This unit is supported by National Science Teachers Association standards which call for students to develop knowledge and skills in science, technology, and mathematics, and their interconnections, along with scientific habits of mind. English standards call for students to use a variety of technical and informational resources and to use spoken, written and visual language to communicate effectively with a variety of audiences. Assessment Students are assessed on the quality of their original research as well as the degree to which they are able to reflect on their project with their replicating research partner. A transcript of their online discussion forms part of the grade. A check-off list at the computer will help you keep track of who has visited Internet, the City.
Students write up their experiment designs, results and concluding paper using a word processor.
It's a good idea to send the reports to the other class before the online discussion. Use HotLine for uploading your files into their folder and downloading those they have left for you. The online chat is conducted by having both classes start up HotLine, and creating small group chats for each collaborative group. The text can then be made available to others by placing it on a shared server using HotLine, or posting it as a Web page by converting the text to HTML using Myrmidon. This project is easily adapted to any topic in science and to any grade level.