Science | Student Guide | Setting Up a Science Notebook

Student Guide
Setting Up a Science Notebook
When you go to a store and see a crowd of people buying school supplies, you know a new
school year is about to begin. You’ll see people putting all kinds of items in their carts: pencils,
crayons, notebook paper, glue sticks, scissors, markers, highlighters, and folders. You’ll also
see people buying notebooks: spiral and marbled composition books and three-ring binders.
Notebooks play an important role in the life of students.
In this lesson, you will learn why notebooks are so important to scientists. You will learn how
scientists use notebooks as a science tool, and you will set up your own Science Notebook.
Let’s get started!

Lesson Objectives
 Explain how a variety of tools can be used to collect, record, and/or analyze scientific
information.
 Explain that when scientific investigations are carried out, the evidence produced by
those investigations should be replicable by others.

PREPARE
Approximate lesson time is 60 minutes.
Materials
For the Student
 What's the Problem? How to Start Your Scientific Investigation by Kylie Burns
 Science Notebook
 Table of Contents sheets
 three-hole punch
 binder dividers with tabs
 notebook paper
 **Note that your Learning Coach or Teacher may have you keep a virtual digital Science
Notebook instead of a physical one. If so, you will not need some of these materials and
will copy the table of contents and activity pages into your digital notebook.

LEARN
Activity 1: What's the Problem? How to Start Your Scientific Investigation (Online)
Instructions
Open and read pages 6–7 and pages 28–29 in the e-book What's the Problem? How to Start
Your Scientific Investigation. You will be reading about why scientists ask questions and how
and why they record information. As you read, answer the following questions:
 Why do scientists ask questions?

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 Science | Student Guide | Setting Up a Science Notebook

 How do scientists use science notebooks or journals?

Activity 2: Scientists Use Science Notebooks (Online)
Instructions
Read the Explore pages in the online lesson and discuss the answers to the questions with
your Learning Coach.
Activity 3: Setting Up Your Science Notebook (Offline)
Instructions
Note: The Science Notebook is a three-ring binder in which you will keep work samples and a
running record of what you have learned. Alternatively, your teacher may have you keep a
virtual digital notebook. This notebook will be your portfolio for the course.
You will use the Science Notebook to complete activities to help you learn in different ways.
You might use it to answer questions or record data during investigations. Be sure to keep up
with your Science Notebook.
You should also save all Investigation Recording Sheets and Worksheets, whether
completed on the computer or after printing. You will use these and any reflections in
your Science Notebook as references during the course and as a review and study tool.
Now it’s time to set up your notebook:
1. Put the binder dividers in your notebook. The first divider will be for the Table of Contents.
Label the tab on this divider.

2. The next divider will be for Unit 1, Scientific Investigations. Have the next five dividers
available for the other units in this course. Use any remaining dividers for sections of your
choice, such as a glossary or a page where you can record science questions that pop up
in your mind.

3. As you complete work in this science course, you will use the notebook as a part of each
lesson. Always put a heading at the top of each assignment. The heading should include a
title for the page and the date.
4. Plan to number the pages in your science notebook as you go. Choose the place on the
page where you will always put a page number. For example, you might want to always
number the pages in the lower right-hand corner.

5. Use the three-hole punch on the Table of Contents pages and add them to your notebook
behind the Table of Contents divider. If creating a virtual binder, create Table of Contents
pages in the front of your binder.

6. If using a paper notebook, you may want to keep some notebook paper in the back of the
binder, so it is easily available for your use.

7. If your notebook has a plastic sleeve on the front of the binder, design a cover and slip it in
the sleeve. If virtual, create a cover using technology.

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 Science | Student Guide | Setting Up a Science Notebook

ASSESS
There is no assessment in this lesson.

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