The student will be expected to maintain a laboratory manual that contains each experiment . The student must complete the written pre-Lab assignment before the laboratory period begins and document their data, results and post laboratory assignments for each laboratory assignment. The laboratory notebook will be collected and graded several times during the semester.
The following links show further explanation or examples of laboratory notebooks. Notice there is not a single way to develop your notebook, but in each of these links there are common themes.
The laboratory notebook should be a bound manual and should include the following:
A title page in the notebook that has the class, semester, year, and student's name
A table of contents with each page of the manual numbered and referenced in the table of contents.
A title page for each experiment with the title of the experiment, date, student's name and names of the student's partners in performing the laboratory assignment.
Each laboratory assignment will require a pre writing assignment, the post laboratory assignment and the conclusion paragraph.
Each laboratory assignment may consist of all or part of the following activities:
Pre-Laboratory writing assignment which includes information that will help the student prepare for the completing the experiment. Completion of pre laboratory assignments will be required BEFORE the laboratory assignment.
Laboratory quiz which contain the prelaboratory problems in the laboratory manual. These quizzes should be started BEFORE you come to the laboratory session, but can be completed up to the due date for the laboratory assignment.
Post Laboratory Results and Discussion assignment which is the main portion of the laboratory experiment, requiring observations, calculations and explanations of the data and results. The Introduction to the laboratory, the first link in each laboratory folder, contains information that may help the student complete this assignment.
Post Laboratory Problems which contains questions from the laboratory manual. And finally,
Post Laboratory Writing Assignment which requires the student to write a summation and explain the main purpose, the data and results and the greater connection of this assignment to science. Generally this is a conclusion paragraph. The RERUNS method is a good outline for completing this assignment.
Pre Laboratory Writing Assignment
For each exercise, the pre laboratory writing assignment will include the following in order and labeled correctly. These items must be written in the laboratory notebook BEFORE the lab is started.
On a separate page beginning the laboratory assignment, the title of the experiment, the date of assignment and the student’s laboratory partners.
On a new page, a concise purpose statement – this is generally a one or two sentence statement of the objectives of the assignment.
Following the purpose statement, a paragraph on the theory of the assignment. Answer the following: What is the key concept of this assignment, what mathematical equations will be used to explain the concepts, what are the new or special techniques that are introduced in the laboratory assignment, and are there any chemical reactions essential to the assignment?
A list of chemicals with pertinent information listed (an MSDS should be looked up on the web on any chemicals in the laboratory assignment. Special equipment should be given and a drawing of the laboratory apparatus can be worth more than a paragraph of description.
Complete any special calculations needed for the laboratory assignment
On a new page in the laboratory notebook, the procedure of the laboratory assignment, how you will do the assignment, should be given as a step by step description with enough detail so you do not have to use your laboratory manual. The page on which the procedure is written must have about 30% white space in which your observations, data and notes can be written while completing the assignment in class. This is best accomplished by writing the procedure in a column that covers about 50% of the space.
All class data and observations will be placed in the laboratory notebook in INK. Think about what data you will need to record in your laboratory notebook. Class data will play a significant role in recording results.
The class data will generally be collected BEFORE leaving the laboratory session. Students will be expected to submit their data and then complete the calculations for all data in an Excel spreadsheet. Almost every laboratory assignment will be class data and results spreadsheets that will be required as a significant portion of the laboratory grade.
The instructor will initial your work in the laboratory manual before leaving the laboratory.
Examples and further explanation of the notebook is available on the class web page.
The post laboratory assignment should show ALL data recorded in the notebook and your written conclusions. The laboratory report is the Results and Discussion taken from the laboratory manual except for the reports that are formal written assignments.
Post Laboratory Assignment:
A completed Data table (can be attached) Recording and presenting data and results: http://www.dbooth.net/mhs/common/datarules.html
A completed Results table
Graphs
sample calculations
Conclusion paragraph