7. Looking at Systems
• What does this system do?
• What are the parts of this system?
• What are the inputs and outputs of this
system?
8. Science Inquiry Learning Cycle
SCIENCE INQUIRY
LEARNING CYCLE
PHASE
DESCRIPTION
WHAT DID YOU DO IN THE LESSON
DURING THIS PHASE?
Explore
Students are given a chance to familiarize
themselves with the phenomenon under
study. They observe, collect evidence, and
begin thinking and processing the new
material.
Develop Concept
Students share out their observations and
thinking, while teacher prompts them to seek
patterns, state and support claims with
evidence, and then introduces key
vocabulary.
Apply
Students deepen and solidify understanding,
practice new concept in a straightforward
way, and apply freshly constructed model to
novel situations.
Briefly introduce the steps of the Science Inquiry Learning Cycle. The steps will be explained in further detail after the students have had the chance to experience the cycle.
Make connections to Science Inquiry Learning Cycle reading
EXPLORE: Students are given a chance to familiarize themselves w/ concept under study. They observe, collect evidence, begin thinking.
CONCEPT DEVELOPMENT: students share out their observations & thinking, teacher prompts students to seek patterns, state and support claims with evidence, then introduces key vocabulary.
APPLY: students deepen and solidify understanding, practice concept in a straightforward way, apply freshly constructed model to novel situations.
In order to understand the Earth’s spheres and how they work, we actually need to talk about SYSTEMS.
But, what is a system?
Allow each small group to share how they grouped the images and why they arranged them in that way. As students share their reasoning, write their ideas on the board.
Using the students’ reasons for including cards in the “systems” groups, create a classroom definition for systems. Students’ reasons will likely not include all of the characteristics of a system, but should incorporate the ideas that systems are made up of parts, and that the parts of the system interact with each other to make a whole.
Post the class definition of systems and have students write it down on their student worksheet. Explain that the class will work on refining this definition as you work through the lesson.
DISCUSSION OF EXPLORATION PHASE OF SILC
Ask teachers to recall pre-workshop reading
What students do
Students are given a chance to familiarize themselves with the model under study
Concrete experience – thinking and discussing models with peers, as a whole class
Make connections to what they already think and know
Students have a chance to reflect on the evidence they collect (draw pictures, write down ideas, etc), and to describe their thinking to group members
Teachers guide exploration (do not give answers) – students should have the responsibility for thinking and processing the new material because this will allow them to assess the validity of their own model development.
Why they do it
Students need a real-life experience related directly to the concept before they can understand and remember it
Students have an opportunity to collect and consider evidence that is integral to the construction of a scientific model.
Give each student group a catapult and allow students to play with it to figure out how it works. Tell students to use the questions in their student worksheet to guide their exploration.
Point to the posted definition and ask students to determine whether this catapult can be considered a system. Students should point out that the catapult is made out of parts that work together to form a whole, and so it can be considered a system.
Ask students to describe how the catapult works. As they do, write on the board the names of any parts that the students mention, such as wooden frame, string, launcher, ball, etcetera.
Point out to students that, as they described the way the system works, they were mentioning how the different parts interact with each other. Explain that this interaction between parts is an essential component of systems.
Tell students to focus on the catapult and ask them why pulling the launcher back and letting it go makes the catapult work. Ask students to be specific in their answers, and guide them to the concept that pulling back the launcher changes the shape of the string, and in doing so allows it to store elastic potential energy. When the launcher is released, this potential energy is converted to kinetic energy that makes the launcher move forward and throw the ball. Energy put into the system is making the parts interact and causing the catapult to launch a ball.
Explain that a different way of describing what is happening is to say that the system (the catapult) is getting an input of energy (the string is being twisted as the launcher is pulled back) and as a result there is an output (the catapult throwing the ball). Inputs and outputs are an important way of describing how systems work.
