Writing Procedures
Write numbered, imperative, reproducible steps with a materials list, exact amounts and times, and safety, so someone else can follow it exactly.
A procedure is a set of instructions clear enough that a stranger can repeat your work and get the same result, without you standing there to explain. That is the whole point of science: a finding only counts if others can reproduce it. A good procedure is numbered, written as commands (imperative), and packed with the specifics that make it repeatable: a materials list, exact amounts, exact times, and the safety steps that keep people unharmed. Lab technicians follow written protocols so every sample is treated the same way. Nurses follow procedures so a medication is given at the right dose and time every shift. Pharmacists, food scientists, and quality-control analysts all depend on procedures being exact, because a vague step (heat for a while) leads to results no one can trust or copy. Learn to write a procedure someone else can follow exactly, and you learn to make your work checkable, teachable, and safe.
- Common Core · WHST.9-10.2Write clear, well-organized informative/explanatory texts, including precise procedures, so a reader can follow each step.
- Common Core · RST.9-10.3Follow precisely a complex multistep procedure when carrying out experiments, taking measurements, or performing technical tasks.
- NGSS · SEP-8Obtaining, Evaluating, and Communicating Information: communicate scientific procedures clearly enough that others can reproduce them.
- Ohio · Ohio ELA W.9-10.2Write to explain a process using precise language and a logical order a reader can act on.
- AP · AP Bio SP 3Describe an experimental procedure with enough detail that another investigator could repeat it.
- Start a sentence with a command verb: Procedure steps are imperative, so students must be able to write and spot a command like 'Add' or 'Measure' rather than a description.
- Give a specific amount with a unit: Reproducible steps need exact amounts and times (5 mL, 3 minutes), so students first need to attach a number and unit to a quantity.
- Put events in the correct order: Steps only work in the right sequence, so students must be able to decide what has to happen before what.
Prerequisites are inferred: pending teacher review.
Re-learn the skill with worked practice and clear examples.
Write and fix a full procedure: a materials list at the top, then numbered imperative steps with exact amounts and times, safety where it belongs, and no vague words. Use the draft procedure below, find the step that is vague or out of order, and repair it.
| Item | Amount |
|---|---|
| 250 mL beaker | 1 |
| Water | 100 mL |
| Salt | 10 g |
| Stirring rod | 1 |
| Safety goggles | 1 pair |
In the draft procedure shown, which numbered step is VAGUE and must be fixed so someone could copy it exactly?
Reviewed| Step | Instruction |
|---|---|
| 1 | Put on safety goggles. |
| 2 | Pour 100 mL of water into the beaker. |
| 3 | Add some salt to the water. |
| 4 | Stir for 2 minutes with the stirring rod. |
- A.Step 1
- B.Step 2
- C.Step 3
- D.Step 4
Show the worked solution ▾
Answer: C. Step 3
- Step 1: Look for a missing amount or time: A vague step leaves out the number a reader needs, so two people could do it differently.
- Step 2: Check each step: Steps 1, 2, and 4 give an exact action, amount, or time. Step 3 says 'some salt' with no amount, so it is vague.
Why it's right: Steps 1, 2, and 4 each give a specific action, amount, or time, but step 3 says 'some salt' with no amount, so it cannot be copied exactly and is the vague step.
- A: Step 1 is a clear command with no missing amount.
- B: Step 2 gives an exact amount, 100 mL, so it is not vague.
- D: Step 4 gives an exact time, 2 minutes, so it is not vague.
Aligned to Common Core WHST.9-10.2: precise procedural language · reading level ~grade 9
A student's steps are listed out of order: (A) Heat the water for 5 minutes. (B) Put on safety goggles. (C) Pour 100 mL of water into the beaker. Which order lets someone follow it safely and correctly?
Reviewed- A.A, B, C
- B.B, C, A
- C.C, A, B
- D.A, C, B
Show the worked solution ▾
Answer: B. B, C, A
- Step 1: Safety comes before the risky action: Goggles go on before anything that could splash or heat, so B must come before heating.
- Step 2: You must have the water before you heat it: You cannot heat water that is not in the beaker yet, so pouring (C) must come before heating (A).
- Step 3: Put them in order: Goggles first (B), then pour the water (C), then heat it (A): B, C, A.
Why it's right: Safety goggles go on first (B), you must pour the water before you can heat it (C before A), so the correct order is B, C, A.
- A: This heats first, before goggles are on and before the water is even in the beaker.
- C: This heats the water (A) before it has been poured into the beaker (C).
- D: This starts by heating before goggles are on and before pouring the water.
Aligned to Common Core RST.9-10.3: correct sequence of steps · reading level ~grade 9
One sentence is from a PROCEDURE (instructions to do) and one is from a METHODS section (a record of what was done). Which sentence belongs in the PROCEDURE?
Reviewed- A.The water was heated for 5 minutes.
- B.We poured 100 mL of water into the beaker.
- C.Heat the water for 5 minutes.
- D.The mixture had been stirred until it dissolved.
Show the worked solution ▾
Answer: C. Heat the water for 5 minutes.
- Step 1: A procedure gives commands: Procedure sentences are imperative and start with an action verb telling the reader what to do.
- Step 2: Methods records the past: Methods sentences are past tense and report what already happened. Spot the command among the past-tense records.
Why it's right: A procedure instructs the reader with a present-tense command; 'Heat the water for 5 minutes' is imperative, while the others report in past tense and belong in a methods section.
- A: This is past tense (was heated), a record of what was done, so it belongs in methods.
- B: This is past tense (We poured) and reports what happened, so it belongs in methods.
- D: This is past tense (had been stirred) and records what happened, so it belongs in methods.
Aligned to NGSS SEP-8: distinguish procedure from methods record · reading level ~grade 9
- A student rewrites a lab handout's steps so each one starts with a command verb and names an exact amount.
- A group swaps two steps so 'put on goggles' comes before heating.
- Before submitting, a writer changes every 'some' and 'a while' into a specific number and unit.
Fill these in as you work through the lesson.
- Procedure (numbered command steps someone can repeat):
- Imperative step (starts with an action verb (Add, Heat)):
- Reproducible (a stranger can copy it and get the same result):
- Methods (the past-tense record of what was done):
A procedure step is written as a (starts with an action verb), names an exact or time, and is ordered so someone can follow it exactly.
- Rewrite 'Add some water' as an imperative step with an exact amount.
- The step 'Heat for a while' is vague. Give the specific ____ that would fix it.
- Name one step that must come before heating, and explain why it goes first.
Fix this draft. Materials: beaker, water, salt, goggles. Steps: 1. Pour 100 mL of water into the beaker. 2. Add some salt. 3. Stir for 2 minutes. The vague step is step ____, and the fix is to change 'some salt' to '____ of salt.'
The vocabulary of this topic, shown in the way you will meet it.
| Feature | Procedure | Methods |
|---|---|---|
| Purpose | Tell someone how to do it | Record what was done |
| Verb form | Command (Heat, Add) | Past tense (heated, added) |
| When written | Before the work | After the work |