Contributed by: Oregon State Department of Education
Description:
Students will design and conduct an open-ended investigation using
a variety of earth materials to answer a question posed by the teacher:
How does the erosion of sand compare with the erosion of gravel?
After producing evidence that addresses this question, they will
generate their own question that could be answered with further
scientific inquiry.
The task assesses students' understanding of scientific inquiry
including the following skills: observation, data collection, measurement,
graphing, scientific questions.
This task is designed to take students approximately 4 hours.
Overall Task Content Area:
- Earth Science
Specific Knowledge Areas:
- Identify causes of Earth surface changes
Performance Expectations:
- conducting investigations
- using equipment
- gathering, organizing, and representing data
- formulating conclusions from investigational data
National Science Education Standards:
8 A SI 1: Abilities necessary to do scientific inquiry:
Grades 5-8
1.1 Identify questions that can be answered through scientific
investigations. Students should develop the ability to refine and
refocus broad and ill-defined questions. An important aspect of
this ability consists of students' ability to clarify questions
and inquiries and direct them toward objects and phenomena that
can be described, explained, or predicted by scientific investigations.
Students should develop the ability to identify their questions
with scientific ideas, concepts, and quantitative relationships
that guide investigation.
1.2 Design and conduct a scientific investigation. Students
should develop general abilities, such as systematic observation,
making accurate measurements, and identifying and controlling variables.
They should also develop the ability to clarify their ideas that
are influencing and guiding the inquiry, and to understand how those
ideas compare with current scientific knowledge. Students can learn
to formulate questions, design investigations, execute investigations,
interpret data, use evidence to generate explanations, propose alternative
explanations, and critique explanations and procedures.
1.3 Use appropriate tools and techniques to gather, analyze,
and interpret data. The use of tools and techniques, including mathematics,
will be guided by the question asked and the investigations students
design. The use of computers for the collection, summary, and display
of evidence is part of this standard. Students should be able to
access, gather, store, retrieve, and organize data, using hardware
and software designed for these purposes.
1.7 Communicate scientific procedures and explanations.
With practice, students should become competent at communicating
experimental methods, following instructions, describing observations,
summarizing the results of other groups, and telling other students
about investigations and explanations.
1.8 Use mathematics in all aspects of scientific inquiry.
Mathematics is essential to asking and answering questions about
the natural world. Mathematics can be used to ask questions; to
gather, organize, and present data; and to structure convincing
explanations.
8 D ESS 1: Structure of the earth system: Grades 5-8
1.3 Land forms are the result of a combination of constructive
and destructive forces. Constructive forces include crustal deformation,
volcanic eruption, and deposition of sediment, while destructive
forces include weathering and erosion.
4 D ESS 3: Changes in the earth and sky: Grades K-4
3.1 The surface of the earth changes. Some changes are due
to slow processes, such as erosion and weathering, and some changes
are due to rapid processes, such as landslides, volcanic eruptions,
and earthquakes.
(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 6-8 f. represent, analyze, and generalize a variety
of patterns with tables, graphs, words, and, when possible, symbolic
rules
DAP3: Develop and evaluate inferences
and predictions that are based on data:
Grades 6-8 e. use conjectures to formulate new questions
and plan new studies to answer them
PS2: Solve problems that arise in mathematics and in
other contexts:
Grades 6-8
REP1: Create and use representations to organize, record,
and communicate mathematical ideas:
Grades 6-8
General Instructions to the Teacher:
This task is designed to take students approximately 4 hours to
complete.
Students should be ready to work as soon as periods begin. A central
supply area, if needed, should be easily accessible. All supplies
should be clearly labeled.
Materials for "Erosion":
The teacher will need:
- steam table (shallow pan-type containers can be used instead
of stream tables)
- earth materials (for example, loam, silt or clay), and gravel
(e.g., aquarium gravel, pea gravel, 3/4 minus).
- water
- paper towels
- watering bottle
- obstructions such as stones, sticks
- plant materials (e.g. grass)
Advance Preparation:
- Introduce your students to stream tables.
- Students must understand that they need a container to collect
runoff water and paper towels to absorb spills. They must understand
how to prepare the various Earth materials and how to position
the water source.
- With the students, spend some time running water through sand,
soil, and gravel. Have them observe what happens and record their
findings using words and pictures. Have the students discuss and
compare their results in small groups and then as a whole class.
- After familiarizing your students with stream tables, a variety
of earth materials, the process of erosion, you will ask your
students to develop a procedure to answer a question using the
scientific inquiry process and skills. Sample questions for investigation
might include: Does sand erode as easily as gravel? How does the
rate of water flow affect erosion? Will slope of the table affect
erosion? How will obstructions or plants affect erosion?
- Include background information about set-up and use of stream
tables. Include diagram of set-up.
Safety:
- Be careful.
- Teachers and students should always exercise appropriate safety
precautions and utilize appropriate laboratory safety procedures
and equipment when working on science performance tasks.
Extensions/modifications:
- To target the specific NCTM standard(s) to be measured, ask
students to construct a graph to represent data
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