it has only one variable. That way, you can be fairly sure that the changes you observe are caused by that variable. You should also set up a control, which is a different setup that does not have the variable you're testing. So Johnny, how did you set up your experiment?

Johnny: Well, I first smelled the room when Uncle Bill was alone and then I smelled the room when Uncle Bill and Beans were together in the room and then I smelled the room when Beans was alone.

Robot: Step five...COLLECT AND RECORD DATA

Teacher: Data is the information from your experiment that you can use to make conclusions. What data did you collect, Johnny?

Johnny: Well, sometimes when Uncle Bill and Beans were together, the room smelled terrible and sometimes when Uncle Bill was alone, the room still smelled bad and when Beans was alone, the room was never stinky!

Robot: Step six...STUDY THE DATA

Teacher: So mister Johnny Gassenwhiffer, what do you suppose that information means?

Johnny: Uh, uh, the room was smelly only when Uncle Bill was around.

Robot: Step seven...MAKE CONCLUSIONS

Teacher: So, does your data support your hypothesis?

Johnny: Oh, yeah. Uncle Bill can cut a really mean fart!