Students enrolled in an introductory science course often do not possess a sound understanding of the fundamentals of graph construction and have difficulty with the interpretation of graphical data.8,10−15 As a consequence, laboratory activities requiring the use of graphing techniques for data analysis can lead to poor student comprehension of the concepts and principles being investigated. Evaluations of past laboratory reports, laboratory observation, and additional data collected from the administration of the ACS Toledo exam indicated that many of our students display this weakness and associated level of frustration. To address these concerns a hands-on, first-day laboratory experiment was designed that (i) introduces students to the fundamentals of graphing and (ii) allows us to assess early their graphing and laboratory skills.4−6,16,17 The laboratory experiment is relatively simple to perform, is broad-
ased in content, and uses minimal equipment.