By the end of this activity I will be able to… MS LS2-1 Level 1 Level 2: all of level 1 and… Level 3: all of level 2 and… Level 4: all of level 3 and… Analyze and interpret data to provide evidence for the effects of resource availability on organisms and populations of organisms in an ecosystem Identify one to four types of resources that living things need to survive. Describe what happens to a population of a native species if it does not have access to the resources it needs and give an example from the game to show this. Explain how the introduction of an invasive species impacts the population of a native species and give evidence from the game to support the explanation. Make improvements to my drawing of an ecosystem based on what I learned. Explain why I made these changes. Once you have completed the activity, circle the highest level that you achieved. 1. Once you have completed the Oh Deer! activity, go to your glossary and define “native species,” “invasive species,” and “ecosystem” using examples from the game. 2. Fill in the chart below: Oh Deer! Model Interpretation Features of the model (is like...) Features in the real world They are similar because... Example: a “native Example: A native Example: When the mouse didn’t find shelter, it
Lesson 5: What Does Scientific Inquiry Look Like? Essential Questions: What do scientists do to investigate a question? How do they do it? How do they share their findings? Key vocabulary: abstract Do Now: Why should scientists share information about the investigations that they conduct? How have scientists changed the world or how we understand it by communicating about their work with others? After completing this this activity, I will be able to… NGSS Practice 8 Level 1 Level 2: all of level 1 and… Level 3: all of level 2 and… Level 4: all of level 3 and… Obtaining, evaluating, and communicating information List the sections of a science article. Use the information in an abstract to describe a scientific investigation. Use the information in an introduction to explain what I will need to find out and decide before conducting my investigation. Use the information in a science article to determine what I will need to do to complete a full investigation. Once you have completed the activity, circle the highest level that you achieved. 1. Choose an article to examine for this lesson. Title of the article: 2. Based on the title only, what do you think this article is about? 3. Skim the full article. As you do, make a list of the section headings. Sections of a science article:
Essential Question: What is already known about my research question? Key vocabulary: hypothesis Do Now: What do you already know that will help you answer your research question? Think about all that you have learned about how species interact in an ecosystem and observations that you have made in your field site. What do you still need to find out? After completing this this activity, I will be able to… NGSS Practice 8 Level 1 Level 2: all of level 1 and… Level 3: all of level 2 and… Level 4: all of level 3 and… Obtaining, evaluating, and communicating information Find accurate information about my species. Gather evidence that my species may be present at the field site. Use the information that I gathered to determine how my species connects with its ecosystem and our community. Locate other research that scientists have conducted that relates to my species or topic. Once you have completed the activity, circle the highest level that you achieved. Draw a star next to the perspectives that you are responsible for researching. Take notes on the next two pages on the information that you gather on each perspective.
Perspective What do I know now that I have done my research? Source (Book Citation or Link) What are the gaps in the information that exists? What do I want to know? Example: Perspective 1: What’s the big deal? Example: Japanese knotweed can grow three feet in a month! Smith 2007 knotweed Example: Does all Japanese knotweed grow that fast? What factors might impact how much and how fast it grows? Perspective 4: Where in Maine is there existing data? Perspective 5: What can be done about it? Hypothesis: Look over the information that you gathered and form a hypothesis: What do you predict will be the answer to your investigation question? When you have completed the table, add “hypothesis” to your glossary. Write an example of a strong and weak hypothesis.
