Lab notebook and portfolio
Open your materials, follow the steps, then turn in your work.
Set up the notebook and digital portfolio habits you will use to document every investigation this year.
1. Open your materials
Use the materials named in the first step below. Open lesson resources.
2. Start the work
Number the first ten pages of your notebook and reserve page one for a table of contents.
Show all 6 required steps
- Number the first ten pages of your notebook and reserve page one for a table of contents.
- Copy the entry template: Date, Question, What I did, Data, What it means, Next step.
- Write a practice entry about yesterday's safety lesson using all six template parts.
- Open Schoology, choose Genetics of Disease, and find the Lab notebook and portfolio assignment.
- Upload a readable photo or scan of the practice entry to that assignment, then select Submit. Keep the original page in your notebook.
- Self-check: does your entry let a stranger repeat what you did? Add one missing detail if not.
Lost your place? If you stopped mid-entry, check your six-part template (Date, Question, What I did, Data, What it means, Next step) and fill in the next part you are missing.
Check your work before submitting
- You will be able to keep a complete, repeatable lab notebook entry.
- You will be able to log in to the class site and submit work.
- You will be able to explain why documentation matters in science.
Before lab work: read the safety rules
- Wear the required PPE, keep the bench clear, handle equipment only as directed, and know where the eyewash, sink, and spill kit are before you start.
- Human samples and data stay private: label with a code, never a name, and dispose of materials in the correct waste container, then wash your hands.
3. Turn in your work
DueCheck Schoology- Hand in
- First complete six-part notebook entry documenting the safety lesson; submit a readable photo or scan and keep the original notebook page.
How to submit and name your file
Submit the photo or scan in the Genetics of Disease Schoology assignment for Lab notebook and portfolio. Check that it shows as submitted.
In Schoology, open your course and the assignment for this lesson. Attach your file, select Submit, and check that it appears in the submission.
PDF upload helpYou get two school days for every day you were absent, so this deadline moves with you.
Find this lesson's Schoology assignments
These are existing assignments for your section. Follow the directions in the assignment you are working on; this list does not add new work. Check Schoology for each deadline.
Link will not open? Open Schoology, choose your course and section, and find the title shown above.
How this lesson connects
Study plan → illness clues → pathogen groups → tests of a possible cause. The graphing activity helps you choose what to practice; the patient case helps you reason from evidence.
Need help? Warm-up, timing, and directions▸
💡 Big idea: Documentation makes science trustworthy because a result only counts once someone else can repeat the exact procedure that produced it.
- 0-10 minNumber notebook pages and write the table of contents header on page one
- 10-20 minCopy the six-part entry template and discuss each component as a class
- 20-40 minWrite a practice entry documenting yesterday's lesson using all six parts
- 40-55 minOpen the matching Genetics assignment in Schoology and upload a readable photo or scan
- 55-70 minPartner self-check: swap notebooks and test whether a stranger could repeat what you described
- 70-80 minAdd missing details, submit the final entry in Schoology, and check the confirmation
- • Real scientists are only as good as their records; a brilliant experiment no one can repeat is worthless.
- • This template is used by researchers, clinicians, and scientists to make sure findings hold up under review.
- • Today you set up the system you will use every single week for the rest of the course.
- • Exit goal: one complete notebook entry submitted in Schoology, with the original page kept in your notebook.
- • A complete lab notebook entry has at minimum: date, question, procedure, data, interpretation, and .
- • Documentation must be specific enough that someone else could repeat your exact procedure.
- • Digital portfolios create a permanent record that connects raw data to final conclusions.
PLTW connection and today's work
Use the six-part notebook template in today's steps to document the safety lesson. This prepares your evidence record for Medical Interventions; myPLTW access is not needed.
Today's stopping point: The safety practical came first. Today, finish one notebook entry that records what you did and learned.
PLTW activity titles identify the course connection. If your account will not open, use the posted materials for today and tell Mr. Mendoza. Do not mark an online activity complete unless you completed it.
Course connection
- John Hay safety and notebook practice. No official PLTW activity is completed by this task.
Use the turn-in directions at the top of this page. Do not create a second submission unless your teacher asks for one.
Show another explanation or a smaller first step
Need help? Choose a starting point
Finish the assigned lab safely before starting extra practice.
Lesson resources: reading, slides, and vocabulary▸
Students often think a lab notebook is just a place to store your answers. The trap: the notebook records the procedure and data, not just the answer, because repeatability lives in the how, not the result
Date: August 25, 2026
Question: Where is the emergency safety equipment in our lab, and how do I read an SDS?
What I did: I walked the room and located the eyewash, fire blanket, sharps container, and spill kit. I put on goggles and gloves, then removed the gloves inside-out. I opened the SDS for one chemical and read Section 2 and Section 4.
Data: Eyewash is at the back-left sink. Fire blanket is by the door. The SDS listed eye irritation as a hazard (Section 2) and said to flush eyes with water for 15 minutes (Section 4).
What it means: I now know where to go in an emergency and how to find first-aid steps for any chemical we use.
Next step: Practice the inside-out glove removal one more time so it is automatic.
This model shows the level of evidence and organization needed to complete: Your first complete lab notebook entry, written so a stranger could repeat exactly what you did, then photographed and uploaded to your digital portfolio.
- Date and label the entry.
- Record the procedure, observation, or design decision clearly.
- End with what the evidence means and the next step.
Keep the structure. Replace the question, facts, measurements, and evidence. Then recheck units, vocabulary, and whether the conclusion goes beyond the evidence.
Also due today: Confirm you can log in to Schoology and upload your photo to the portfolio folder.
