Scientists explore the unknown to understand their world through scientific inquiry They investigate and provide explanations for what they find Most new discoveries don’t fall into someone’s lap or on their head Scientists follow a specific process that helps them make scientific discoveries Scientists make observations and ask questions They make a hypothesis based on what they have seen They conduct experiments to learn more 6
Over time when many experiments have shown the same results this body of knowledge becomes accepted Now it’s a scientific theory A scientific theory is built on layers of knowledge and many tests Sound reasoning supports the many facts It’s nowhere near a guess 7
Scientific law makes a statement about a general rule A law happens every time and never varies Scientific laws explain things Yet they don’t describe them A law can predict what will happen but it does not tell why Science cannot give 100 percent proof to ideas It states facts from direct observations At a later time new facts may arise that change the laws The new information is added and the law is adjusted 8
Mapping out the steps for an investigation is another part of scientific inquiry Collecting information follows Then ideas are adjusted as the work continues Scientists record evidence measure and observe Next they communicate what was learned Scientific inquiry takes any scientist at any age from simple ideas to more complex ideas The process helps to form a body of knowledge It moves from a hypothesis to a theory and maybe even to a law Everyone who works in science follows the same process and it often proves to be exciting 9
