Module 5b earth_space_science
- 2. Objec&ves — List the main strands in Earth and space science at the elementary level as described in the Texas Essential Knowledge and Skills. — Discuss basic principles in Earth and space as identified in the TEKS Elementary Level. — Describe effective strategies for teaching Earth and space science at the elementary level.
- 3. Important for Elementary Science — Earth and space science, particularly Earth science, is very important at the elementary grades. Students are curious about the physical world, and they are beginning to form their conceptual understandings and attitudes about “how the world works.” — Earth and space science can provide an opportunity to provide a which students will use to make important decisions throughout their lives that may have extensive and lasting affects. — Please access the handouts provided for this unit (Earth/ space TEKS by grade and Earth/space TEKS by topic).
- 4. Key Topics for Earth/space Science at the Elementary Level — Ecology — Geology — Weather — Space Picture from http://www.byui.edu/Geology/
- 5. Ecology — Ecology – The ecology standards focus on the following: — Resources — Soil/Rock Cycle — Water, carbon, and nitrogen cycles — Change over time — What must a teacher know/understand to be able to teach these topics? — How can a teacher teach this topics to students?
- 6. Ecology: Resources — K.7 (C) give examples of ways rocks, soil, and water are useful. — 1.7 (B) identify and describe a variety of natural sources of water, including streams, lakes, and oceans — 3.7 (D) explore the characteristics of natural resources that make them useful in products and materials such as clothing and furniture and how resources may be conserved. — 4.7 (C) identify and classify Earth's renewable resources, including air, plants, water, and animals; and nonrenewable resources, including coal, oil, and natural gas; and the importance of conservation. — 5.7 (C) identify alternative energy resources such as wind, solar, hydroelectric, geothermal, and biofuels;
- 7. Ecology: Resources — Note that classifying resources is important in the TEKS. Be sure you clearly understand the classification criteria for Renewable, Nonrenewable, and Alternative and that students have plenty of experience: — Classifying — Explaining why they classified as they did. The EXPLAINING is the most important part.
- 8. Ecology: Soil — This movie is excellent to help a teacher understand how soil forms. It also demonstrates excellent teaching and assessment strategies. (The link to the video is near the bottom of the page). http://www.learner.org/courses/essential/earthspace/ session1/?pop=yes&pid=2088 — This site examples student ideas about soil and the rock cycle. It is important for teachers to review these common ideas that students hold so they they can help students “reconceptionalize.” http://www.learner.org/courses/essential/earthspace/ session1/ideas.html
- 9. Could you label this drawing and explain what is happening at each point? Could your students? Discovery Learning (2008). The dirt on soil. Available from the Internet at http://school.discoveryeducation.com/ schooladventures/soil/down_dirty.html
- 10. Soil: Students should be able to: — 3.7 (A) explore and record how soils are formed by weathering of rock and the decomposition of plant and animal remains; — 4.7(A) examine properties of soils, including color and texture, capacity to retain water, and ability to support the growth of plants;
- 11. Soil: Experiments — Schoolyard Soil Experiment — http://web.stclair.k12.il.us/splashd/soilexp.htm — 42explore: Soil — http://42explore.com/dirt.htm — How Stuff Works: Soil — http://home.howstuffworks.com/science-‐projects-‐for-‐ kids-‐soil-‐experiments.htm
- 12. Rock Cycle — This movie includes important content on rock cycle formation. More importantly, you see students as they learn about the rock cycle so that you can see what works (when they are learning) and what doesn’t (when their misconceptions persist). — http://www.learner.org/courses/essential/earthspace/ session2/ — This review of children’s ideas is particularly helpful because as teachers we often hold the same ideas that may need changing or clarifying. — http://www.learner.org/courses/essential/earthspace/ session2/ideas.html
- 13. Rock Cycle: Models — There are many models of the rock cycle that are instructive and fun for students. Some examples follow. — Using crayons http://www.ehow.com/list_5919514_rock-‐cycle-‐activities-‐ elementary-‐students.html — Using “pop rocks” and chewing gum http://www.lessonplanspage.com/ ScienceTheRockCycleWithGumAndPopRocks38.htm — Animations http://www.uky.edu/AS/Geology/howell/goodies/elearning/ module05swf.swf — Games http://www.oum.ox.ac.uk/thezone/rocks/games/index.htm
- 14. Rock Cycle: Models — Remember that it is not so much the model you use, but the thinking you encourage while you are using the model. — Ask higher level questions that require students to think about the process. — What change is occurring? What is causing the change (what is the energy source?) Is this change reversible? What conditions must be present for this change to occur? What would happen if…
- 15. Ecology: Water , Carbon , and Nitrogen Cycles — The water cycle is the easiest and most important for students to know at the elementary level, followed by the carbon and then the nitrogen cycles. — Students MUST be taught these cycles as systems. They must know not only what changes follow in sequence, but what causes those changes. Click on links to learn more about any of the cycles.
