Black Bottle Investigation
DATA TABLE (Experimental Test Set 1)
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Thoughts:
SEP: Planning & Carrying Out Investigations, Analyzing & Interpreting Data
CCC: Patterns, Systems, Quantity, Cause & Effect
SEP: Planning & Carrying Out Investigations, Analyzing & Interpreting Data
CCC: Patterns, Systems, Quantity, Cause & Effect
- (Obs) One thing I noticed was that not as much water came out as went in.
- (Inf) There's something preventing the water from coming out.
- (Q) What could possibly make it work so that only a small amount of water comes out?
- (Obs) I notice that Mr. Beadle uses the funnel every time he pours, and he slowly pushes it in slowly at an angle.
- (Inf) This funnel must somehow activate the mechanism inside. My guess is that it's some sort of valve like on a Gatorade bottle, or a trap door.
- (Exp) What would happen if he poured water into the black bottle without the funnel? (Q) Would water go in or would it pour out?
Vocabulary:
- Phenomena
- The event or natural occurrence that piques one's curiosity and causes one to generate a question, pose an explanation, or launch a scientific investigation.
- It's usually identified with an element of surprise after an observation.
- The initial phenomena, in this case, is when I poured in water, but nothing came out. Other phenomena came out as we conducted further experiments.
- It's usually identified with an element of surprise after an observation.
- The event or natural occurrence that piques one's curiosity and causes one to generate a question, pose an explanation, or launch a scientific investigation.
- Quantitative Observation (Quantity)
- Observation using numbers - usually from having measured an asepect of something.
- i.e. mass, weight, length, volume, density, time, etc.
- Observation using numbers - usually from having measured an asepect of something.
- Quantitative Observations (Quality)
- Observations using words to describe what you saw, heard, smelled, (5 senses).
- Inference
- Interpreting what you observed.
Note: It is the observation of the phenomena that began the conversation that led to other kinds of conversational pieces. The observation generated questions, inferences (interpretations), and other investigational and experimental ideas.
Phase 2: Draw a Model of the Black Bottle
SEP: Models, Explanation, Arguing from Evidence
CCC: Systems & Structure & Function
Next step is to think about how the black bottle works - then draw and provide a possible explanation of how you think the black bottle works as a system in terms of structure and function. Be sure to label the parts of the model. Be prepared to share your ideas with your team.
Scale: the bottle's height is about 30 cm and the bottle's height on the paper is about 15 cm.
Put the scale on the bottom of the model drawing.
SEP: Models, Explanation, Arguing from Evidence
CCC: Systems & Structure & Function
Next step is to think about how the black bottle works - then draw and provide a possible explanation of how you think the black bottle works as a system in terms of structure and function. Be sure to label the parts of the model. Be prepared to share your ideas with your team.
Scale: the bottle's height is about 30 cm and the bottle's height on the paper is about 15 cm.
Put the scale on the bottom of the model drawing.
Phase 3: Group Discussion
SEP: Models, Explanation, Arguing from Evidence
CCC: Systems & Structure & Function
Next, discuss with your group your idea of how the black bottle as a system works. Discuss the reasons why you think it works this way based on the evidence you witnessed.
Next, redraw and re-explain the bottles structure and function as a system based on your groups idea.
SEP: Models, Explanation, Arguing from Evidence
CCC: Systems & Structure & Function
Next, discuss with your group your idea of how the black bottle as a system works. Discuss the reasons why you think it works this way based on the evidence you witnessed.
Next, redraw and re-explain the bottles structure and function as a system based on your groups idea.
Vocabulary:
- Hypothesis:
- A possible explanation for a set of observations.
- An answer to a scientific question.
- An educated guess.
- May also be an if/then statement - if you're examining it through the ccc lense of cause and effect.
How the Hypothesis compares to a Thesis:
When we compare a hypothesis to a thesis, we realize that there is a lot of similarities. A Thesis is a statement or claim that you "know" to be true. In a 5 paragraph persuasive essay, the author shows evidence that supports the thesis and concludes that the thesis is correct because of the evidence that they provided proves it.
The Scientific Method is very similar to a 5 paragraph essay, and a Hypothesis is very similar to a thesis. When I separate the word hypothesis into two parts, it becomes evident that a hypothesis is a type of thesis; it's a "Hypo-Thesis" - or "sub claim". Meaning that a hypothesis is sub par to a thesis statement because it is not supported. The reason why a hypothesis is NOT a thesis is because it lacks evidence. A hypothesis, is an unsupported claim that we "believe" to be true, but we lack the evidence to support what we believe to be true; Therefore, a hypothesis must be tested to see if it could be true - we don't know - because we lack the evidence. Therefore, we need to investigate - or experiment to see if the answer is in the correct direction. Once we find our nugget of truth, we can then convert our hypothesis into a thesis when we write a scientific article.
How to conduct lab research will follow in our next day.
