West-Orange Cove CSD
The Fifth six
weeks has 34
instructional
days 3/4 –
4/26
Spring Break
3/11 – 3/15
8th Grade Science –5th Six Weeks
Major Concepts

During week 1-2, students will understand how

interdependence occurs among living systems and the
environment.
During week 3-4, students will continue to learn and
understand how interdependence occurs among living
systems and the environment.

During week 5 - 7, students will review concepts learned to
prepare for STAAR test
2012 - 2013
Processes



Analyze data to formulate reasonable explanations, communicate valid
conclusions supported by the data, and predict trends
Plan and implement comparative and descriptive investigations by making
observations, asking well-defined questions, and using appropriate
equipment and technology.
Analyze, evaluate, and critique scientific explanations by using empirical
evidence, logical reasoning, and experimental and observational testing,
including examining all sides of scientific evidence of those scientific
explanations, so as to encourage critical thinking.
Good Friday
3/29
In order to use time, resources, and hold students accountable for their own learning, we must agree to continue using:

Notebooking. Also, remember to refer back to files sent during the first six weeks to expand on the use of notebooks in the science classroom.

SMART objective posted and used daily. For example, the TEKs for the lesson (week or weeks) is….
o Model and illustrate how the tilted Earth rotates on its axis, causing day and night, and revolves around the Sun causing changes in seasons. 8.7A
o The SMART objective for the 2nd week may be written in the following way,

Today, we (or I, based on preference) will model and illustrate how Earth is tilted on an axis and revolves around the sun, causing
changes in the seasons by using the Seasons presentation to support students in better understanding how Earth’s tilt, direct sunlight, and
Earth’s movement around the sun are the reasons for the season.

The next day, the underlined part of the objective may change for the next part of the lesson such as Today, we (or I, based on preference) will
model and illustrate how Earth is tilted on an axis and revolves around the sun, causing changes in the seasons by participating,
understanding, and explaining the Seasons Lab.

Developing Effective Science Lessons. Developing effective science lessons is a critical part of our job to ensure students have opportunities to collaborate with
others, to guarantee that students have the time needed to master various concepts, and to make certain students have the chance to reflect on those assessing
and advancing questions. Refer to Figure 1.1, from Designing Effective Science Instruction: What Works in Science Classrooms. As we continue to engage
students in the learning of science, we will focus on providing adequate time and structure for sense-making and wrap-up; enhancing the development of students’
understanding and problem solving through teacher’s questioning; providing a classroom culture in which the climate encourages students to generate ideas and
questions; and having a quality classroom culture where intellectual rigor, constructive criticism, and challenging of ideas are evident (p.4).

Creating a Positive Learning Environment. At the beginning of the school year, we presented Table 4.1, from Designing Effective Science Instruction: What Works in
Science Classrooms, showing how to create a positive learning environment. During these fifth six weeks, we will explore the fourth and fifth strategy presented in
this book. Environment Strategy 4: Provide Feedback; give timely and criterion reference feedback p.161 – 168 and Environment Strategy 5: Reinforcing Progress
and Effort; keep students focused on learning by reinforcing progress and effort p. 168 – 176.

Using technology and interactive games to support student engagement.

Collaborative grouping

Formative assessment in science and other formative assessment strategies that will work depending the needs of your class(once you are in the page, click on
each formative assessment strategy to get more details)
Use of the 5E scientific model:
o Engage
o Explore

West-Orange Cove CSD
o
o
o


8th Grade Science –5th Six Weeks
2012 - 2013
Explain
Elaborate
Evaluate
Using a rubric or a criteria chart generated with the students, go over the expectations in the science lab as it concerns to safety, active participation, homework,
research and other projects.
If individual conferences have not been done and as we enter the last few weeks before our STAAR test, teachers will have conversations regarding two variables,
effort and achievement. Periodically, ask students to describe what they noticed about the relationship between the effort they put into a project or task and their
accomplishment. As students reflect on their experiences will increase their awareness of the power of effort. Continue to work on building your students’ confidence
in their learning abilities by helping them set reasonable, attainable goals. Use this Student Self-Assessment and Goal Setting Template with students to determine
their effort and what they want to work to improve. Conferencing provides opportunities to discuss with students what they believe about themselves and
how those beliefs align with the behaviors you observe in class.
Week 1
March 4 - 8
Learning Standards
Organisms and
Environments
The student knows that
interdependence occurs
among living systems and
the environment and that
human activities can affect
these systems.
The student is expected
to:
Diagram the flow of
energy through living
systems, including food
chains, food webs, and
energy pyramids. 7.5C -S8
Instruction
The time needed to cover the concepts for week 1 and
week 2 can be modified as needed if more time is
desired for STAAR review.
Vocabulary
producers, consumers, predator, prey, parasite, host,
food web, food chain, ecosystem (marine, freshwater,
terrestrial) organisms, populations, biotic factors, abiotic
factors, environmental changes, trait, population,
adaptations
ENGAGE students daily by

