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🔬 Week 4: Experimental Design

Lesson Overview
Grade Level Grades 5-6
Duration 45 minutes
STREAM Focus S (Science), M (Math)

Week 4: Experimental Design

🎯 Learning Objectives

STEM Objectives

Students will be able to: 1. Design a controlled experiment with clear variables 2. Distinguish between independent, dependent, and control variables 3. Collect and analyze quantitative data 4. Draw evidence-based conclusions

Faith Integration Objectives

Students will be able to: 1. Understand scientific inquiry as seeking truth 2. Connect intellectual honesty to faith virtue 3. Recognize that scientific truth reflects divine truth

Week 4: Experimental Design

🙏 Faith-Reason Integration

Catholic Teaching Connection

Seeking Truth — The scientific method is a disciplined search for truth. The Church teaches that all truth is God's truth. When scientists honestly seek to understand creation, they're doing holy work. Intellectual integrity is a virtue.

Scripture Connection

"You will know the truth, and the truth will set you free." — John 8:32

Saint Connection

St. Albert the Great — Patron saint of scientists, he emphasized careful observation and logical reasoning. He taught that studying nature is a form of worship because we learn about the Creator through creation.

📚 Materials Needed

  • Experiment materials (based on chosen experiment)

  • Lab notebooks or recording sheets

  • Rulers, timers, measuring tools

  • Calculators

  • Graph paper or graphing software

  • Safety equipment as needed

📝 Lesson Procedure (45 minutes)

Opening Prayer & Introduction (5 min)

Prayer: "God of truth, You invite us to seek and discover. Help us be honest scientists who follow evidence wherever it leads. May our search for truth always lead us closer to You, the source of all truth. Amen."

Introduction:

  • "The scientific method is humanity's best tool for finding truth about nature"

  • "Good experiments require careful design"

  • "Today you'll design and conduct your own controlled experiment"

Experimental Design Principles (12 min)

Key vocabulary:

Independent Variable (IV)

  • What YOU change

  • The "cause" you're testing

  • Only ONE independent variable per experiment!

Dependent Variable (DV)

  • What you MEASURE

  • The "effect" or result

  • Changes in response to independent variable

Control Variables

  • Everything you keep the SAME

  • Critical for fair test

  • The more controls, the better!

Control Group (if applicable)

  • Baseline for comparison

  • Shows what happens without the IV

Example walkthrough: "Does temperature affect how fast sugar dissolves?"

  • IV: Temperature (what we change)

  • DV: Dissolving time (what we measure)

  • Controls: Amount of water, amount of sugar, stirring, type of container, type of sugar

Faith connection: "Honest scientists don't cherry-pick data or ignore results they don't like. Intellectual honesty is a virtue. St. Albert the Great said we must observe carefully and report truthfully."

Experiment Design Phase (10 min)

Choose experiment (class vote or teacher assigns):

Option A: Ramp & Roll

  • Question: How does ramp angle affect distance a ball rolls?

  • Materials: Ramp, ball, measuring tape, protractor

Option B: Paper Airplane Flight

  • Question: How does wing size affect flight distance?

  • Materials: Paper, rulers, measuring tape

Option C: Dissolving Rates

  • Question: How does water temperature affect dissolving time?

  • Materials: Sugar, water, thermometer, timer, cups

Design process: 1. State hypothesis (prediction with reasoning) 2. Identify IV, DV, and control variables 3. Plan procedure (step-by-step) 4. Create data table 5. Determine number of trials (minimum 3)

Experiment Execution (13 min)

Conduct experiment:

  • Follow procedure exactly

  • Record all data accurately

  • Note any observations

  • Minimum 3 trials per condition

Teacher circulates:

  • Check experimental design

  • Ensure controls are maintained

  • Encourage accurate recording

Analysis & Conclusion (5 min)

Quick analysis:

  • Calculate averages

  • Create simple graph (if time)

  • Identify patterns

Conclusion discussion:

  • "Was your hypothesis supported?"

  • "What does the data show?"

  • "What would you do differently?"

  • "What new questions do you have?"

Being wrong is okay:

  • "In science, a 'wrong' hypothesis is still valuable!"

  • "We learn from unexpected results"

  • "Honesty about results is essential"

✅ Assessment

  • Designed experiment with clear IV, DV, and controls

  • Collected quantitative data with multiple trials

  • Analyzed data and drew evidence-based conclusion

  • Demonstrated scientific integrity

📎 Home Connection

"We learned advanced experimental design! Ask your child: 'What's the difference between independent and dependent variables?' 'What did you experiment with?' 'What did you discover?' Try designing a simple experiment at home. Remember: all truth is God's truth — when we discover how creation works, we learn about the Creator!"

Lesson Version: 1.0 | **