WATER QUALITY
This tells you how hot or cold the water is.
What is temperature?
This is the first step of the scientific method.
What is ask a testable question?
A student wants to find out which type of soil helps plants grow best. They use the same type of plant, the same amount of water, and the same amount of sunlight. What variable should they change?
What is the type of soil?
This is a living part of an ecosystem.
What is a biotic factor?
These pond organisms are producers that can provide oxygen and food.
What are algae?
This tells you how acidic or basic something is.
What is pH?
Before conducting an experiment, scientists do this to learn what is already known about the topic.
What is background research?
A student tests whether temperature affects how quickly ice melts. They place one ice cube in a refrigerator, one in a classroom, and one outside. What is the independent variable?
What is temperature?
This is a nonliving part of an ecosystem.
What is an abiotic factor?
These tiny organisms can eat algae and other food and can be consumers or decomposers.
What are protists?
This water-quality measurement tells you how much oxygen is dissolved in the water.
What is dissolved oxygen?
This is a possible answer to a testable question that can be tested.
What is a hypothesis?
A student tests three brands of paper towels by measuring how much water each towel can absorb. What is the dependent variable?
What is the amount of water absorbed?
This is the place where an organism lives and gets what it needs to survive.
What is a habitat?
This tiny pond organism eats algae and bacteria and can be food for larger organisms.
What is Daphnia?
These are forms of nitrogen that can be important nutrients for plant growth.
What are nitrates/nitrites?
After conducting an experiment, scientists do this with the information they collected.
What is analyze the data?
A student tests whether fertilizer affects plant growth. They use 5 plants with fertilizer and 5 plants without fertilizer. Why is it important to have plants without fertilizer?
What is to have a control group?
All the different populations of living organisms in an area make up this level.
What is a community?
These organisms break down organic matter and can also be food for larger organisms.
What are blackworms, or Lumbriculus?
This water-quality measurement tells how easily water can resist changes to its pH.
What is alkalinity?
Put these in the correct order: analyze the data, ask a testable question, draw a conclusion, conduct an experiment, form a hypothesis, do background research.
What is ask a testable question → background research → form a hypothesis → conduct an experiment → analyze the data → draw a conclusion?
A student tests whether music affects plant growth. Group A gets music, Group B gets no music. However, Group A receives twice as much water. Can the student determine that music caused a difference in growth? Explain.
No, because the amount of water was also changed. The experiment had another variable.
This includes all parts of Earth where living things survive.
What is the biosphere?
These pond animals are consumers that eat small aquatic organisms.
What are African dwarf frogs?