The second section focuses on Zoey’s attempts to help the baby dragon and work through problems alone as Citro underscores the Importance of the Scientific Method.

Citro makes it clear that scientific discovery rests on previous knowledge and inference. Although Zoey is conducting her experiments without help, she draws on experiences and lessons her mom taught her. Just after Marshmallow arrives, Zoey consults her mom’s science journals and then connects information she learned earlier to the current situation. A “memory tickling my brain” (40) links watching baby snakes hatch while on a hike with her mom to the dragon’s condition: “Maybe this baby dragon was the runt of is literal maybe he was hungry. I’d solved it!” (44). The scene shows Zoey working through a problem: She goes from not knowing what to do, to consulting external sources, to combing her own previous experience, and then using inference to decide on a course of action. The fact that there is a relationship between reptiles in the real world and the magical reptile show how the novel is Comparing Science to Magic.

The rest of the section details the process of designing and running an experiment using the scientific method. Thinking the baby dragon might be hungry, Zoey first defines a clear research question—“What do baby dragons like to eat?” (46)—then gathers several different kinds of food for her test. The implication is that Zoey will feed the dragon each food and note his response. This makes the food her experiment’s independent variable, although Citro does not use this complex term to keep her young readers from feeling overmatched by unfamiliar vocabulary. However, the next step of the process does introduce scientific terminology: Zoey forms a hypothesis, which the novel identifies as such. Minimizing technical jargon facilitates learning, while also prioritizing the plot and suspense. The reader is exposed to experimental design, while remaining interested in finding out what Marshmallow will eat and wondering if he will be okay.

Zoey’s experiment is shown to be valid because she remembers her mother’s instructions about keeping the environment of the experiment stable. Zoey understands that if she is to find out the food the dragon likes best, she should “change the kind of food I was giving him, [but] keep everything else the same” (48). To this end, she uses seven identical plates, measures the same amount of food onto each, and sets them the same distance away from Marshmallow. 

Illustrations also contribute to the experiential representation of scientific method. Zoey’s research question, hypothesis, experimental steps, and conclusions are all represented as illustrations of her handwriting. The materials are also illustrated as if drawn by Zoey, rather than described in the prose. Citro thus gives both Zoey and the reader ownership of the experiment being conducted, since its key elements are represented in a child’s handwriting and drawings. There are two illustrations of materials. The first lists only the food, and the second adds Zoey’s notes about “seven white plates the same size” and “one handful of each [food]!” (47). The illustrations thus show that Zoey is revising her procedure as she goes, highlighting the importance of flexibility in scientific research.

This section ends on Zoey’s decision to reach out to her mom for advice. The tone changes from one of calm objective observation to one of panic as Zoey becomes increasingly worried about Marshmallow. Zoey experiences her emotions by feeling the changes in her body. For example, when Marshmallow collapses even after she’s plugged in the heat lamp, Zoey’s reaction is physiological: “My heart pounded. I walked one way, then another” (64). Immediately after, Zoey decides to call her mom. Realizing when you’re out of your depth and seeking external support is an important feature of developing independence. While Zoey has exhibited responsibility and capability, when she wonders if Marshmallow is dying, she realizes she needs an adult’s help, showing the relationship between Trusting Yourself and Asking for Help.