Formal Lab Reports / Advanced Placement Biology
Appearance/Organization/Language
 Title goes at the top, centered, and describes outcome of
the experiment. Good title: “Size Limits the Ability of
Molecules to Diffuse Through a Semi-Permeable
Membrane” Bad title: “Diffusion Lab”
 Headings – above every section; underlined
 Paragraphs –under each heading; indented
 Headings are in order as described here
 Rubric is attached to front of report
 For sections that will not fit in report– write the heading
& ‘see attached’. Staple papers to the back of the report
 Must be typed! E-mail submission OK (must be PDF)
 Check spelling & grammar; use a human proofreader
Background
 Using complete sentences, write a paragraph
summarizing important concepts related to the lab
 Should be based on notes, textbook, handouts
 Include definitions of key terms
 Do NOT copy information straight from your lab
handouts!!!!
Purpose
 Question – avoid yes/no questions. A well-framed
research question is specific and testable. Good
examples:
– “What determines the rate of ____?”
– “What regulates flowering in pea plants?”
– “Why do male black widow spiders let females eat
them after mating?”
 Identify dependent variable (the one you
measure/record)
 List at least 3 constants
 Describe control; if no control, explain why not
Methods and Materials
 Numbered steps/bulleted list
 Again, do NOT copy straight from your lab handouts!!!
Your procedure should be much more specific.
 Must be reproducible; include materials
 For field work, fully describe site of study
Results
 Label any data tables; include units
 Remember to fully label graphs (title, axes with units,
legend if graph has more than 1 line)
 Scale graph appropriately for your data set
 Bar graph: if there are discrete categories
 Line graph: if there is only one y for each x
 Scatter plot: if x and y could fall anywhere
 Don’t connect dots on scatter plot; trend line only!
 Hand-drawn graphs OK but Excel is better
 Statistical analysis, if specified in lab
Discussion
Analysis questions
 Complete as per instructions
- Show work and units for calculations
- Answer any questions with complete sentences
1st Paragraph
 Restate original prediction
Hypothesis
 Propose a tentative answer to your purpose question.
 Give good reasons for your answer; for example,
“Exercise increases metabolic rate because the muscles
consume more calories during exercise than at rest.”
Prediction
 Predict the outcome of your experiment based on your
hypothesis
 If hypothesis is true, then what results do you expect?
 Accept or Reject Hypothesis
- You may partially accept/reject

State #’s with units & explain how it helped you accept
or reject your hypothesis; compare results to prediction

Describe the patterns on the graph (if applicable) and
explain how it helped you accept or reject
2nd Paragraph

Discuss the validity of your experiment – Minimum 3
sentences. Do you believe the results? Why or why not?
The questions below may help you get to the min. 3
sentences you need.
Could anything have gone wrong? What/how?
How do your results compare to those of other groups?
Was the experiment a fair test of your hypothesis?
What was the purpose of the control? Did it work?
Explain.
Are any questions left unanswered by your experiment?
What kind of further research might help answer them?
 Ex. “Students who play sports will report higher
metabolic rates then students who do not play sports.”
Note: hypothesis/prediction may be combined into a single
section using the “If/then…” format
Experimental design
 Paragraph form!
 Identify independent variable (the one you change; the xaxis on the graph; often time)
–
–
–
–
–
You must write your own report…copying from other group members is PLAGIARISM!