Year 9 Science · Unit 4 · Lesson 6

Science vs Pseudoscience

Foundation Worksheet

Name

Date

Class

Learning Goals

Sort claims into science and pseudoscience.
Name the warning signs (red flags) that point to pseudoscience.
Use key vocabulary: science, pseudoscience, falsifiable, anecdote, peer review, reproducibility.

Warm Up

Sort it!

Write each item from the pool into the correct box. Decide whether each one is a feature of real science or a red flag of pseudoscience.

The claim could be shown to be wrong It relies on customer testimonials Other teams can repeat the test The claim never counts as wrong Experts check the method (peer review) It cherry-picks only the cases that fit The idea is updated when better evidence arrives It appeals to "ancient wisdom" as proof Measured data from a controlled test The claim is vague and keeps shifting

Real Science

Pseudoscience Red Flag

Your Turn

Fill the gap

Choose the correct word from the word bank to complete each sentence. Two words will not be used.

science pseudoscience falsifiable anecdote peer review reproducible cherry-picking popular expensive

A claim is part of when it can be tested with evidence and could be proven wrong. The word for "able to be proven wrong" is . A single personal story used as proof is called an , which is weak evidence. Before a study is published, other experts check the method in a process called . A trustworthy result is , meaning other people can repeat it and get the same answer. Choosing only the evidence that fits a claim and ignoring the rest is called . A claim that looks scientific but is never falsifiable and never self-corrects is .

Show What You Know

1. Give one example of a science and one example of a pseudoscience. Explain one difference between them.

Recall 2 marks

2. Why is a single customer testimonial ("it worked for me") not strong scientific evidence? Name what scientists use instead.

Recall 2 marks

Wrap Up

In one sentence, what was the main idea of this lesson?