Do Now: How many species do you think exist at our field site? How many individual organisms do you think there are? How could we find out? After completing this this activity, I will be able to… NGSS Practice 3 Level 1 Level 2: all of level 1 and… Level 3: all of level 2 and… Level 4: all of level 3 and… Planning and carrying out Investigations Make an estimate based on a small sample. Explain why scientists use sampling. Explain sampling bias by comparing estimates taken by different groups. Design improvements to the activity that would lead to more accurate estimates. Once you have completed the activity, circle the highest level that you achieved. Goal of the Sampling Activity: Generate an accurate estimate of the number of total M&Ms by sampling only 3 sections of the site, using random and non-random sampling methods. Sampling Activity Directions: Pour the M&Ms out on the paper, distributing them across the sheet. Do NOT touch the M&Ms after they have hit the paper! Work with your partner to choose three squares that you want to sample. Write down the three squares you will sample and why you chose those squares on the sampling activity data sheet. Count the number of M&Ms and M&M colors in your three squares only and write the numbers for each square on your data sheet. Still don’t touch the M&Ms! Use your sample to estimate the total number of M&Ms on your paper. Record your estimate on your data sheet. Still don’t touch the M&Ms! Non-Random Sample: Square Why you chose the square M&M Count M&M Diversity (Optional)
Go to your glossary and define “random sampling” and “sampling bias.” In addition to random sampling, what are some other ways to make sure you collect high quality data? Thinking ahead in my investigation… What did you learn from this activity that will help you in designing your own investigation? Sampling Activity Directions: Extension Pour the M&Ms out on the paper, distributing them across the sheet. Do NOT touch the M&Ms after they have hit the paper! Use a random sampling method (rolling the die) to generate an estimate of the total number of M&Ms and M&M colors on the paper based on one square only. Write down the one square you will sample on your data sheet. Count the M&Ms in your one square and write the number on your data sheet. Work with your partner to generate an estimate for the total number of M&Ms on the paper based on the one square. Record your estimate on your data sheet. Don’t touch the M&Ms! Repeat steps 2 through 5 sampling two squares instead of one. Don’t touch the M&Ms! Repeat steps 2 through 5 sample three squares instead of one. Don’t touch the M&Ms! Now, count the actual number of M&Ms and M&M colors on the paper. Record the actual total on your data sheet. Put away all materials. Sampling Activity Data: Extension Sample Size of 1 Sample Size of 2 Sample Size of 3 Square M&M count M&M diversity Square M&M count M&M diversity Square M&M count M&M diversity
Field Work Protocol Planning Tool: My research question: Summary (What are we doing?) Rationale (Why are we doing it this way?) What data will I collect? How will this data help me answer my question? How will I collect the data? What protocol or sampling method will I use? Why is it important to take these steps? Why am I choosing this plan instead of a different one? How will I record my data? What are the steps to record the data? Attach a data sheet to this document. How will I be sure that my data is clear, accurate, and recorded the same way each time? How will I make sense of the data? How will I organize it? What will I be looking for? How will my observations, charts, and graphs, and help me understand the data?
Where, when, and how often will I collect data? Describe the timeline and space you will collect your data. How do I know that I’ll have enough data? What are the controls in the experiment? How will I ensure that the data is high quality? What factors might affect my data? How have I planned to account for these factors? What materials will I need? Make a list. Be very specific with units. Why do I think this is a practical plan? Do I have enough time, space, and money to make this work? Important Notes or Diagrams:
Key vocabulary: uncertainty Do Now: Look over the Stars and Stairs, form 4. After starting your conclusion in the last lesson, what stair have you reached? What do you still need to do to get to stair three? After completing this this activity, I will be able to… NGSS Practice 7 Level 1 Level 2: all of level 1 and… Level 3: all of level 2 and… Level 4: all of level 3 and… Engaging in argument from evidence Find some parts of my argument that I am still unsure about. Identify factors that might have impacted my data or other explanations of my data that aren’t in my claims, evidence and reasoning. Explain why I still think my claim is correct and how I ruled out other possible explanations. Pose questions or steps that I could take to become more confident in my claim. Once you have completed the activity, circle the highest level that you achieved. Dive into scientific Discussion Set the pile of question cards in the middle of the table Take turns drawing a card and reading it to the group. Go around in a circle with each person sharing his or her ideas for each question. The student who read the question is responsible for taking notes on the back of the question card on the group’s responses. Write your Discussion Keep your question cards close by so you can refer back to them. Use the outline and sentence starters to help you write your discussion. Add your discussion to the conclusions that you wrote in the previous lesson. Part I: Level of Certainty After examining my data I am (confident, not very confident, uncertain) about my results. The evidence that I have that is not so clear is… I am still unsure about…
Lesson 24: Peer Review Essential Question: How can I improve my work? Do now: What are some ways that scientists can help each other? Why do scientists most often work in teams and not alone? After completing this this activity, I will be able to… NGSS Practice 8 Level 1 Level 2: all of level 1 and… Level 3: all of level 2 and… Level 4: all of level 3 and… Obtaining, evaluating and communicating information. Give my classmate’s writing a score that matches the performance expectations that he or she met. Find examples in my classmates’ writing of meeting performance expectations. Give suggestions that would help my classmates meet performance expectations. Improve my writing using feedback that I get from my peers. Once you have completed the activity, circle the highest level that you achieved. Peer Review Scientists participate in Peer Review. That means that they read over each other’s work to make sure it is strong and they give each other recommendations for improvement. In this lesson, you will be supporting other student researchers by checking their work and giving feedback, too. Peer Review Procedure 1. Exchange papers with a partner.