Independent Variable Definition For Kids. For example someones age might be an independent variable. It represents the cause or reason for an outcome. Variables that are changed by the independent variable are called dependent variables. The dependent variable depends on the outcome of the independent variable.
The independent or manipulated variable is the variable that you the experimenter change or manipulate intentionally. You can think of a variable as a box that contains something. Dependent or responding variable is the variable that changes when the independent variable changes. The independent variable is the factor in an experiment that the experimenter changes. In most programming languages a variable is a container that holds information that you can access. In some cases you may not be able to manipulate the independent variable.
In the expression y x 2 x is an independent variable and y is a dependent variable.
In some cases you may not be able to manipulate the independent variable. The independent variable is the variable that you have control over what you can choose and manipulate. Independent variables are the variables that the experimenter changes to test their dependent variable. An independent variable is exactly what it sounds like. Later kids are introduced to the concepts of a dependent variable and an independent variable and the idea that variables can have changing values. One way to explain it to a child is that it is the variable that the child can change during the experiment.