---
title: "Using evidence to answer questions"
description: "Identify differences, similarities, or changes related to scientific ideas and use straightforward scientific evidence to answer questions or support findings"
canonical: https://lightmysky.com/learn/science/using-evidence-to-answer-questions-mt_CVywzrjT_c
source: https://lightmysky.com/learn/science/using-evidence-to-answer-questions-mt_CVywzrjT_c.md
retrieved: 2026-10-19
---

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# Using evidence to answer questions

Identify differences, similarities, or changes related to scientific ideas and use straightforward scientific evidence to answer questions or support findings

Subject: Science · Area: Scientific Inquiry · Ages 7 to 9
Page: https://lightmysky.com/learn/science/using-evidence-to-answer-questions-mt_CVywzrjT_c

## Ready when they can

- Identify at least one pattern (similarity, difference, or trend) in a set of scientific data
- Explain how the pattern relates to the scientific idea being investigated
- Use specific data points as evidence when answering a scientific question

## Lesson: Using evidence to answer questions

Scientists collect data when they run experiments. Data is just numbers and facts about what happened. To answer a question, look at the data and find a pattern: something that stays the same, something that is different, or something that keeps changing. That pattern is your evidence.

*(drawing: One plant sat in the sun, one sat in the shade. The bars show a difference: 9 cm in the sun, only 3 cm in the shade. That difference is a pattern.)*

**Example.** Mia asks: does more water make sprouts grow taller? She waters seeds with 1, 3, and 5 spoons of water, then measures each sprout after a week. The bars show a trend: 2 cm, 5 cm, then 9 cm. As the water goes up, the height goes up too. Mia points to the 9 cm sprout as her evidence: more water made sprouts grow taller.

**Tip.** Always point to a real number when you answer a science question. Instead of saying I think so, say the data shows 9 cm, more than the 2 cm sprout got. That is what evidence sounds like.

**Recap.** Find the pattern in your data, then point to the exact numbers that prove it.

## Practice

8 questions on this page, each with its working shown.

## Needs first

- [Recording and presenting data](https://lightmysky.com/learn/science/recording-and-presenting-data-mt_7IFpDVNsmt)
- [Reading between the lines](https://lightmysky.com/learn/english/reading-between-the-lines-mt_E5KC4AnRLW)
- [Could there be another explanation?](https://lightmysky.com/learn/science/could-there-be-another-explanation-mt_QrVF5n7vci)
- [Spotting Patterns](https://lightmysky.com/learn/learning-to-learn/spotting-patterns-mt_wvcFlwOrDl)

## Opens up

- [Difficult Ethical Choices](https://lightmysky.com/learn/personal-and-social-development/difficult-ethical-choices-mt_6xj94tmpi-)
- [Drawing conclusions from evidence](https://lightmysky.com/learn/science/drawing-conclusions-from-evidence-mt_7VrR1GzhrN)
- [Controlling variables](https://lightmysky.com/learn/science/controlling-variables-mt_ArVBEpMAPk)
- [Reading Cladograms](https://lightmysky.com/learn/science/reading-cladograms-mt_cSPtyLF3q1)