FOSS for Middle School Full Option Science System Aspen, Colorado 2010 Charlotte McDonald FOSS Consultant [email protected]
Dec 25, 2015
FOSS for Middle SchoolFull Option Science System
Aspen, Colorado 2010Charlotte McDonald
FOSS [email protected]
Introductions
Goals for You
Participate in FOSS Investigations and see how they are part of the larger goals.
See how inquiry learning models are woven into the lessons/investigations
Get to know the FOSS Investigations, equipment, manual, assessments, fossweb, DVD, Lab Notebook and Resource Book.
Get answers to your questions. Feel more confident about teaching FOSS
Quick Write Write down everything you can
about how you can tell if something is living or not.
Include examples that distinguish between living and nonliving things.
What is Life?
Overhead-Projector observations: Observe the activities in the petri dish. Record what you see.
Observe & Describe?
Living and Nonliving
With a partner – discuss each card one at a time then sort the cards into “Living” and “nonliving” piles.
What is Life?
Typical Student ResponsesLife is where you do the things you want, take risks, get in trouble and do your job.
Well if it was living, then it would probably be running around. If it was dead on the ground then it would be laying down.
You can tell what things are living just by looking. Living things move and grow They move by themselves, not because someone moves them. Living things occur naturally. They aren’t man-made like a bicycle and cars. Bicycles and cars move, but it’s because someone makes them move. Living things also breathe.
Some examples of living things are people, dogs, cats, fish (they breathe water), horses, and cows. I think plants are living, but they don’t move on their own. Rocks are nonlinving, because even though they are natural, they don’t move.
Evidence of Life
Start a chart “Evidence of Life”
Evidence of LifeMoves on its own Has a brain
Needs food Breathes
Has eyes Has offspring
Communicates Has hair
Uses energy Has feelings
Fights (defends itself) Needs water
Grows Needs air
Gives off waste Has a heart
Has blood Has arms and legs
Has other organs Dies
Reacts to things
Organization Of Science Notebooks
Table of Contents Numbered Pages Documentation of Work Glossary and/or Index Appendix for inserts or
rubrics to be used for assessment
Table of Contents
Use the first 1-2 pages for the Table of Contents…
DATE ACTIVITY PAGE #
Number your pages
1
Number through 10
32
Cards As we work through this course, we
may get more evidence about the life that will allow us to move these pictures from the undecided category to the living or nonliving category.
Organism
An organism is any living thing – plant, animal or other. An organism is the most general word used to refer to an independently living thing.
Characteristics of Organisms
Glossary
Organism p 8
Index or Glossary: References Vocabulary
Example:
DefinitionsLiving - Things are living if they show the characteristics of life. Living things are organisms.
Dormant - Things are dormant when they do not show characteristics of life until they are placed in the right environment. Dormant organisms are alive, but inactive.
Dead - Things are dead if they were alive at one time but no longer are.
Nonliving - Materials that have never been alive.
Full Option Science System
FOSS Middle School Program Courses
Life Physical Science Earth and Science and Technology Space Science
Human Brain Electronics Planetary and Senses Science
Populations and Chemical Earth Ecosystems Interactions History
Diversity of Life Force and Motion Water and Weather
Teacher Guide
Comprehensive Resource Step-by-step lesson plans and
guide to:• Preparing for and conducting
investigations• Administering assessments• Integrating language arts and
math• Using the interactive CD
In-depth science background for each investigation and module
Kit and Materials
Equipment designed and selected for most effective learning
Packaged for 5 classes of 32 students Complete kits - few materials supplied
by the teacher Minimal consumables
to reduce refill cost
Plan with the “End in Mind” Mid-Summative Exams: -
At the end of each investigation Final Summative Exam: -
At the end of the course
Formative Assessments
Purpose - Students and teachers monitor student progress continually 1. Have students consider their own knowledge base and understanding
2. Give insights into student thinking and level of prior knowledge
3. Help teachers make instructional decisions
4. Provide a “base line” to measure growth
Tools and Strategies Teacher observation, formal and informal Student sheets Quick writes Response sheets Self-assessment Student journals
Before Summative Assessments
Before summative assessments, students should be given time to
•Reflect on their learning.•Brainstorm what is important•Review what they have done
Throughout the course keep a “Big Ideas” chart.
Summative Assessments Students demonstrate learning with regard to
the three assessment variables.
Three assessment variables – major areas of focus Content Knowledge Conducting Investigations Building Explanations
Tools and Strategies Mid-summative exams for each investigation Final summative exam
Plan your school year Use the teacher’s guide “Overview” to
plan your school year. See pages 18-21 in DOL guide.
What we’ve learned from brain research
Vocabulary and reading come AFTER the experience.
Student Resource Book
The Resource book is NOT the majorsource of the content information in the waya traditional textbook is.
The lab experiences and resulting discussions
recorded in a lab notebook is the primarysource of content information.
Readings come after the experience.
Student Resource Book Student reading to enhance science
content Full-color images are engaging and
instructional About 100 pages of data, images,
and readings
Student Lab Notebook
Student recording sheets
Organizers
Students record and organize inquiry in order to analyze data and make conclusions.
A pdf file of the Lab Notebook is available online at www.fossweb.com
Interactive CD
Integrated multimedia to conduct investigations not practical in the classroom
Provides additional content coverage
Ideal for class demos, as well as individual or small group work
Specifically designed for each course
The multimedia is available online at www.fossweb.com
Is Anything Alive in Here? “Characteristics of Life” display Develop operational definition for living
organisms Are these 5 materials alive?
Characteristics of Life Are there any cards that you want to
change? Living or Non-living?
Time for lunch!
CD ROM Microscope work on interactive CD
ROM or website www.fossweb.com
Using the Microscope
View water from the minipond View Brine Shrimp
Technical Drawing
Accurate Big Colorful Detailed
Lima Bean Seed Dissection
A Formative Assessment Sample: Response Sheets
Look at the Response Sheet: “Seeds of Life” in your Lab Notebook Sampler.
Do you agree with the students thinking?
Line of Learning
This strategy allows students to add to their written ideas with additional ideas generated in class.
After writing their own ideas in their notebooks, students draw a line underneath their work.
During class discussion, students add new ideas below their line of learning.
The Line of Learning gives students the opportunity to continue to construct a concept through the discussion and ideas of other students.
Where did the water go?What data do you need to collect?
- 20 ml of water was added to the vial yesterday
- The mass of your celery yesterday is written on the vial in grams
Decide how you will display your data.
Make a prediction on the mass of your celery now.
Mass the celery using an electronic balance.
Design an experiment
Investigation 9: ROACHES Observe Madagascar Hissing
Cockroaches Read pages 269 - 271 to learn about
the roaches Taking care and safety
In FOSS courses:
There is a storyline to FOSS.
The skills and concepts used in one investigation are applied in answering questions and solving problems in subsequent investigations.
It’s not the experience that makes the learning.It’s the reflection on that experience.
Kansas Standards Correlation 7.1.1.1., 7.1.1.2., 7.1.1.3., 7.1.1.4.,
7.1.3.2., 7.3.1.1., 7.3.1.2., 7.3.2.1., 7.3.3.1.*, 7.3.4.1.*, 7.3.4.3.*, 7.3.5.2.*, 7.3.5.3.*