- 16. Ecology: Water , Carbon , and Nitrogen Cycles — Can you answer these questions? — WHY does water evaporate? What happens to the water left behind when water evaporates? Why didn’t it evaporate as well? — WHY does the water vapor in clouds become rain? — WHY is it often warmer after a rain than before? — WHAT EFFECT does eating more meat have on the carbon cycle? WHY? — Students DO NOT understand these cycles unless they can explain what is happening at each point and why. Click on links to learn more about any of the cycles.
- 17. Ecology: Change Over Time — Change over time is a key concept in all the ecology topics, as well as in the other topics in these two sciences. Help students understand why the change is occurring (what are the conditions that cause the change; what energy source is driving the change; what would happen if…)
- 18. Geology: TEKS — Please see your handout for a fuller description of the TEKS related to geology. These can be divided into — Earth Materials – Observing, testing, and describing physical properties of various natural materials — Change Over Time – Reading various sources (fossils, tree rings, charts, graphs) and interpreting change. — Earth Movements – identifying the causes, processes, and results of movement of the Earth’s crust
- 19. Earth Materials — Observe the properties of soils, rocks, and water. — Test and describe the properties of soils, rocks, and water. — Gather information including temperature, magnetism, hardness, and mass using appropriate tools to identify physical properties of matter. — Note how important it is for students to test for themselves and to identify the physical properties of Earth materials.
- 20. Earth Materials — What tools would students use to determine the following? — Temperature — Magnetism — Hardness — Mass — Can you think of grade-‐ level activities that would allow students to test these things? — Can you think of ways for students to record their data?
- 21. Earth Materials: Example Ac&vi&es and Lessons — Illinois State Museum http://geologyonline.museum.state.il.us/tools/ lessons/ — RocksForKids: Resources + Experiments http://www.rocksforkids.com/RFK/ TableofContents.html — Lesson Plan for younger students for testing harness http://www.lessonplanspage.com/ ScienceMathMusicPEArtSSLAMDRocks-‐ MohsHardnessScale12.htm
- 22. Earth Materials: Proper&es — In this experiment, students dissolve the minerals in egg shells and let it the mineral form new crystals. What questions would you ask to focus on the appropriate knowledge and skills? From http:// www.rocksforkids.c om/RFK/ Experiments.htm
- 23. Geology: Change Over Time The Austin Children’s Museum has a fun activity “Making Fossil Pudding.” It’s the last recipe on this page. http:// blog.austinkids.org/ category/cook/
- 24. Geology: Change Over Time — Remember to focus on the Big Idea – that things change over time and that by observing the PATTERN, we can infer what happened in the past. Picture from http://www.msstate.edu/ dept/GeoSciences/CT/TIG/ WEBSITES/LOCAL/Summer2003/ Harman_Pamela/Dynamic %20Earth.html
- 25. Earth Materials: Virtual Resources — Virtual “Rock Analyzer” http://www.open2.net/sciencetechnologynature/ worldaroundus/geologytoolkit/ whatrock_embedded.html — Many rock and mineral questions answered (g00d animations) http://www.childrensmuseum.org/geomysteries/ faqs.html
- 26. Geology: Earth Movements Teaching about Earth Movements (volcanoes, earthquakes, etc.) is so much fun! Caution! — Many models do not link closely to the “real thing.” For example, soda/vinegar volcanoes. You need to discuss all models thoroughly to help students understand what is happening. — Stress “cause and effect.” What makes the crustal plates move? Why do volcanoes erupt on the rim of crusts? Where would we most expect to see volcanic eruptions or have earthquakes? Why can they happen at “unexpected” places?