Ask students imagine removing the string from their catapults. Would the catapult still work? Why not? Explain that removing essential parts of a system can cause it to stop working because the interactions between the parts cannot happen as they should. The catapult as a whole can do things (throw a ball) that requires all of the individual parts to work together.
Tell students to return to their small groups to refine and expand the class definition of systems. Ask them to use the information about systems that the class discussed when exploring the rubber band car as they engage in this task.
Summarize what we know about systems: Have students share their revised systems definitions and incorporate their changes into the class definition.
At this point the definition should include the following key concepts:
Systems have parts that work together as a whole
The interactions between parts is what makes a system work
What goes into a system is called an input, what comes out is called an output
The transfer of energy in a system allows for matter to move or be cycled
Taking a part of a system out can make a system stop working
DISCUSSION OF DEVELOP CONCEPT PHASE OF SILC
What students do
They further process underdeveloped ideas and previous knowledge to deepen their understanding of a concept
They share what they noticed during exploration, being prompted to defend their claims with evidence they collected
When students begin to describe in their own words a natural phenomenon that scientists have previously identified introduce vocab (to emphasize the importance of learning the language of science, not to memorize)
Why they do it
They need help from the teacher to consolidate their ideas – teachers provide cognitive scaffolding as students think through a process more fully
Students have a chance to wrestle with the model – teachers can then summarize conceptual features of the model
Important for teachers to remember
This is a time to ask students questions to help them develop their own understanding – not a time for telling/lecturing. Give students a chance to wrestle/struggle with the model
Vocabulary is abstract, so it should only be presented after students have some grasp of the concept as a result of their exploration time and concept development discussion.
Now that students have a more detailed definition of systems, they will apply their understanding to the analysis of other systems.
Tell students that there are six stations around the classroom, each of which has an example of a system. The stations are: Lava lamp, plant in a bottle, lung in a bottle, baking soda and vinegar beaker, newton’s cradle, fortune fish
Tell students that they will visit 2 stations and examine the systems they see there using the diagrams in their students worksheets. Explain how to fill out the diagram using the catapult as an example.
After they have visited all stations, have students share out their systems diagrams with the class. Guide the discussion to emphasize the key concepts of systems that are outlined in the class definition, and encourage students to refine and/or modify the definition if necessary.
Tell students that whenever they look at a system, be it a natural or a human-made one, they can ask three key questions to begin to understand it:
What does this system do?
What are the parts of this system?
What are the inputs and outputs of this system?
By answering these questions, students can begin to understand how the interactions between the components of the system contribute to the functioning of it as a whole. When applied to the Earth’s systems, asking these questions will help them understand how plate tectonics, the water cycle, weather systems and many other phenomena contribute to the functioning of the Earth as a whole.
After they have visited all stations, have students share out their systems diagrams with the class. Guide the discussion to emphasize the key concepts of systems that are outlined in the class definition, and encourage students to refine and/or modify the definition if necessary.
Tell students that whenever they look at a system, be it a natural or a human-made one, they can ask three key questions to begin to understand it:
What does this system do?
What are the parts of this system?
What are the inputs and outputs of this system?
This is what we will do throughout the year as we look at Earth’s systems.
DISCUSSION OF APPLY PHASE OF SILC
What students do
They have an opportunity to deepen and solidify their understanding
1: practice the concept in a straightforward way; 2: apply freshly constructed concept to novel situations.
Why they do it
Move concepts into long-term memory
Make connections between the new concept and other knowledge they already have.
Important for teachers to remember
No matter how well students appear to understand a new concept after the concept development phase, they won’t shift their understanding to long-term memory if they aren’t given the opportunity to practice and apply the concept in a thoughtful way.
Ask teachers to read through description of each phase and then work in small groups to identify the things they did in the lesson (as students) to engage in that phase.
Have teachers share out, write down what they say
Compare the things that they described in the third column of their table to the SEP’s
Key aspects of each practice
Refer them to website to learn more about practices
While we can find aspects of all these SEP’s in the lesson, some were more prevalent than others – this is the case in every lesson.
