Your lab write-up requires the following format:

Title page – Name, Course, Lab name and number, and date.
                                      

Background – Research and describe any information that is relevant to the topic that we are studying.  This is open-ended and you can write about anything that  interests you regarding the lab.  You must however, direct your discussion towards your objective or purpose by the end of this section.  This what a professional research (thesis) paper would  require.

Objectives or Purpose- List the objectives of the lab. This is exactly what we did for every lab in Honors Chemistry except you will not be given these objectives.

Materials – Chemicals used, equipment,etc,

Procedure – A step by step list of all laboratory instructions.  A satisfactory procedure is one that is written so that any person could follow and repeat the experiment successfully.  Please number your procedure steps.

Data– (table) A clear neat organized section that illustrates all data that was collected and calculated.  This includes all graphs that should have titles and annotations.  I should not have to guess what I am looking at. Pictures taken of your lab result are very welcome. Just make sure you describe what they are (figure 1) etc.

Chemical Reactions– A reactions used in each lab must be balanced with phases (g, l, s, aq).

Calculations- Provide all your calculations so that I can go back and confirm your results.  Without this section your lab hold no weight.  You may attach your calculations you actually used if they are legible. You do not have to type your collections. See Francesco’s lab below.

Results – This section summarizes the most important data that was collected or calculated. This section filters out all of the extraneous data that you collected to obtain your important results and makes it easier for a reader to find.  It demonstrates your understanding of what the objectives were in this experiment.  This section must be in written words, not just data, and does not contain any conclusion statements. In Honors Chemistry last year I asked for my students to tell me what they found in the first part of the conclusion and that was essentially a results section.

Conclusion – This is the most important part of your lab.  In this section you must evaluate your lab as being successful or not.  This is not an easy answer because high percent error (a lab with a lot of error) may not necessarily be unsuccessful because it may provide insight on the flaw of the main design of the lab that could lead to a better experiment.  In this section you will use your numbers generated to quantify success.  You will describe all errors and tie them to your result. For instance if you obtained a value greater than the accepted value you must try to account for this result with an appropriate error that would raise your result above the standard.  Your conclusion should parellel your objectives in that if you do not discuss an outcome on something you set out to do (objective) then points will be lost.  This analytical writing thus no statements like, “I feel” or “I believe” should be used.  This writing is based on your empirical data.

Sources: You must give credit to outside sources. How you accomplish this is up you. You may use any of the APA or MLA formats. You cannot cut and paste from the internet with giving credit.  If you do not give credit to outside sources when applicable your work will be plagiarized and it will result in a violation of the honors code at Westhampton Beach High School.

All the above sections must be included in your lab report and it must be typed with the exception of the calculations section.n Please adhere to the posted due dates that will be in your class calendar or on board.
  

Thank you Francesco!!