Reviewing what students know about
producer/consumer and predator/prey relationships
using annotated student drawings or commit and
toss.

Describe
producer/consumer,
predator/prey, and
parasite/host relationships
as they occur in food webs
within marine, freshwater,
and terrestrial
ecosystems; 8.11A - R8

Show students the National Geographic video “Fish
Thieves Take Rare Seals’ Prey” (3.5 minutes), in
which an endangered Hawaiian monk seal preys
upon and competes for fish and invertebrates on
the seafloor at 80 meters (262 feet) deep. Ask:
What is the ecological relationship between the
monk seal and the octopus/eel/trigger fish?
(predator/prey) Ask: What is the ecological
relationship between the monk seal and the
jacks/sharks? (competition)
Discuss the following question, If a predator’s
prey begins to die out from disease, what
Resources
https://www.scientificmin
ds.com/Teacher/Ancillary
Data.aspx
Use the following lessons
to support students’
understanding and
knowledge by using

Science Starter 54
Producers,
Consumers, and
Decomposers

Science Starter 55
Food Chain and
Food Webs

Science Starter 56
Energy Pyramids
.
Teaching Science TEKS
8.11A
Products, Projects, Labs
Gateways 8th grade Unit 6
Lesson 1 Energy in
Ecosystems
T.E 472 - 483
Students will participate in
this lesson to describe the
relationships between
consumers and producers.
Diagram the flow of energy
in food webs and energy
pyramids.
Gateways 8th grade Unit 6
Lesson 2 Relationships in
Food Webs
T.E 484 - 500
Students will participate in
this lesson to describe
relationships between
organisms within
ecosystems.
Discovery Education
National Geographic
Texas Parks and Wildlife
ELABORATE / EVALUATE
Design a variety of food-web
collages that illustrate the
energy flow within living
systems found in the
schoolyard, in an ocean, or
Assessment
EVALUATE
Give each student a
copy of the Symbiotic
Interactions
worksheet. Students
will select 4 out of 7
scenarios providing
reasons for their
choices. Have
students explain why
they classified the
different scenarios as
one type of symbiosis
and not the others.
Reflection – In the
diagram included in
the hyperlink, a
desert food web is
shown.
Write an essay
identifying and
describing one
producer-consumer
relationship, one
predator-prey
relationship, and one
parasite-host
relationship within the
desert food web.
West-Orange Cove CSD
8th Grade Science –5th Six Weeks
options does the predator have at that point in
order to survive? Students will reflect individually
and then do a Think-Pair-Share. Volunteers will
share out with the whole class.

Watching Elements of Biology: Ecosystems: The
organisms and the Environment and discussing
how plants and animals compete and cooperate in
their environment resulting in what is often
described as a "balance of nature" within an
ecosystem.

Students will reflect on the following questions:
How do ecological relationships shape the marine
ecosystem? Why is it important to identify and
understand these relationships? Students will
present their thoughts using “table talk” If time
permits, representatives from each table will share
with the class.

Have students view videos to identify symbiotic
relationships.
Show students the three videos of different marine
species interactions. After each video, have the
class identify and discuss the symbiotic
relationships they observed. “Caribbean Cleaners”
(2.5 minutes)—mutualism. “Giving Fish a Bath”
(5.5 minutes)—parasitism. “Clownfish and Sea
Anemone Partnership” (1.5 minutes)—mutualism.
Ask: What type of symbiotic relationship was not
shown in the videos? (commensalism)
Teachers will facilitate students’ learning and discovery
to reinforce skills and concepts

EXPLORE / EXPLAIN – Teacher will guide
students in the understanding of ecological
relationships using the Ecological Relationships
SMART Notebook file.