- CER:
- Claim, Evidence, Reasoning: make a claim, back it with evidence, explain your reasoning.
- SOP:
- Standard Operating Procedure, the exact steps to follow (especially in a lab).
- Tracker:
- Your PLTW progress log where you record completed evidence.
- myPLTW:
- The PLTW course site where you do the online activities. Find it in Clever with your Microsoft sign-in, right next to Schoology.
Tap the speaker to hear a term. Add two of these to your notebook glossary with a definition and an example in your own words.
Pick just 2 or 3 words from today and make them yours: write what each one means in your own words, name the context clue or evidence that helped, then give one example from what you actually did in Lab notebook and portfolio. Try your own words first; the glossary is there if you get stuck. This is voluntary and counts as extra credit, so keep it short.
Saved on this device. Show Mr. Mendoza or add these to your notebook glossary to claim the extra credit.
Play the cold open at the start of the unit to set the scene. Each recording is AI-generated and simulated (fictional callers, no real people or student data).
Classroom documents for this lesson are posted in Schoology. Open Clever, then Schoology, and find each one by the name shown on its card.
Open this when the class reaches this activity and use it to complete the required lesson artifact.
Placement rationale
Matched Course launch, , SDS, notebook setup by path:Medical-Interventions/Unit-1_How-to-Fight-Infection/00_Unit-Overview; keywords:intervention. Score 130. Visibility: student-schoology (student-facing resource; link through Schoology rather than local path).
Use this after the required lesson work when you are ready for a harder application or a deeper connection.
Placement rationale
Matched Course launch, , SDS, notebook setup by path:Medical-Interventions/Unit-1_How-to-Fight-Infection/00_Unit-Overview; keywords:safety. Score 126. Visibility: student-schoology (student-facing resource; link through Schoology rather than local path).
Sign in to Clever with your district Microsoft account to open Schoology or myPLTW. Follow today's posted steps. If myPLTW will not open, use the posted alternative and tell Mr. Mendoza. Turn in your completed work through the Schoology assignment.
Practice: try a question, then check your answer▸
Claim ceiling for this check: Today's evidence supports a classroom claim about today's lesson. It cannot prove causation, diagnose a real patient, or justify action outside this room.
What is the test for whether a lab notebook entry is complete, and which part of the entry usually fails that test?
Write an answer and pick a confidence to unlock the key.
Fast retrieval with instant answers, not the commit-then-reveal check above. Try each from memory first: write what you remember about the earlier units, then check yourself here.
Missed class or ready for more?▸
Run this before you touch the bench. It is built from the real lab procedure, so the decisions you make here are the ones you will make with the equipment in your hands.
I can name the procedure's purpose and the evidence I will record. I can state today's specific hazards and the control for each. If this deck does not name them, I ask Mr. Mendoza before I touch anything. My data table is ready before materials are handled.
Finish the checklist before you handle any material.
- • Wear the required PPE, keep the bench clear, handle equipment only as directed, and know where the eyewash, sink, and spill kit are before you start.
- • Human samples and data stay private: label with a code, never a name, and dispose of materials in the correct waste container, then wash your hands.
- 1Before materials are handled, identify the purpose, variables or comparison, controls, measurement units, and stop-work condition.
- 2Number the first ten pages of your notebook and reserve page one for a table of contents.
- 3Copy the entry template: Date, Question, What I did, Data, What it means, Next step.
- 4Write a practice entry about yesterday's safety lesson using all six template parts.
- 5Open Schoology, choose Genetics of Disease, and find the Lab notebook and portfolio assignment.
- 6Upload a readable photo or scan of the practice entry to that assignment, then select Submit. Keep the original page in your notebook.
- 7Self-check: does your entry let a stranger repeat what you did? Add one missing detail if not.
- 8Record each result in the prepared table before interpreting it. Mark missing, repeated, or invalid results truthfully.
- 9Complete the named cleanup and waste route, remove PPE safely, wash hands when required, and confirm the station is ready for the next group.
| Trial or sample ID | Independent condition | Measured result with units | Observation before interpretation | Quality-control note |
|---|---|---|---|---|
Before the procedure, predict the result and cite the rule behind the prediction.
After the procedure, compare the result with the prediction and name one limitation or source of uncertainty.
What today's skills lead to. These are real health-science careers this course builds toward. Tap one to see, on the US Department of Labor's O*NET site, what the job actually involves, what it pays, and how fast it is growing.
Today is individual work you can do from home: complete the same target above, then submit your Notebook check.
Go to Schoology to turn this in. Submit one PDF. Put your first and last name in the document header. Name the file: FirstName LastName - Assignment Title - YYYY-MM-DD.pdf. If you cannot get in, see Mr. Mendoza. Do not skip the work.
Class still runs. Complete the online activity above (it's self-guided). Need the concept taught without a teacher? Use this authoritative explainer:
OSHA: Hazard Communication & Safety Data Sheets (authoritative)- CompleteEvery required part of the artifact is present, nothing left blank.
- AccurateThe science and the data are correct and match the evidence.
- Scientific reasoningYou explain your claim with evidence and reasoning (CER), not just an answer.
- Professional communicationClear, organized, labeled, and written the way a clinician or scientist would.
- SubmittedGo to Schoology to turn this in. Submit one PDF. Put your first and last name in the document header. Name the file: FirstName LastName - Assignment Title - YYYY-MM-DD.pdf. If you cannot get in, see Mr. Mendoza. Do not skip the work.
- Error analysis and method · counts doubleName a specific limit of the method and how it moved your result, and compare what you predicted to what happened. "Human error" does not count; say what about the procedure or instrument caused it.
This week
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