Begin your paper with a title page. The title should be specific and accurately describe what your experiment is about. Include your name, date, and the title of the experiment on this page. Place the title in the center of the page; it does not need to be underlined, set in bold, or italicized. Double-space twice and include your name and the date.
Write an abstract -- a one-paragraph summary that describes the basics of the paper. It should include main objectives, methods, observations or discoveries, and conclusions. The abstract is a snapshot of the entire paper. Write it using simple, clear language, avoiding long descriptions and flowery words. Write it in the past tense.
Begin the introduction on a new page. The introduction is composed of two important components: your objective or purpose and your hypothesis. This is also your opportunity to present background information that is relevant to understanding your paper. Write in active voice in this section. You are allowed to use first-person narrative.
Describe the methods and materials you used in the next section of the paper. Detail all the steps you took to arrive at your conclusions. Do not report results in this section; focus only on the procedures of the experiment. Write clearly, avoiding too much detail and description. Use subheadings if it will help organize your methods. Use the past tense, since you are documenting what you have already done.
Document your results. Decide whether text, graphs, tables, figures or statistics will best demonstrate your findings. Begin this section with text to introduce your graphs or charts; this will help make the information clear and concise. This section is meant to only present the findings and data, not to draw conclusions. Write in the past tense.
Conclude your paper with your discussion. Answer the question or discuss the purpose of your experiment. Decide whether or not your hypothesis was correct. Explain your observations -- in relation to prior work and your own work -- and draw a conclusion about your experiment.
Cite all references in a literature citation section. Arrange it alphabetically by the author's last name. Be sure to use the correct standardized formatting for the different types of literature you cite.