EXPLORE / EXPLAIN – Teacher will guide
students in the understanding of roles in an
ecosystem using this PowerPoint presentation.
The species in an ecosystem depend on each
other in many ways. We can model these
relationships using a food web that shows the
2012 - 2013
in a classroom aquarium or
terrarium.
West-Orange Cove CSD
8th Grade Science –5th Six Weeks
transfer of energy from species to species. Every
living thing in an ecosystem is part of the food web
and has a role in keeping it balanced.

EXPLORE / EXPLAIN - Think you got what it takes
to survive in the wild? Teacher will use the
information obtained in Texas Parks and Wildlife to
make stations where students will rotate and see
how they measure up to various animals. At each
station, students will determine how each animal
uses their skills in a predator/prey relationship.
2012 - 2013
West-Orange Cove CSD
Week 2
March 18 – March 22
Learning Standards
8th Grade Science –5th Six Weeks
Instruction
Organisms and
environments:
The student knows that
interdependence occurs
among living systems and
the environment and that
human activities can affect
these systems.
Vocabulary
producers, consumers, predator, prey, parasite, host,
food web, food chain, ecosystem (marine, freshwater,
terrestrial) organisms, populations, biotic factors, abiotic
factors, environmental changes
Describe
producer/consumer,
predator/prey, and
parasite/host relationships
as they occur in food webs
within marine, freshwater,
and terrestrial
ecosystems; 8.11A - R8

ENGAGE students daily by

Describe how biodiversity
contributes to the
sustainability of an
ecosystem. 7.10 B - S8
Investigate how organisms
and populations in an
ecosystem depend on and
may compete for biotic
and abiotic factors such as
quantity of light, water,
range of temperatures, or
soil composition; 8.11B R8

Brainstorm with students using the following
questions
o What do middle schoolers compete for?
o
What do adults compete for?
o How does this compare with competition in
nature?
Watching the video clip Ecosystems: Abiotic and
Biotic Factors, students will understand how the
place where an organism lives depends on the biotic
and abiotic factors present in the environment. This
clip compares several ecosystems. A swamp is
described in terms of its biotic and abiotic factor.
Students will create a T-Chart listing biotic and
abiotic factors.
Reading A Fight for Life in the Tropical Rainforest
and discussing how organisms and populations in
an ecosystem depend on and may compete for
biotic and abiotic.
Teachers will facilitate students’ learning and discovery
to reinforce skills and concepts

EXPLORE / EXPLAIN- Teacher will support
students as they participate in laboratory
observations using the lab procedure and questions
Who Loves Sugar?

EXPLORE / EXPLAIN – Teacher will guide students
in the study of Ecological Relationships to support
students in better understanding how organisms
depend on and may compete for biotic and abiotic
factors.
2012 - 2013
Resources
Products, Projects, Labs
Assessment
https://www.scientificmi
nds.com/Teacher/Ancill
aryData.aspx
Use the following
lessons to support
students’ understanding
and knowledge by using

Science Starter 11
Abiotic and Biotic

Science Starter 55
Food Chain and
Food Webs

Science Starter 57
Aquatic Biomes

Science Starter 58
Terrestrial Biomes
What is for Dinner?
Students will participate of
this lab to
EXPLORE/EXPLAIN the
concept of competition in a
game format. Teacher will
set up ahead of time in order
for students to use the
handout to participate of the
competition game.
EVALUATE
Students will Think
about how the role
of both biotic and
abiotic factors
within an ecosystem;
then, students will
write describing
a scenario in which
one abiotic factor is
changed or removed
from an ecosystem.
Explain the possible
side effects on that
ecosystem
Discovery Education
STEM-SCOPES
Gateways 8th grade Unit 6
Lesson 3 Biotic and
Abiotic Factors in
Ecosystems
T.E 501 - 514
Students will participate in
this lesson to investigate
how organisms and
populations depend on and
compete for resources within
an ecosystem.
ELABORATE / EVALUATE
Students will create a poster
or a poem/song displaying
their understanding of biotic
and abiotic factors that
organisms and populations
in an ecosystem depend on.
Reflection –
Intraspecies
competition happens
when individual
organisms within the
same species
compete for
resources.
Interspecies
competition happens
when different
populations of
species compete for
resources. Describe
the similarities and
differences between
these two types of
competition. Use
specific examples to
support your answer.
West-Orange Cove CSD
Week 3
March 25 - March 28
Learning Standards
Organisms and the
Environment
The student knows that
interdependence occurs
among living systems and
the environment and that
human activities can affect
these systems.
The student is expected
to:
Instruction
Essential Vocabulary:
organisms, populations, ecosystem, biotic factors, abiotic
factors, light, soil, water, temperature, environmental
changes, trait, population, adaptations
ENGAGE students daily by

Showing the class a diagram of the Earth, Sun and
Moon relationship. In groups have them write an
explanation to determine the relationship of the
three bodies.

