A
laboratory report is a neatly written account of your experiment.
It should be written in your lab notebook in ink (black or blue).
Your lab report should contain the following sections.
•
Title, number
and date of your
experiment.
•
Name of your
partner(s) .
•
PURPOSE :
This is a clear statement of why you are doing the experiment.
Often, the purpose can be stated as a question.
•
HYPOTHESIS : This is a statement of
what you think the outcome will be. Typically it is phrased
in the form of "If I change the temperature, then the item will
get hotter."
•
PROCEDURE : This section, if required,
is a step by step outline of what you will do in the experiment.
•
DATA AND OBSERVATIONS :
This section includes all of the measurements and observations
from your experiment. It is extremely important that you record
all data directly into your lab notebook. Whenever possible,
make yourself a data table. It will be to your advantage if
you design the table before coming to lab. It is also important
that you label all measurements with proper units. Failure to
do so will result in a loss of points.
•
CALCULATIONS :
Many experiments have calculations. Always indicate the formula
or method you have used to arrive at the final answer. You do
not need to show the actual operation (division, addition, etc.),
I assume that you use a calculator for this.
•
DISCUSSION : This is where you give
explanations for the observations you made in the experiment.
The answers to questions found in each experiment are to be
answered here in COMPLETE SENTENCES.
•
SOURCES OF ERROR :
List any possible sources of errors that can affect the results
of the experiment and explain how the error affects the experiment.
The error does not need to be something that specifically happened
in your experiment, but what could have happened. Be specific!!
For example, human error is not acceptable. A minimum of three
errors must be listed.
•
CONCLUSION :
Your conclusion should be related to the purpose. It should
be a clear and concise statement of what you learned from the
experiment or answer the purpose if it was a question. It should
NOT be longer than 3 sentences.
SPECIAL
NOTES
•
It is very important that you read the experiment PRIOR
to class. A clear understanding of the procedure and
purpose will help you save time in the lab.
•
If you make mistakes in your report, cross out the mistakes by
a single line. DO NOT USE WHITE OUT!!
•
Please do NOT tear sheets out of your lab notebook.
