Year: 9
Topic: Creation: RE and Science
Key Questions /Science
Concepts
Key Questions: How do scientific
theories change over time?
Science Concepts
1.1 b. Critically analysing and
evaluating evidence from
observations and experiments.
1.3 A. Recognising that modern
science has its roots in many
different societies and cultures,
and draws on a variety of valid
approaches to scientific practice.
What are we going to
learn?
By the end of the lesson you will have
demonstrated that you can work
effectively in a team so you all achieve
the content objectives.
To understand how scientific theories
come about and how they are proved
or disproved
Lesson: How do scientific theories change over time?
Assessment
Strategies/Attainment Targets
Learning Objectives
By the end of the lesson you will be able to…
…describe the theories that come before the theory
of evolution.
…describe how Scientific theories change over time.
Attainment Targets to be based on those most
appropriate to Science
Assessment strategies:
Homework
Pupils write an answer to the key
question-this must include what
they have learned during the
lesson and the importance of
this.
Written assignment/role play/presentation
Debate/philosophical enquiry (P4C)
Feedback on debate/P4C.
How do we know if we have
been successful?
Differentiated Resources
All – Can show how some theories can be
disproved
Most – Can explain at least one theory and its
scientific basis to others
Some – Can explain how theories come about and
how they can change over time
Kinesthetic card sort
Card sort roles
This learning can be assessed in metacognitive
plenary – pupils share their understanding and
review the learning processes that took place during
the lesson.
Differentiation of
activities
Kinesthetic activity
Pupils take different roles in
group activity
Questioning after timeline activity
– use higher order questions to
get the pupils to think deeper
How are we going to learn?
Starter
An introduction to different
theories that have been
proved wrong. Pupils are to
match the theory to the way
it was disproved. This will
then elicit dialogue to
develop pupil understanding
of how some bizarre
theories can be acceptable
because of ‘scientific
observations’. When
technology or thinking
moves on and further
evidence is seen, theories
change or become obsolete.
This could be photo reduced
and made into a card sort for
a more kinesthetic activity.
Main tasks
There are three theories to research; one group per theory, three or four pupils per group.
Pupils are to conduct research using books and/or the internet and/or printouts of relevant information to put the theory of
evolution into context. You could provide different sources to investigate bias and other factors that may lend inference. The
ultimate goal is for pupils to be experts on their theory.
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Give the pupils roles – researcher, recorder, checker, taskmaster – cards in resource pack.
Each theory has some basic information. Pupils are to decide which sources of information they need and how they are
going to divide up the task – the roles will be useful here.
Pupils need to be really confident about teaching others about their theory and the context it existed in.
Envoy – one pupil (I would suggest the checker) goes to a different group – logistics are classroom and class size dependent. They
have to share their theory with the group. The researcher from that group then shares the group’s theory with the envoy. Between
the two parties, decide which came first and is more accurate and whether there are any links between the two theories. Envoy to
return and feedback. Repeat with a different group so that the home group builds a picture of all the theories in the room.
Pupils should now have an idea of a timeline and what people thought at that time. The group or an individual should put together a
timeline either with a post it onto a chronological line or by physically standing up. Questioning to elicit that pupils understand how
theories come about and how they change over time.
Plenary
In a lift – pupils
are in a lift that
takes 90
seconds to get
to the top.
Pupil 1 has 30
seconds to say
what they
learned, pupil
two has 30
seconds to say
how they
learned it and
pupil 3 has 30
seconds to say
why the
learning is
important.