Compare the results of
uniform or diverse offspring
from sexual reproduction or
asexual reproduction. 7.14B
S8
Recognize that inherited traits
of individuals are governed in
the genetic material found in
the genes within
chromosomes in the nucleus
7.14C S8
Identify some changes in
genetic traits that have
occurred over several
generations through natural
selection and selective
breeding such as the
Galapagos Medium
Ground Finch (Geospiza
fortis) or domestic animals.
7.11C S8
Explore how short- and
long-term environmental
changes affect
organisms and traits in
subsequent populations;
8.11C - R8
8th Grade Science –5th Six Weeks



Asking the students and allowing time to do table
talk or think-pair-share, “Have you noticed that the
moon changes shape each time you see it? Why
does the moon change shape?”
Watching the movie clip Moon Phases and
discussing how during the 29 days it takes the moon
to orbit the Earth, the moon appears to change
shape from one day to the next. Students will know
that these shapes are known as the phases of the
moon.
Watching and singing Phases of the Moon Rap.
Use a projector to make sure students are able to
follow along with the lyrics. This is a very interactive
way to engage students and reinforce phases of the
moon daily.
Selecting a student’s birthday and finding how the
moon looked like during that particular day. Use
StarDate to display the approximate moon phases.
How are scientists able to predict the phase of the
moon in the next month? Year?
Teachers will facilitate students’ learning and discovery
to reinforce skills and concepts

EXPLORE / EXPLAIN- Using this interactive moon
phase link to examine for each phase how the view
from Earth is related to the view from space.
Resources
https://www.scientificmi
nds.com/Teacher/Ancill
aryData.aspx
Use the following
lessons to support
students’ understanding
and knowledge by using

Science Starter 60
Ecological
Succession

Science Starter 69
Human Impact on
Plants and Animals

Science Starter 71
Adaptations

Science Starter 72
Natural Selection

Science Starter 76
Traits and the
Environment
Discovery Education
StarDate
Wonderville
Earth’s Rotation, Tilt,
Orbit and Phases of the
Moon SMART
Notebook File
2012 - 2013
Products, Projects, Labs
Gateways 8th grade Unit 6
Lesson 4 Changes in the
Environment
T.E 515 - 524
Students will explore how
short- and long-term
environmental changes
affect organisms and their
traits.
ELABORATE / EVALUATE
Students will create a poster
or a model to describe and
explain the lunar cycle.
ELABORATE
Phases of the Moon Daily
Log and Flip Book
Project: Students will make
observations and record the
phases of the moon and
then create a flip book.
Assessment
EVALUATE
Tell the students that
they are moon.
Students will write a
narrative of their
month long journey
through the various
phases.
If necessary, show
the students the
following example.
West-Orange Cove CSD
8th Grade Science –5th Six Weeks
Week 4 (2 days of testing Reading –Math and 3 days of instruction)
April 1 – April 5
Learning Standards
Instruction
Organisms and
Environments
The student knows that
interdependence occurs
among living systems and
the environment and that
human activities can affect
these systems.
The student is expected
to:
Model the effects of human
activity on groundwater and
surface water in a watershed.
7.8 C- S8
Recognize human
dependence on ocean
systems and explain how
human activities such as
runoff, artificial reefs, or
use of resources have
modified these systems.
8.11D - S8
Practice appropriate use
and conservation of
resources, including
disposal, reuse, or
recycling of materials.
8.1 B
Essential Vocabulary:
ocean systems, runoff, artificial reefs, resources, ground
water, watershed
ENGAGE students daily by

Using this video showing the highest tides in the
world at Hopewell Rocks in New Brunswick,
Canada. Before students begin to watch, tell them to
keep in mind the following questions, “What do you
see happening with the water?” and “What might
cause the water to move?”

Using Annotated Students Drawings or Commit and
Toss, students will produce a brief explanation of
what they know about tides. Have them watch the
tide video; revise and discuss what students
originally thought and develop a class definition for
the term tide.

Watching the video segment The Moon and the
Tides and discussing how tides are produced by the
pull of gravity from the moon. Students will learn that
tide levels may vary by several feet depending on
the depth of the water and the surface features.

