- Doing Science

Ecology Explorers gives Phoenix area K-12 students and teachers opportunities to do real scientific research. Your research will be part of the Central Arizona - Phoenix Long-Term Ecological Research (CAP LTER) project being carried out by CAP LTER scientists.

The most creative and fun parts of science include: looking for patterns in nature, developing hypotheses, designing and running experiments, and analyzing results. But there are two things you should do before moving to these steps:

1) Learn data collection techniques used by scientists. These are called "protocols."

2) Collect initial data, using the "protocols" you've learned


The Ecology Explorers program leads you through these first two steps and into asking scientific questions. We have developed protocols with CAP LTER scientists that you will follow to collect initial data. Once these initial data are collected, it will be up to you and your classmates to look for patterns in the data and then develop your own hypotheses and experiments. Each step along the way is important.

The data you collect while learning the scientific protocols can be used to look for patterns in your own research site (schoolyard or backyard), and it can be shared with other researchers and school kids to see what patterns in nature exist across the Phoenix metropolitan area. Your own hypotheses and experiments will lead to a better understanding of why those patterns exist and will help you understand what real scientists are doing in their laboratories.