Further Insight:
One thing that I've learned is that an observation may start as an open ended question, which may start the research with a hypothesis written as a possible explanation for a set of observations, or an answer to a scientific question, but that open ended question and answer is then followed by a series of closed ended (Y/N) questions, with hypotheses resembling if / then statements to see if your answer is pointed in the right direction.
Or, it may be exactly the opposite approach. An observation may have been made - and you may have hypothesized that something causes something to happen and you may then ask a closed ended question such as "does something affect another?" (Y/N). This approach may then be followed up with an open ended question such as why or how does this affect the other?
When we compare a hypothesis to a thesis, we realize that there is a lot of similarities. A Thesis is a statement or claim that you "know" to be true. In a 5 paragraph persuasive essay, the author shows evidence that supports the thesis and concludes that the thesis is correct because of the evidence that they provided proves it.
The Scientific Method is very similar to a 5 paragraph essay, and a Hypothesis is very similar to a thesis. When I separate the word hypothesis into two parts, it becomes evident that a hypothesis is a type of thesis; it's a "Hypo-Thesis" - or "sub claim". Meaning that a hypothesis is sub par to a thesis statement because it is not supported. The reason why a hypothesis is NOT a thesis is because it lacks evidence. A hypothesis, is an unsupported claim that we "believe" to be true, but we lack the evidence to support what we believe to be true; Therefore, a hypothesis must be tested to see if it could be true - we don't know - because we lack the evidence. Therefore, we need to investigate - or experiment to see if the answer is in the correct direction. Once we find our nugget of truth, we can then convert our hypothesis into a thesis when we write a scientific article.
How to conduct lab research will follow in our next day.
Further Insight:
One thing that I've learned is that an observation may start as an open ended question, which may start the research with a hypothesis written as a possible explanation for a set of observations, or an answer to a scientific question, but that open ended question and answer is then followed by a series of closed ended (Y/N) questions, with hypotheses resembling if / then statements to see if your answer is pointed in the right direction.
Or, it may be exactly the opposite approach. An observation may have been made - and you may have hypothesized that something causes something to happen and you may then ask a closed ended question such as "does something affect another?" (Y/N). This approach may then be followed up with an open ended question such as why or how does this affect the other?
Phase 4: Experimental Design
SEP: Asking Questions, Planning and Carrying Out Investigations
CCC: Systems, Cause & Effect, Patterns & Structure & Function
Next, based on your teams system design, think of a way to test an aspect of your design.
SEP: Asking Questions, Planning and Carrying Out Investigations
CCC: Systems, Cause & Effect, Patterns & Structure & Function
Next, based on your teams system design, think of a way to test an aspect of your design.
Test set 2
After the students discussed their model & hypothesis of how the black bottle works & formulated an experiment to test their hypothesis, I ran the tests for them. Below are some experiments and how they turned out.
After the students discussed their model & hypothesis of how the black bottle works & formulated an experiment to test their hypothesis, I ran the tests for them. Below are some experiments and how they turned out.
After the first series of tests, groups of students are encouraged to draw their idea of how the bottle works (pg. 15) and give a brief possible explanation for a set of observations (ah hem... a Hypothesis).
As a class - I had each table discuss their models (drawings) and choose one they wish to represent to the rest of the class - and draw it on the dry erase board or in their notebooks, and then prepared to share with the rest of the class - how their design worked, and why they felt that way.
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Next, as a group, they design an experiment based on their model to test their idea out (pg 16) . I inform them that I will run the experiments in the front of the class for them, and that I will not to perform any dissections, nor are any students to see the bottle up close. (This is essential!)
The group that is going is to state what it is they are testing and what their expected outcome is if their design is right.
Below are the results of some other tests.
As a class - I had each table discuss their models (drawings) and choose one they wish to represent to the rest of the class - and draw it on the dry erase board or in their notebooks, and then prepared to share with the rest of the class - how their design worked, and why they felt that way.
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Next, as a group, they design an experiment based on their model to test their idea out (pg 16) . I inform them that I will run the experiments in the front of the class for them, and that I will not to perform any dissections, nor are any students to see the bottle up close. (This is essential!)
The group that is going is to state what it is they are testing and what their expected outcome is if their design is right.
Below are the results of some other tests.
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Here are a few pictures showing some of the experiments.
Model from Test Set 2 (pg. 18)
Students then drew a second model and provided another possible explanation to the side, and then answered the following 2 questions on page .
Scientific Principles Learned from the Black Bottle:
Students then drew a second model and provided another possible explanation to the side, and then answered the following 2 questions on page .
Scientific Principles Learned from the Black Bottle:
- The black bottle is nature. Nature does not reveal her secrets very easily.
- One must investigate through experimentation and research in order to understand nature better.
- As you ran tests, you collected more evidence. Many of your ideas (hypotheses) changed in light of new evidence. So it is with science. Hypotheses, conclusions & theories change in light of new evidence.
- Scientific knowledge of how nature works is built up slowly and cautiously over long periods of time.
- There is no one particular way to do science. Everybody did different experiments to find an element of truth about the black bottle.
- Science is a way of knowing that is used by everybody - NOT JUST SCIENTISTS!