Performance Task Template
Created by:
Subject Area/Course: General Science
Grade Level/Range: 3rd grade
Institution (if applicable):
STUDENT DIRECTIONS
A. Task Title (Student Hook Only): What should I prepare for?
B. Student Prompt:
Context:
A new student has just moved to your school from Guatemala and has limited English.
Your science teacher asks your class to make a presentation to the student/family about
the weather in your area to help the student understand local seasons.
C. Final Product:
D. Task Components:
a.
b.
c.
d.
e.
f.
g.
h.
You decide to research the weather in Cincinnati, OH to give the most accurate
picture of the seasons. Be sure to find information on the average high
temperature, average low temperature, average precipitation, wind speed, and
humidity for each month of the year. Also, be sure to find out what kind of severe
weather occurs in Cincinnati, OH. You must collect data from at least two sources.
(http://www.weather.com/weather/wxclimatology/monthly/graph/USOH0188;
http://weatherspark.com/averages/30785/Cincinnati-Ohio-United-States )
Use your data to make three bar graphs. Make a bar graph to represent each of
the three types of data that you believe are most important in conveying
information about local seasons.
Find the difference between the average high temperature and low temperature
each month in Cincinnati, OH. List each difference. Which month had the largest
temperature difference? Which month had the smallest temperature difference?
Describe the weather in each season in Cincinnati, OH. Support your statements
with evidence from your research and bar graphs.
Would the wind speed or humidity have a bigger impact on the climate of
Cincinnati, OH? Use data from your research to support your statements.
Overall, how would you describe the climate of Cincinnati, OH? Support your
statements with evidence from your research and bar graphs.
What weather related hazards might you encounter in Cincinnati, OH: Support
your statements with evidence from your research.
The social, cultural and environmental impacts that the solution might have.
E. Materials and Resources Required:
Additional research and data summaries to what is provided here or access to research
databases and technology to allow students to conduct their own research.
TEACHER INFORMATION
F. Task Title (Hook + Instructional Content Area): What should I prepare for?
G. Task Overview:
H. Critical Abilities Addressed in the Task:
I. Content Standards (Common Core or Other - Subject, Number, & Text):
CCSS-M (bolding represents the part of the standard addressed)
3.OA.D.8 Solve two-step word problems using the four operations. Represent these
problems using equations with a letter standing for the unknown quantity. Assess the
reasonableness of answers using mental computation and estimation strategies including
rounding.
3.MD.B.3 Draw a scaled picture graph and a scaled bar graph to represent a data set
with several categories. Solve one- and two-step “how many more” and “how many
less” problems using information presented in scaled bar graphs. For example, draw
a bar graph in which each square in the bar graph might represent 5 pets.
NGSS
Students who demonstrate understanding can:
3-ESS2-1. Represent data in tables and graphical displays to describe typical weather conditions
expected during a particular season.
3-ESS2-2. Obtain and combine information to describe climates in different regions of the world.
3-ESS3-1. Make a claim about the merit of a design solution that reduces the impacts of a
weather-related hazard.
CCSS-ELA
RI.3.1
Ask and answer questions to demonstrate understanding of a text, referring explicitly
to the text as the basis for the answers.
RI.3.9
Compare and contrast the most important points and key details presented in two texts
on the same topic.
W.3.8
Recall information from experiences or gather information from print and digital
sources; take brief notes on sources and sort evidence into provided categories.
J. College and Career Connections:
Time Requirements:
This task is intended as summative. After a unit on Earth’s weather systems, this task
would be completed to allow students to conduct research and evaluate collected data as
well as to conduct an investigation and use the results of the investigation to solve a
problem.
This task would take approximately 4 50-minute class periods:
Component A would take 1 day,
Components B, C, and D would take 1 day and
Components E, F, G, H, and I would take 2 days.
K. Teacher Resources:
L. Prior Knowledge:
M. Scaffolding Techniques:
N. Teacher Procedures During Administration:
Teachers act largely as facilitators during this task – encouraging students to justify their
conclusions and decisions. There may be the need to implement direct instruction
throughout the task, depending on students’ prior knowledge.
O. Extensions (optional):
P. Solutions and/or Strategies: [evidence statements go here]
Mathematics
1. Students’ models of functions accurately show the trends of temperature
changes over the seasons.
2. Students accurately determined the best graph to fit the data ( to show and
represent the changes in seasons.
3. Students appropriately extrapolated the data to make determinations about
the temperature change
Science
Q. Sample Top-Score Responses:
R. Post-Administration Notes: