Formal Report Guidelines

Formal Lab Reports
Advanced Biology & Chemistry

Formal lab reports must:

Be written in complete sentences.

Be neatly typed.

Be written in the third person. (No - we, I, our, etc.)

Contain a title page.
The title page is a separate sheet attached to the front of the lab. It should include name, date, and title of lab. Center this information side-to-side and top to bottom.

Contain an introduction.
The introduction is background information about the focus of the lab. This allows the reader to understand why the lab was set up the way that it was. For example, if you conducted a lab to determine the effects of various detergents on the surface tension of water, your introduction would explain surface tension. How surface tension works and what is known about why surface tension does what it does would be addressed in the introduction.

States the objective of the lab.
The objective of the lab is stated in a clear and concise sentence. For example:  "This lab was conducted to determine the effects of various detergents on the surface tension of water".

Lists the materials used.
This only need be a list of materials. A diagram of any apparatus made for the lab may be helpful.

Contain the methods or procedures used to conduct the experiment.
These should be very detailed and specific so that other investigators can duplicate them. A numbered list works best for this section.

Contain organized data.
Raw data collected during the lab is tabulated and/or summarized for the report. Quantitative data (numbers) should be organized into charts or graphs. Qualitative data should be summarized for the report. Raw data may be attached to the report as an appendix.

Contain a conclusion.
The conclusion begins by summarizing the purpose and methods of the lab followed by a summary of the results. The objective of the lab is then answered based upon the data that was collected. A good conclusion acts as an abstract for the investigation.

Be the author's own writing.
Use your resources as resources - do not copy them word for word. Write what you know and learned!






Formal Lab Report Help:

Writing in 3rd person example.

No - We did this lab to determine if cold temperature affects the rate of crystal development.

Yes - This lab was conducted to determine if cold temperature affects the rate of crystal development.


Example Introduction:

Water and many other liquids have a quality called "surface tension". Surface tension is the "film" that forms on the surface of water and other liquids. Attractive forces between the water molecules create this "film". It acts as a barrier to materials penetrating its surface. This is why some objects such as water strider insects, can sit on top of the surface of water. Various chemical agents can decrease the attractive forces between the water molecules and thus decrease surface tension. Different types of detergents and their effect of surface tension are investigated in this lab.

Example Objective:

Do different types of dish washing detergent decrease the surface tension of water equally?


Example Conclusion:

The purpose of this investigation was to determine if different types of dish washing detergents decrease the surface tension of water equally. Solutions of three different detergents were tested. Small weights were placed on the surface of each solution to determine the weight that the surface tension of each could support. The results show that detergent A and B could hold 3 grams while solution C could only hold 1 gram. Therefore is appears that detergent C decreases the surface tension of water 3 times more than detergent A and B.