Science in Cobb County

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Science in Cobb County

• Myths, Misconceptions, The Truth

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1. Students in grades K-2 should be learning
curriculum outlined in the Quality Core
Curriculum (QCC) and not GPS.
False

• K-2 students should be taught using the new GPS
  for science. Course guides, unit outlines, and
  lessons on PICASSO are all GPS based, not QCC.

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2. CCSD is implementing Science GPS in grades
3-5 in the 2006-2007 school year and grades K-2
during the 2007-2008 school year.
False

• CCSD is implementing K-5 GPS Science this school
  year, 2006-2007.

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3. Students in grades 1-5 will be asked to
complete a science section on this years CRCT.
False

• Students in grades 3-5 will be completing a
  science section on the CRCT.
• There are no plans, that we know of, to add a
  science section for 1st or 2nd grades.

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4. Students will have to make a certain score on
the science portion of the CRCT, in order for
schools to make AYP for the 2006-2007 school year.
False

• AYP will not be based on science CRCT scores for
  the 2006-2007 school year.

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5. The science and social studies departments
will be doing a program evaluation this year.
True

• Advanced Learning (ALP), Science, and Social
  Studies will all be completing a program
  evaluation this year.

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6. Students, Parents, Teachers, and
Administrators in grades K-12 will be asked to
complete a survey about the Science, SS, and ALP
programs.
True

• Teachers and administrators will be asked to
  complete an on-line survey.
• Parents and students (grades 3-12) will given a
  paper and pencil survey.

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7. The new science GPS has two different types of
standards, content standards and characteristics
of science standards.
True

• The content standards tell teachers what to
  teach.
• The characteristics of science standards tell
  teachers how to teach.

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8. It is important to teach specific lessons on
science process skills.
False

• Whenever possible it is best to teach process
  skills embedded into content. For example
  Integrate a lesson on how to use a magnifying
  glass into a lesson on types of soil.

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9. Links to the elementary science BLOG can be
found on PICASSO under each science course guide
on PICASSO.
True

• www.cicobb.typepad.com/es/ is the address for the
  BLOG.
• You can click under any science course guide to
  access the BLOG.
• You can also access the BLOG from the
  instructional resources tab.

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10. A teacher demonstration of a science concept
is just as powerful as having students do a
hands-on experiment.
False

• There is no substitute for allowing students to
  actually experience science. Student hands-on is
  the best way to help students learn a new concept.

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11. Teachers in any grade can reserve the Starlab
mobile planetarium to use with their students.
False

• Currently only trained teachers in grades 4, 6,
  8, and HS Astronomy can reserve the Starlab.
• We have five working Starlabs for 103 schools.
  We are doing to best we can to ensure that we
  accommodate all schools wanting to schedule the
  Starlab.

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12. Science consumable funds can be used to buy
resource books and bulletin board kits from the
School Box.
False

• Science consumable funds can be used to purchase
  hands-on science consumable items only.
• Office supplies, vertebrate animals, and
  bulletin board kits can not be purchased.

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13. JoAnn Wood is the new Social Studies
Supervisor and Sally Creel is the Science
Supervisor.
True

• Amy Krause is the Mathematics Supervisor.
• Jan Hollis is the new Language Arts Supervisor.
• Contact any of them or any of the literacy
  coaches or math facilitators if you have
  curriculum questions.

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True
14. CCSD has purchased AIMS resource books,
electricity kits, simple machine kits, and magnet
kits for each elementary school in the district.

• These resources are in your buildings. We want
  you to be aware that you have them.
• We hope to purchase even more GPS support
  materials this year.

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False
15. CCSD has purchased butterfly garden kits to
be used in all first grade classrooms.

• This is no longer a 1st grade standard.
• Life cycles have moved to 2nd grade. (Standard
  S2L1)
• All 2nd grade classrooms will be getting
  butterfly garden kits in March.

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16. The science course guides located on PICASSO
were based on the Harcourt science textbooks.
False

• CCSD teachers worked collaboratively to create
  the course guides on PICASSO, based on the new
  Georgia Performance Standards.
• Our Harcourt textbooks are a curriculum
  resource, not our curriculum.

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17. There are plans to revise the science course
guides on PICASSO over the summer.
True

• The 2006-2007 course guides will be revised over
  the summer.
• Teachers should continue to send their comments,
  ideas, concerns, and general feedback regarding
  the course guides to Sally Creel.

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18. During the 2nd 9 weeks, students in third
grade will be learning about soil and magnets.
True
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19. Allowing your students to gently rub two
sugar cubes together is a simple way to teach
about weathering.
True

• EQ Where does sand come from?
• Let students find out by rubbing two sugar cubes
  (fake rocks) together over dark construction
  paper. They quickly see.
• Same demo can be done with real rocks.

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False
20. 3rd Grade students should spend 2-3 weeks
learning about the eating habits, habitats, and
types of dinosaurs.

• The focus should be on the fossil and how it was
  formed, rather than specific dinosaurs.
• Students should be encouraged to explore what we
  have learned about dinosaurs by studying fossils,
  focusing on fossil evidence.