- 27. Geology: Earth Movements — This movie is very helpful if you need to review plate tectonics. It is also helpful in learning how kids think about tectonics and models effective teaching strategies http://www.learner.org/courses/essential/earthspace/ session4/ — This site provides insight into students’ ideas and helps clarify the science behind these misconceptions. http://www.learner.org/courses/essential/earthspace/ session4/ideas.html
- 28. Geology: Earth Movements — There are many excellent animations and videos online that show plate tectonics, Pangaea, and/or earthquake and volcano activity. Examples: — PBS’s Mountain Maker, Earth Shaker at http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/aso/tryit/tectonics/ — Various Youtube animations at http://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=plate +tectonics&search_type=&aq=f — Lesson plans at Geology.com http://geology.com/teacher/plate-‐tectonics.shtml )
- 29. Geology: Models and Ac&vi&es — Be sure you include lots of hands-‐on. This is an area that has lots of fun activities to support it. — Keep focused on KEY CONCEPTS: — What are the processes that produce these Earth changes? — Ask lots of higher level thinking. — Remember, it is not the activity that is the goal; it is achieving the learning outcomes.
- 30. Weather TEKS — K. 8 (A) observe and describe weather changes from day to day and over seasons; — 1.8 (A) record weather information, including relative temperature, such as hot or cold, clear or cloudy, calm or windy, and rainy or icy; — 1.8 (D) demonstrate that air is all around us and observe that wind is moving air. — 2.8 (A) measure, record, and graph weather information, including temperature, wind conditions, precipitation, and cloud coverage, in order to identify patterns in the data; — 2.8 (B) identify the importance of weather and seasonal information to make choices in clothing, activities, and transportation; — 3.8 (A) observe, measure, record, and compare day-‐to-‐day weather changes in different locations at the same time that include air temperature, wind direction, and precipitation; — 4.8 (A) measure and record changes in weather and make predictions using weather maps, weather symbols, and a map key; — 5.8 (A) differentiate between weather and climate;
- 31. Weather — Return to the last slide and think about how many of these TEKS have to do with observing, recording, and identifying patterns. Helping students know what to look for is the main skill in understanding weather.
- 32. Weather — Learning a few basic principles can provide a broad and deep understanding of weather. For example, understanding the hot air expands and cold air contracts helps explain, among other things: — Wind — Humidity — Condensation and rain — High pressure area and low pressure areas In fact, most of what happens in weather start with this principle.
- 33. Weather — By helping students “think out” what is really going on with weather, rather than memorizing a bunch of independent facts, you can build the self-‐confidence they need to: — Determine patterns — Make predictions based on those patterns. — These are key skills in weather science.
- 34. Weather — If you need to review your own understanding of weather, this site is a simple and clear explanation of most key factors of weather : Radio Shack’s Guide to Weather http://support.radioshack.com/support_tutorials/ weather/weather-‐02.htm
- 35. Weather — Of course, there are numerous sites for suggested ideas for lessons: — Teachnology: Weather http://www.teach-‐nology.com/teachers/lesson_plans/ science/earth_sciences/weather/ — The Teacher’s Guide: Weather http://www.theteachersguide.com/Weather.html — Lesson Plan Library: Weatherhttp:// school.discoveryeducation.com/lessonplans/ weather.html
- 36. Weather — Remember, the study of weather is: — Learning a few basic principles about how matter acts (especially air) and figuring out that that means in specific contexts — Observing and recording weather phenomena — Identifying patterns from those records Picture from http://www.norman.k12.ok.us/ 092/techscope/science2.htm
- 37. Space TEKS — K.8 (B) identify events that have repeating patterns, including seasons of the year and day and night; and — K.8 (C) observe, describe, and illustrate objects in the sky such as the clouds, Moon, and stars, including the Sun. — 1.8 (B) observe and record changes in the appearance of objects in the sky such as clouds, the Moon, and stars, including the Sun; — 1.8 (C) identify characteristics of the seasons of the year and day and night; — 2.8 (D) observe, describe, and record patterns of objects in the sky, including the appearance of the Moon.
