PERFORMANCE TASK STUDENT DIRECTIONS/RESPONSE SHEET

TASK: S2 - Some of Its Parts
Grade 4

STUDENT NAME:  _______________________________________________

SCHOOL NAME:  _______________________________________________

SCHOOL CODE:  _______________________________________________

Write your name, school name, and school code on the lines above.

The purpose of this task is to examine two kinds of a common machine and explore what their parts do. You will have a total of 45 minutes to complete this task. You may use up to 30 minutes to complete the group portion of the task. When you finish the group activity, someone from your group should tell the person in charge.

Your group should have pencils and two can openers.

GROUP ACTIVITY

We use some machines every day without knowing about the parts that do things to make each whole system work. DO YOU KNOW WHAT THE PARTS (CALLED SUBSYSTEMS) OF A CAN OPENER ARE MEANT TO DO? This activity will help you to take a careful look at a common machine (system) - the can opener.

Your group has two different kinds of can openers. One is made entirely of metal. The other is made of two materials, and was designed using some different ideas. Both are hand-operated, and they have a lot in common.

Your job is to think of both kinds of can openers as systems of parts (subsystems) that work together. Then you will describe what each part does to help the whole system work.

1. As a group, study each of the can openers to find the important parts, or subsystems, that make it possible to take the lid off an ordinary can of food. You must decide how the parts work without actually trying to open a can. (Careful - some parts may not help the main system.) Use your observations to fill in the charts.

When you are sure that the group has found all of the important parts of each can opener, and you have completed both charts, put things back as you found them. Tell the person in charge that your group has finished its work. You may use the information in the charts, but you must do the rest of the work alone, without talking.

2. Use the charts below to list and describe the parts of each can opener.

   WHAT THE PART LOOKS LIKE	WHAT THE PART DOES

   CAN OPENER MADE OF TWO MATERIALS

   WHAT THE PART LOOKS LIKE	WHAT THE PART DOES

You have studied two kinds of can openers. One kind is made of metal. The other is made of two kinds of materials.

3. Using your Data Sheet, decide which of the can openers is best. Tell how you decided.

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4. From what you observed about can openers, what new or different subsystems could be added to the can opener you decided was best to make it an even better can opener?

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5. Describe another system that has several parts that are subsystems working together to do a job. Explain how these subsystems help the system to work.

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