Inquiry Strategies for the Journey North Teacher Making Sense of Data Back to Menu of Inquiry Strategies As scientists gather data and later try to make sense of (interpret) it, they look closely for patterns or relationships that might "tell" them something significant. They use their imaginations and think logically about this new information and relate it to what they already know and to others' findings. Then they make an overall statement or explanation. They also think about how findings connect to larger ideas. (Other people may interpret the data differently and pose alternative explanations, which can spark further research.) The data might offer little help in answering a question or supporting a hypothesis, but could suggest other questions or avenues of research. Questions That Help Students Make Sense of Data Dealing with Unusual Findings Explaining What Happened Responding to Misconceptions and "Wrong" Answers Asking, "So What?" The Implications of Research   Facebook Pinterest Twitter © 1997 – 2019 Journey North. All rights reserved.