Today an Eagle asked if he could try an experiment about motivation (Our overarching question for the year is: “What motivates a hero?”)

Our Eagle was was curious how caffeine and sugar affected motivation. So with the permission of parents, he wanted to offer each Eagle a six ounce cup of coffee at the start of the day.

In a blind test, some Eagles would get caffeinated coffee, others decaf.  Some Eagles would get natural sugar; others artificial sugar.  Eagles would be asked to track their motivation levels and accomplishments during the day.  The results would be discussed and published.

Suddenly the questions began.  About getting permission.  Setting up the trial.  Whether subjective or objective results would be more important to track.  Whether their was a large enough sample size.

A curious twelve year old.  Proposing a real experiment.  Debating the structure of the experiment and the questions that should be asked of classmates.

This is how real scientists are equipped and inspired.