Showing the students the interactive link of spring
and neap tides. Using Think-Pair-Share or Table
Talk, students will be able to discuss what they see
happening in the clip. Each group will come up with
an explanation of what they see and share out with
the class.
Teachers will facilitate students’ learning and discovery
to reinforce skills and concepts

EXPLORE / EXPLAIN- Teacher will support student’
understanding of the production of tides using this
animated interactive site. Students will see how the
motion of the Earth creates inertial forces that
combine with the gravity of the moon and sun to
produce ocean tides on our planet.
Resources
https://www.scientificmi
nds.com/Teacher/Ancill
aryData.aspx
Use the following
lessons to support
students’ understanding
and knowledge by using

Science Starter 70
Human Impact on
the environment
2012 - 2013
Products, Projects, Labs
Gateways 8th grade Unit 6
Lesson 5 The Human
Factor
T.E 525 - 532
Students will participate in
this lesson to explain how
humans are dependent on
the ocean and how human
activities have modified the
ocean.
EVALUATE
Students will create
a poem, skit, song,
or rap to explain the
causes and
frequency of ocean
tides. Collaborating
with the class,
develop a criteria
chart and rubric to
assess students
work.
ELABORATE / EVALUATE
Using the knowledge
acquired during the week as
it relates to tides, students
create a travel brochure to
advertise a trip to The Bay of
Fundy. Students will use the
words from the word wall,
concept wall or students
personal dictionary to
advertise their trip.
Collaborating with the class,
develop a criteria chart and
rubric for students to monitor
and manage their products.
Reflection –
The moon has a
special effect on
Earth and our
ocean's tides. With a
partner, students will
write down the best
explanation of how
tides are created.
Use some of the
following vocabulary:

