Biology Class Combines Outdoors and New 1:1 Program to Learn About Scientific Method
Mr. Bromwell's Advanced Honors Biology class is learning about the scientific method by using the stream near the Grotto as a field study site. Students spent a class period making observations along the trail. From these observations, each group developed a set of questions about their observations. They selected one question and proposed a hypothesis about it. Then, they each designed an experiment to test their hypothesis.
Students took to the outdoors last week to perform their experiments and record data with their Surface Pro devices. Each group's experiment was a little different as their questions were all unique:
-One group was trying to determine if the size of tree fungus/mold patches was related to the species of the tree that they were on and whether the tree was dead or alive.
-Another group wondered if the pH of water changes after it flows through a rocky area in the stream bed. They measured the pH levels of the stream water before and after the rock patches to determine this.
-Finally, a couple of groups looked at soil moisture. One group was trying to determine if soil moisture was related to the number of amphibians found in an area. They used a device with pH sensors to transmit data directly to their tablets, which they could easily record and share with one another.
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Students took to the outdoors last week to perform their experiments and record data with their Surface Pro devices. Each group's experiment was a little different as their questions were all unique:
-One group was trying to determine if the size of tree fungus/mold patches was related to the species of the tree that they were on and whether the tree was dead or alive.
-Another group wondered if the pH of water changes after it flows through a rocky area in the stream bed. They measured the pH levels of the stream water before and after the rock patches to determine this.
-Finally, a couple of groups looked at soil moisture. One group was trying to determine if soil moisture was related to the number of amphibians found in an area. They used a device with pH sensors to transmit data directly to their tablets, which they could easily record and share with one another.
