PALS - Administration Procedures

Kindergarten Performance Task
Developed for Texas Essential Knowledge and Skills (TEKS)
Authors: Betty Crocker, Janette Fentress, Virginia Malone, Theresa Weeks, Vanessa Westbrook

Description:

The student identifies body parts of animals from puzzle pieces, assembles the puzzle, and names the animal. Students experience several different animal puzzles. Note: This task is one of three linked tasks. The others are "Who's Parts Do I Have?" and "Mythical Animals."

This task assesses students' abilities to sort organisms and objects into groups according to their parts and describe how the groups are formed; record observations about parts of animals including wings, feet, heads, and tails; and identify parts that, when separated from the whole, may result in the part or the whole not working, such as cars without wheels, and plants without roots.

This task is designed to take 6-8 class periods of 15 minutes each.

Overall Task Content Area:

Life Science

Specific Knowledge Areas:

The characteristics of organisms

Performance Expectations:

conducting investigations
gathering, organizing, and representing data
formulating conclusions from investigational data
applying scientific principles to develop explanations and solve new problems

National Science Education Standards:

4 A SI 1: Abilities necessary to do scientific inquiry: Grades K-4
1.4 Use data to construct a reasonable explanation. This aspect of the standard emphasizes the students’ thinking as they use data to formulate explanations. Even at the earliest grade levels, students should learn what constitutes evidence and judge the merits or strength of the data and information that will be used to make explanations. After students propose an explanation, they will appeal to the knowledge and evidence they obtained to support their explanations. Students should check their explanations against scientific knowledge, experiences, and observations of others.

4 C LS 1: The characteristics of organisms: Grades K-4
1.2 Each plant or animal has different structures that serve different functions in growth, survival, and reproduction. For example, humans have distinct body structures for walking, holding, seeing, and talking.

(Use the "hot" link on the PALS home page to check the full text of related National Science Education Standards, if desired.)

National Council of Teachers of Mathematics:

AL1: Understand patterns, relations and functions:
Grades pre K-5 a. sort, classify, and order objects by size, number, and other properties.

PS2: Solve problems that arise in mathematics and in other contexts:
Grades pre K-5

Texas Essential Knowledge and Skills (TEKS):

(K.6) Science concept. The student knows that systems have parts and are composed of organisms and objects. The student is expected to:

General Instructions to the Teacher:

This task is designed to take students approximately 6-8 class periods of 15 minutes each, or 15 minutes per puzzle, to complete.

Students will be working both individually and in groups during this exercise.

Students should be ready to work as soon as the period begins. The materials should be set out at each lab station, if possible. A central supply area, if needed, should be easily accessible. All supplies should be clearly labeled.

Materials for "Animals Piece by Piece":

At each station students should have:

Advance Preparation:

Compile a collection of animal pictures from magazines, coloring books, etc. Mount each animal picture on tag board. Texture can be added to pictures by gluing on different materials such as net, waxed paper cotton, sand, or fur. Cut each animal picture into four parts: legs, arms or wings, head, and tail. Do not try to keep the body intact as you cut the picture into parts. Prepare one puzzle for every four students. Place each four-part animal puzzle in a clear plastic bag. Make student Animal Journals by stapling drawing paper into a cover labeled Animal Journal.