moon

Earth

gravity

tide

ocean

rotation

orbit
Discovery Education
Earth’s Rotation, Tilt,
Orbit and Phases of the
Moon SMART
Notebook File
Assessment
West-Orange Cove CSD
Week 5 – Week 7
April 8 – April 26 (Testing on the last week)
Learning Standards
8th Grade Science –5th Six Weeks
Instruction
EXPLORE / EXPLAIN- Students will conduct a research
using encyclopedias, online databases, and library
books. After this research, video explorations, and
laboratory, students will be able to:
o
Describe and define components of
the universe (stars, nebulae,
galaxies)
o
Recognize and explain the types of
galaxies: elliptical (bar), irregular,
and spiral (disc-shaped).
Depending on time, the teacher may opt
to use the Dust and Gases PPT to guide
students in the exploration and learning
of galaxies
o
Classify stars on the HR diagram.
Depending on time, the teacher may opt
to guide students learning about the
Hertzsprung-Russell Diagram as a tool
that shows relationships and differences
between stars. It is something of a
"family portrait." It shows stars of
different ages and in different stages, all
at the same time
o
Recognize that the Sun is a
medium sized star and the closest
to the Earth.
Students will write a report including key facts
about the universe using the above bullets as a
reference. At the end of the research report,
provide students with notes created by the
teacher using web resources provided by
students.
Resources
2012 - 2013
Products, Projects, Labs
Assessment
West-Orange Cove CSD
8th Grade Science –5th Six Weeks
The Web sites below are a good starting point for
online research:
Universe, Galaxies, Stars, Solar System
www.Cosmo4Kids.com
Universe (Wikipedia)
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/universe
BBC Science and Nature (Space)
www.bbc.co.uk/science/space/solarsystem
Kidsastronomy.com
www.kidsastronomy.com/universe.htm
Curious About Astronomy? Ask an Astronomer
(Cornell University)
http://curious.astro.cornell.edu/index.php
Exploring the Universe (NASA)
www.nasa.gov/vision/universe/features
Imagine the Universe (NASA)
http://imagine.gsfc.nasa.gov
Universe Forum Learning Resources (Harvard
University)
http://cfawww.harvard.edu/seuforum/learningresources.h
tm
2012 - 2013
West-Orange Cove CSD
8th Grade Science –5th Six Weeks
2012 - 2013
SMART Objective
In the book, Learning by Doing, P. 126, Richard DuFour, Rebecca DuFour, Thomas Many, and Robert Eaker, talk about SMART goals and how
establishing these goals will assist stakeholders in creating a collaborative effort oriented by results.
According to Dufour et al, SMART objectives are Strategic and Specific, Measurable, Attainable, Results-Oriented, Timebound. For our
purposes in the classroom, we will use SMART objectives in the following manner:
Standards-based – use the wording of the TEK
Makes a connection – find a way to connect to everyday situation
Attainable - do students feel they can learn the concept?
Results oriented – how will students know they have learned the concept?
Tell – Students are able to tell what they are learning
The objective does not have to change every day as you write it on the board or keep it in a prominent place. Keep in mind that by posting
the learning objective in this manner and using with the students before, during, and after the lesson then the students will know the what,
how, and why of the learning. Besides, using the standard will support the students learn the vocabulary they are expected to know and
master by the end of the lesson.
West-Orange Cove CSD
8th Grade Science –5th Six Weeks
2012 - 2013
Some Examples of Formative Assessments in Science
(Source: Science Formative Assessments by Page Keeley)
Concept Cartoons
(p.71)
Familiar Phenomenon Probe/
Friendly Talk Probe
(p.85 & 102)
Interest Scale
(p.115)
I Used to Think…Now I Know
(p.119)
KWL (and its variations)
(p.128)
Pass the Question
(p.149)
Popsicle Stick Questioning
(p.158)
R.E.R.U.N.
(p.172)
Sticky Bars
(p.178)
-cartoon of people sharing their ideas on common, everyday phenomenon/concept
-students choose the cartoon they agree with most and explain their reasoning
-used to assess and address misconceptions, diagnostic
-see: www.conceptcartoons.com for examples
-a dialogue between characters addressing a concept
-students choose the character they agree with most and explain their reasoning
-used to assess and address misconceptions, diagnostic
-students use sticky notes to indicate their interest in a subject on a low to high scale (e.g. a
thermometer with the heading “How Hot is the Topic?”)
-kinesthetic, student interest
-at the end of a lesson, students reflect and compare what they knew at the beginning of a lesson to
what they know after a lesson
-metacognition, assessment as learning
KWL – what I know, what I wonder, what I learned
OWL – what I observed, what I wonder, what I learned
KWLH – KWL + H = how I learned it
-students begin to respond to a question; halfway through, they exchange responses and complete,
modify, or change each other’s responses
-can be done in pairs and then exchanged with another pair
-cooperative learning
-names of students are written on a popsicle stick
-pull popsicles sticks for name of student to call on (e.g. for questioning)
-reflection/exit card for a lab activity
-recall (summarize), explain the purpose, results (describe their meaning), uncertainties
(list/describe), new things you learned
-to answer a multiple choice question, students write their responses on a sticky note, hand in to
their teacher, teacher posts answers to show the variety of answers from all students
-diagnostic, metacognition
West-Orange Cove CSD
8th Grade Science –5th Six Weeks
2012 - 2013
Terminology Inventory Probe
(p.180)
-give a list of terms to students
-students use a checklist to indicate what they know of a term using a range from “I have never
heard of the this” to “I clearly know what it means and can describe it”
-students revisit the list at the end of learning
-ask students to reveal their understanding by providing a description, drawing a picture, etc.
Synectics
(p.186)
-“the fitting together of different and apparently irrelevant elements”
-analogies/metaphors
e.g. a physical change is like a milkshake because different ingredients are put together and
combined to make something different but each ingredient can still be physically separated
-teacher can assess student’s conceptual understanding of a concept
-link to Marzano’s “identifying similarities and differences” instructional strategy
