Assessment is an integral part of education.
Because assessment engages naturally from the activities in the lessons, students are assessed in the same manner in which they are taught. Students may, for example, perform experiments, record their observations, and participate in class discussions.
Such assessments permit the examination of processes as well as of products, emphasizing what students know and can do. This method allows the teacher the flexibility to make decisions regarding review, reinforcement, and extensions.
In order to assess the child’s success with concepts, skills, and attitudes in this science module, the teacher may use a variety of assessment tools, some of which may include:
▪ Science journals
▪ Record sheets
▪ Pre- and Post- unit assessments
▪ Class discussions
▪ Anecdotal observations
▪ Homework assignments
▪ Student products and drawings
▪ Individual student conferences
Below please find fiction and non-fiction titles to support this particular science unit of study.
Every Kid’s Guide to Saving the Earth Berry, Joy
Fun with Recycling: Fifty Great Things for Kids to
Make from Junk Elliot, Marion
Pollution and Conservation Hunter, Rebecca
Keeping the Air Clean (Protecting Our Planet) D.
Baines, John
Hazy Skies: Weather and the Environment Kahl,
Jonathan D.W.
Let’s Save Water Nelson, Sara Elizabeth
Environmental Disasters Woods, Michael and Mary
Green Boy Cooper, Susan http://www.epa.gov/owow/nps/kids/ http:// www.NRDC.org
A Cautionary Note to Parents:
 inquiry-based, we ask that you avoid “prepping” your child for upcoming lessons. This brochure is designed to keep you informed about your child’s science experiences at school and to provide you with suggestions for extending the studies at home.
Please don’t give away any of our teaching secrets!
Madison Public Schools
359 Woodland Road
Madison, NJ 07940

The Madison School District participates in a National
Science Foundation supported science reform effort called inquiry-based science instruction. Through this approach to science education, children are able to view themselves as scientists in the process of learning. The centerpieces of our program are the modules that serve as our primary science curriculum materials.
Throughout these units, students participate in a variety of activities involving observation, measurement, identification of properties, and controlled experiments that uncover important concepts in the life, physical, and earth sciences. The children’s own questions often lead them to investigations that they plan and carry out.
This hands-on, motivational approach captures children’s natural curiosity and stimulates their interest.
As children experiment, they propose explanations and solutions and build a store of concepts. Students use a variety of communication methods, including journals, reporting out, drawing, graphing, and charting. They are encouraged to listen, speak, and write about their growing understanding of science with parents, teachers, and their peers. Direct student participation means that students discover science concepts for themselves and, as a result, have a deeper understanding of science.
The Pollution Module helps students learn about how human and natural activities can cause land, air, and water pollution. They learn what can be done to reduce pollution and conserve natural resources, and the difference between renewable and nonrenewable resources. In this module they are also introduced to noise and light pollution. Students start from the ground up, learning about litter and landfills. They sort schoolyard trash and calculate how quickly a classroom would fill with waste paper. They practice one way to recycle materials and brainstorm others. Next, they observe particulate matter in air and consider the implications. They create a filtration system, examine water pollutants, and try to clean up an oil spill. After testing the hardness, alkalinity, and acidity of water samples, students observe the effects of acid rain on plants. Finally, they define noise pollution based on opinion surveys and noise level tests.
Students will:
▪ Record data about the amount and types of litter found on school grounds
▪ Measure the amount of trash produced daily in the classroom and calculate how long it would take to fill the entire classroom with trash
▪ Explore ways to reduce the amount of trash produced in the classroom
▪ Determine the concentration level of the particles at different sites
▪ Draw conclusions about the pollution levels of the different water samples
▪ Observe what happens when oil is added to water
▪ Test the relative hardness of three water samples and record and interpret data about the water samples
▪ Discuss how the acidity or alkalinity of water affects the plants and animals that use it
▪ Infer why rainwater contains impurities
▪ Draw conclusions about the effects of acid rain on plant life
▪ Discuss the characteristics of sounds that make them either pleasant or unpleasant
▪ Discuss ways to reduce noise levels in the environment
Guest Speakers: In order for students to appreciate the life cycle of insects in the real world, it is beneficial to have guests visit the classroom. If your field of work or hobbies relates to our science module, please inform your child’s teacher if you would be interested in speaking to the class.
Classroom Assistance: Classroom volunteers may be needed for assistance with some science activities. If you would like to volunteer some of your time to help with these activities, please let your child’s teacher know when you are available.
Parent-Child Communication: In order to encourage broader communication with your child regarding each science lesson, ask your child to explain
what they did in science today.
▫ Once your child has learned about ways humans can harm the environment set aside some time each week to collect litter around your house and neighborhood and dispose of recyclables properly.
▫ After brainstorming additional uses for recycledpaper products have your child try and make some of their suggested products at home. They can also try and think of other household materials that can be recycled and used for other purposes.
▫ Once your child has been introduced to the concept of air pollution and examined captured particles at different sites, they may wish to make a particle detector for use at home. They could hang a detector on the outside wall of each side of the house to detect the type and quantity of particles in the air surrounding your home.
▫ Once your child has learned that minerals in water can increase the hardness of water, ask them if they can tell whether the water in your home is hard just by examining appliances that use water.