Erica Klaus
Resource Review
Resource Summary
A lesson plan published in NSTA’s journal, Science and Children
in March 2014 outlines how one teacher used an inquiry-based
approach to teach the concept of decomposition in the classroom
(see below). The teacher, Patty Spring, and co-author Natalie Harr
describe the reasoning and resources used to help students consider
“a world where decomposers were absent” (2014, p. 34). The series
of lessons are incorporated into a unit on life cycle and take 3
weeks on and off according to Spring and Harr (2014). Students
start by considering guiding questions as a part of a group
discussion to asses previous knowledge and student misconceptions
about how food or other organic matter seem to disappear. Spring
collects organic materials for her students to watch over the
upcoming weeks and each student group chooses one specific item to
keep track of. Students design an investigation to show the
progression of how the items will disappear, including how they
will collect data. The students continually observe the tank and
have continued discussions on how they know decomposition is
happening. Students learn more about the decomposition process
through class discussion and individual research with teacher
provided resources. After the students worked to gain an
understanding of how decomposition works and what it does, students
take a mini field trip to a park with help from a naturalist. The
students carefully explore to find places where decomposers are
present and discuss with each other the role the decomposers play
in the park. Later, students are asked “if aliens came to our
planet and stole all the decomposers? What would this look like?
How would it be different from our world today?” (Spring &
Harr, 34).
Completeness and Accuracy of the Science Content
The series of investigations and discussions in the article
thoroughly explain how a decomposer can break down plant matter,
but scat and animal matter would also have to be discussed so
students will not have a mixed conception due to “focusing on one
feature, but not others” (Harlen, 2001, p. 61). An example student
response to the final evaluation probe in Spring & Harr’s work
also discusses the role of scavengers (2014). The response implies
that the role of decomposers lesson was implemented alongside other
lessons to teach the entire life cycle together. This lesson and
its explanation of the role of decomposers is a great resource to
teach alongside other lessons about ecological interactions to show
a continuing cycle instead of simply a line of who eats what.
Students can easily become confused about the idea of life being
recycled or the “circle of life” concept because the food chain is
often described as line of a plant being eaten by a herbivore who
is eaten by a carnivore. This lesson is great at discussing how
decomposers break down dead organisms to recycle some organic
matter containing nutrients to be mixed back into soil.
Appropriateness of Pedagogical Approach
The lesson plan uses the 5E model and is based around NGSS
standards. Students’ misconceptions are assessed and they have the
chance to explore a situation with decomposers to gain background
knowledge before completing research to learn about how decomposers
play a role in an ecosystem. Students extend their learning by
exploring a new, but similar situation involving decomposers and
discussing how they function in that situation compared to the
previous. Finally, students are evaluated using a probe that also
incorporates literacy. Though Spring and Harr do not specifically
talk about how literacy can be taught using the story writing probe
in the lesson plan, it can be adapted to become a lesson plan that
integrates narrative writing and science. The approaches used are
rooted in NGSS because Spring focused on how to incorporate the
standards as she planned the lesson (2014).
Considerations for Student Knowledge
Spring and Harr took into account student misconceptions as the
lesson was being outlined and include a list of probable
misconceptions in the beginning of the work (2014). The authors
came up with specific guiding questions to bring previous knowledge
and misconceptions forward in the form of a group discussion in a
non-threatening way in order to be sure they were addressed in the
lesson.
Alignment with Curriculum
NGSS-4-ESS2-1: Make observations and/or measurements to provide
evidence of the effects of weathering or erosion by water, ice,
wind, or vegetation.
· Disciplinary Core Idea- 4-ESS2.E: Biogeology: Living things
affect the characteristics of their environment. [This standard
specifically talks about decomposers and nutrient cycling (National
Research Council, 2012)].
· Science and Engineering Practices- Planning and Carrying Out
an Investigation (use data as evidence to describe a
phenomenon).
· Crosscutting Concepts- Cause and Effect Relationships
(students see the effect of decomposers in an ecosystem).
Works Cited
Harlen, W. (2001). Taking children’s own ideas seriously. In R.
Najar (Ed.), Primary Science: Taking The Plunge (2nd ed.).
Portsmouth, NH: Heinemann.
National Research Council. (2012). Disciplinary core ideas:
Earth and Space sciences. A Framework for K-12 Science Education:
Practices, Crosscutting Concepts, and Disciplinary Core Ideas [The
National Academies Press Open Book Digital Edition]. Retrieved
fromhttp://www.nap.edu/openbook.php?record_id=13165&page=189.
Spring, P. & Harr, N. (2014). A world without decomposers:
How scary!. Science and Children 51(7), 28-37.