-red, yellow, and green stackable party cups
-used to signal whether a group does not need help from the teacher (green), needs some feedback
or assistance (yellow), or does not know what to do next (red)
-allows teacher to circulate and differentiate the process based on readiness
Students use A & D Statements to analyze a set of “fact or fiction” statements. In the first part
of A & D Statements, students may choose to agree or disagree with a statement or identify
whether they need more information. In addition, they are asked to describe their thinking
about why they agree, disagree, or are unsure. In the second part of the FACT, students
describe what they can do to investigate the statement by testing their ideas, researching what
is already known, or using other means of inquiry.
“If a picture is worth a thousand words, perhaps drawing and visualizing can help science
students enhance their learning potential” (National Science Teacher Association [NSTA],
2006, p. 20. Annotated Student Drawings are student-made, labeled illustrations that visually
represent and describe student’s thinking about a scientific concept.
Commit and Toss is an anonymous technique used to get a quick read on the different ideas
students have in the class. It provides a safe, fun, and engaging way for all students to make
their ideas known to the teacher and the class without individual students being identified as
having “wild” or incorrect ideas. Students are given a question. After completing the question,
students crumple their paper up into a ball and, upon a signal from the teacher, toss the paper balls
around the room until the teacher tells them to stop and pick up or hold on to one paper.
Students take the paper they end up with the share the ideas and thinking that are described
on their “caught” paper, not their own ideas.
Card Mapping is a variation on the familiar strategy of concept mapping (Novak, 1998). Instead of
constructing their own concept maps from scratch, students are given cards with the concepts
written on them. They move the cards around and arrange them as a connected web of knowledge.
They create linkages between the concept cards that describe the relationship between concepts.
Traffic Light Cups
(p.201)
A&D Statements
Annotated Student Drawings
Commit and Toss
Concept Card Mapping Concept
West-Orange Cove CSD
Missed Conception
Two-Minute Paper
8th Grade Science –5th Six Weeks
2012 - 2013
Moving the cards provides an opportunity for students to explore and think about different linkages.
A Missed Conception is a statement about an object or phenomenon that is based on a commonly
held idea noted in the research on students’ ideas in science. Students are asked to analyze a
statement, describe why some people may believe it is true, describe what one could do to help
someone change his or her “missed conception” in favor of the scientific idea, and reflect on their
own ideas in relation to the statement.
The Two-Minute Paper is a quick and simple way to collect feedback from students about their
learning at the end of an activity, field trip, lecture, video, or other type of learning experience.
Students are given two minutes to respond to a predetermined prompt in writing.
http://www.google.com/url?sa=t&rct=j&q=&esrc=s&source=web&cd=3&ved=0CHYQFjAC&url=http%3A%2F%2Fdpcdsbcla.wikispaces.com%2Ffile%2Fview%2FSome%2BExamples%2Bof%2BFormative%2BAssessments%2Bin%2BScience.doc&ei=w5fmT6iMCIfm2
QXOueHZCQ&usg=AFQjCNGgWKsjp9jPPrnqbALNk3Gc7vpP5Q&sig2=cY2Br5Y_HYLjmrQRQ5MBGw
West-Orange Cove CSD
8th Grade Science –5th Six Weeks
Desert Food Web
2012 - 2013
West-Orange Cove CSD
8th Grade Science –5th Six Weeks
2012 - 2013
Graffiti Writing
Graffiti Writing is a cooperative learning structure that facilities brainstorming and also doubles
as a group energizer. Each cooperative group of 3 or 4 students is given a piece of chart paper
and different colored markers. Group #1 might have black markers; group #2 green markers,
etc. There needs to be a different color marker for each group so that the teacher can track
each individual group’s contribution. If you have small enough classes you can give each
student a different color marker and track individual performance, but this is not usually
possible. Each group is given a different question, topic, issue, or statement to which they
respond. All students can respond to the same topic but I find it more effective if three or more
different topics are used. For a short time period (3-5 minutes), every group writes their “graffiti”
(words, phrases, statements, pictures) on their particular topic. For example: Your students
have just read the book Who Moved My Cheese; I would use a graffiti sheet for each character
and have students describe these characters with words, phases, and pictures. All students in
the group write on the same piece of chart paper at the same time. It is very important that, as
the teacher you monitor total participation to get the most out of this activity. After about three to
five minutes, the teacher stops the groups and asks each group to pass their graffiti sheets to
the next group. The new group with the sheet reads what has already been written or drawn on
the sheet and adds additional new information. Continue the process until each group’s original
sheet has been returned to them. Once a group has their original sheet back, as a group, they
read all of the contributing comments, discuss them, summarize them, and prepare a brief
presentation to the class as outlined by the teacher. I often have the students categorize the
comments in order to draw conclusions as part of their presentation phase. A specific outcome
must be set by the teacher for the presentation part of this assignment in order for it to be
effective.
Graffiti writing works very effectively as an anticipatory set, a closure activity or as an energizer
during any lesson where the generation of ideas or the recall of facts is desired. Please
encourage your students to draw during graffiti writing as this will motivate students who love to
doodle and often are not super productive in your classroom. Also, for extremely large classes
the same lesson can be going on twice in your classroom which will result in two groups
presenting on the same topic at the end. This keeps both groups and the scope of the lesson
appropriate in size and depth.
http://keystoteachingsuccess.blogspot.com/2009/07/graffiti-writing.html