Academics · Subject Resources · Free tool for families

From a question
to a conclusion.

The scientific method, one step at a time: a testable question, a hypothesis with a reason, variables with a control, a procedure, a data table that draws its own graph, and a conclusion. A plan check catches the usual mistakes as you type.

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Included with the Caveat Academy pass and Whole-school licenses. Or get it in the Study skills kit, $29 for 21 items.

6steps
28plan checks
1worked kitchen example

Plan the experiment

Six steps, one screen each. The plan check on the side updates as you type.

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The plan stays in this browser on this device; nothing is sent anywhere.

The mistakes the checker catches

The same six problems turn up in most first experiments. Each one has a rule in the plan check.

More than one thing changes

If the hot water is also a different glass, you cannot tell which one sped things up. Change one thing; the checker flags an independent variable with "and" in it.

No control

Without a normal setting to compare with, "faster" has no meaning. Mark one level as the control or comparison condition.

Changed and controlled at once

A variable on the kept-the-same list that is also the thing you change is a contradiction. The checker catches the overlap.

No unit

"How well it dissolves" is not a measurement. "Seconds until no crystals are left" is.

One trial

One result can be luck. Three trials at each level show whether it holds, and the mean smooths out small slips.

"This proves it"

One experiment supports or does not support a hypothesis. It never proves it, and a hypothesis that turns out wrong is still a result.

What this resource is

Most science fair trouble starts in the plan, not the experiment. The organizer walks through the plan in order and checks it as you go, so the experiment can answer the question you asked.

Part of Academics · Subject Resources in the Caveat Suite

Start a plan
Outcome
A complete, printable lab plan and report: a testable question, a hypothesis with a reason, clear variables with a control, a repeatable procedure, a data table with means, a graph and a conclusion tied to the data.
Who it is for
Families helping a child in about grades 3 to 8 with a science fair project or a science assignment, and the child doing it. Works for homeschool science too.
Format
A browser organizer. Prints as a lab report with the graph; data downloads as a spreadsheet; the plan saves as a file.
Access
$5 one-time, yours on every device you sign in on; the tool opens once you are signed in with it. Included with the Caveat Academy pass and Whole-school licenses. Also in the Study skills kit ($29) and the Academics Suite pass ($149), and 1 more bundle. Saved in this browser only.
Time
About 30 minutes to plan with the example as a model; the experiment itself takes as long as it takes.
Space
Academics · Subject Resources primary space
Support
Questions or a problem with this tool: team@caveatacademic.com

Sources

  • National Research Council (2012). A Framework for K-12 Science Education. National Academies Press. Science and engineering practices, including planning and carrying out investigations and analyzing data.
  • NGSS Lead States (2013). Next Generation Science Standards, practice 3, Planning and Carrying Out Investigations.
  • Solubility and dissolving rate: most solids, including table sugar, dissolve faster in warmer water because the molecules move faster. Any general chemistry text covers this.

The kitchen example and its data are illustrative, made up to be realistic for 250 mL of water and a level teaspoon of sugar; your times will differ. Adults should handle hot water and anything sharp or hot. "Control" here means the comparison condition the other levels are measured against; some teachers call it the control group or baseline.