6 INTRODUCTION • HOW SCIENCE WORKS

How science works We are going

to look at how
In science, we discover facts about the world by science works by
making observations and doing experiments. studying the cows
This is called the scientific method. on a dairy farm.

1 Name the six stages of the scientific method,

in the order in which you would follow them.

a b c

d e f

2 Scientists look for patterns and try to find explanations for them. Check two
sentences below that are about patterns in the pictures.

a Field 2 is fertilized by manure from the resident

cows. This helps the grass grow lush and healthy.

b There has been a lot of rain recently.

c The farmer only milks the cows on weekdays.

d No cows live in field 1, and there is no cow manure.

As a result, very little grass grows here. Field 1 Field 2

3 Read this hypothesis about milk production and then circle the correct words or phrases
to complete each of the sentences below about how you might test the hypothesis.

More manure produces taller grass. This is good for farmers because
cows eat more grass and produce more milk. We can test this by:

a Using the same amount / different amounts of manure.

REMEMBER!
A scientific idea is
b Measuring the milk that one cow produces / ten cows produce called a hypothesis.
from fields with different amounts of grass.

c Measuring the milk produced for a week / a day.

d Doing the experiment once / several times.

 INTRODUCTION • HOW SCIENCE WORKS 7

4 Scientists analyze data to reach conclusions. Use the information in this table to calculate
how much milk was collected in each field in a week. Color in bar charts on the grid to
show the correct amount of milk collected in each field during the week.

Total milk from 10 cows (liters)

Field 1: Field 2: a Field 3: a lot
1,500
no manure little manure of manure
Mon 50 100 200
1,000

Liters of milk
Tues 45 90 190
Weds 48 95 185
500
Thurs 50 101 195
Fri 47 86 200
0

Field 2

Field 3
Sat 46 78 180

Field 1
Sun 49 84 193

Then, complete these sentences about the results of the experiment.

a The cows produced the most milk in Field .

b The cows produced the least milk in Field .

c The cows in Field 2 produced more milk than the cows in Field .

d The cows in the field with manure produced the most milk.

SCIENCE AT HOME

5 Read these sentences about the experiment above

and then circle true (T) or false (F) for each. Milk experiment
1. What happens to milk when
a The experiment proves that the hypothesis T / F you mix it with lemon juice?
is true for all three fields.

b The experiment needs to be repeated T / F

to prove the hypothesis.
2. What happens to milk when
c It isn’t important to repeat the experiment T / F you leave it out of the fridge?
in different fields.

d The experiment suggests that the hypothesis T / F

is true for all three fields.

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