Asking Questions Like a Scientist

By the end of this lesson, you will be able to ask a testable question and define a problem based on something you observe, read, or investigate.

Imagine you walk out to the school parking lot on a hot afternoon in August. The asphalt feels like an oven, but the grass field next to it feels much cooler under your feet. That feeling is an observation, which is information you gather using your senses or your tools. Observations are where science starts, because noticing something strange or interesting makes you want an explanation.

The next step is turning that noticing into a question. A weak question is one nobody can answer, like "Why is summer so annoying?" A strong question is a testable question, meaning you could actually gather evidence to answer it, such as "Does asphalt reach a higher temperature than grass when both sit in the sun for one hour?" Notice that the strong question names what you would measure, what you would compare, and how long you would wait. You can also ask questions about a diagram, a reading passage, or a model, which is a simplified representation of something real, like a globe standing in for Earth.

Sometimes your observation points to a problem instead of a question. Defining a problem means stating clearly what needs to be fixed and what limits you have. For the hot parking lot, you might write: "Design a shade structure that lowers the pavement temperature by at least ten degrees using materials that cost under fifty dollars." That statement tells an engineer exactly what success looks like.

Good scientists ask many questions and then choose the ones they can investigate safely with the tools they have.

Try it: You notice the water in a pond near your neighborhood turns green every summer, so what testable question could you ask about it?