- 38. Space TEKS con&nued — 3.8 (B) describe and illustrate the Sun as a star composed of gases that provides light and heat energy for the water cycle — 3.8 (C) construct models that demonstrate the relationship of the Sun, Earth, and Moon, including orbits and positions — 3.8(D) identify the planets in Earth's solar system and their position in relation to the Sun — 4.8 (C) collect and analyze data to identify sequences and predict patterns of change in shadows, tides, seasons, and the observable appearance of the Moon over time — 5.8 (C) demonstrate that Earth rotates on its axis once approximately every 24 hours causing the day/night cycle and the apparent movement of the Sun across the sky; and — 5.8 (D) identify and compare the physical characteristics of the Sun, Earth, and Moon.
- 39. Space TEKS, Summarized — Observe and describe cycles and changes in the Sun, Moon, and Earth. — Compare and contrast the characteristics of the Sun, Moon, and Earth. — Describe the role of gravity in the solar SYSTEM.
- 40. Space: Resources — Annenberg offers two movies to help science teachers review the concepts and pedagogical approaches to teaching about the solar system. They are: — Order Out of Chaos: Our Solar System http://www.learner.org/courses/essential/earthspace/ session8/ and — Our Nearest Neighbor, the Moon http://www.learner.org/courses/essential/earthspace/ session7/
- 41. Space: Keeping Focused — Remember in teaching about space what has been identified as the key concepts. For example, this website, http://www.123child.com/UBB/showthread.php? t=6337 has a thematic unit entitled “Day and Night.” There are about 15 activities, but none of the 15 help students understand what causes day and night. In lessons about day and night, the MOST IMPORTANT concept is why day and night happen. Singing songs and playing games can help reinforce important concepts, but they cannot take the place of the targeted scientific knowledge and skills.
- 42. Space: Keeping Focused — The Sun, Moon, and Planets — The NASA activities on this site have students actively engaged in making physical models of cycles and changes in the solar system. It provides teacher background information and worksheets for assessment. Look at this activity, and be sure and review the worksheet provided. — A Playground Model: A playground model to explore the movement of the Sun and the Earth http://www.eyeonthesky.org/lessonplans/08sun_moonplayground.html
- 43. Space: Keeping Focused — Note that the objectives are that students “know” — The Moon rotates or spins on its axis. — The Moon revolves or orbits around the Earth. — The Moon and the Earth revolve around the Sun. — The motion of the Sun, Earth, and Moon are cyclical. Could you tell whether a student understood these concepts from the activity sheet? What could you do to assure yourself that a student understood?
- 44. Space: Staying Focused — Finally: Remember that the Solar System is a SYSTEM. Help students learn that: — The SYSTEM of which our Earth is a part is held together through two forces: gravity and the speed (velocity) of the planets. — Like all other systems, every part affects every other part. — Like the parts of other systems, the characteristics of each part can best be understood by looking at the system as a whole. Picture from http://www.backbenchmedia.com/dark-‐matter-‐vs-‐god/
- 45. Points to Remember — Earth and space science should never be taught as a bunch of independent facts. It is important for students to: — Recognize patterns and use those patterns to infer what has happened in the past and what will happen in the future. — Understand cycles in nature and that these cycles are systems. — Describe the characteristics of cycles and the solar system in terms of system theory, understanding the interconnectedness of each part.