Grade Nine

Scientific Inquiry

Students develop scientific habits of mind as they use the processes of scientific inquiry to ask valid questions and to gather and analyze information. They understand how to develop hypotheses and make predictions. They are able to reflect on scientific practices as they develop plans of action to create and evaluate a variety of conclusions. Students are also able to demonstrate the ability to communicate their findings to others.

Benchmark A: [9-10] Doing Scientific Inquiry
Participate in and apply the processes of scientific investigation to create models and to design, conduct, evaluate and communicate the results of these investigations.

Indicators
Doing Scientific Inquiry1. Distinguish between observations and inferences given a scientific situation.

2. Research and apply appropriate safety precautions when designing and conducting scientific investigations (e.g., OSHA, Material Safety Data Sheets [MSDS], eyewash, goggles and ventilation).

3. Construct, interpret and apply physical and conceptual models that represent or explain systems, objects, events or concepts.

4. Decide what degree of precision based on the data is adequate and round off the results of calculator operations to the proper number of significant figures to reasonably reflect those of the inputs.

5. Develop oral and written presentations using clear language, accurate data, appropriate graphs, tables, maps and available technology.

6. Draw logical conclusions based on scientific knowledge and evidence from investigations.