Explanation: Describe the experiment to students and explain its purpose, along with potential risks.
Participation: To meet ethical standards, participation in experiential activities must be voluntary. Allow students to decline to participate without prejudice or penalty.
Written Consent: Obtain written consent for classroom experiments that involve research. Written consent must fully identify the participant with name and birth date. The consent describes the experiment. The consent is signed and dated by the participant.
Predict: Formulate a testable prediction regarding the expected outcome of a particular activity. The hypothesis is a specialized if-then statement, predicting what will happen in a given set of circumstances.
Specify: Be specific about how the activity is conducted: who, what, when, how and where. Explain to students.
Prepare: Set up the experiment according to the needs of the particular hypothesis and experiment design. This means dividing students into groups or subgroups or providing students with instructions regarding their roles in the experiment.
Conduct: Carry out the experiment. Guide students as necessary to complete the activity.
Observe: Take notes regarding the actions and reactions of participants, along with findings based upon the completed experiment results.
Discussion: At the completion of the experiment, ask students to talk about their feelings and behaviors during the experiment, along with their conclusions.
Discover: Present your own observations and conclusions. Compare the findings of your classroom with historical information or theory regarding the hypothesis tested during your classroom experiment. Facilitate a general discussion based upon this new information.
Clear: Make certain every participant has an opportunity to process their feelings regarding their participation in the experiment.