Implementation Plan

1
Implementation Plan

• Every Child a Scientist Workshop
• Emory University
• Tiarra L. Moore

2
Part One Lesson Plan

• Got Hops?
• Does a persons leg length affect how far they
  can jump?

3
Overview

• During this lesson, students will investigate
  whether the length of a persons leg affects how
  far they can jump. This lesson will take place
  both indoors and outdoors and will accommodate
  all learning modalities. The students will use
  lab books, pencils, meter sticks, tape measures,
  and masking tape to perform the experiment.
  During the experiment, students will record their
  findings in a lab book and graph their results
  using Excel. This lesson will take approximately
  4 hours (4 class periods) to complete.

4
Primary Learning Outcomes

• Students should be able to devise hypotheses,
  reason, infer, observe, recognize variables,
  collect evidence, record, measure, use space/time
  relations, interpret data, classify, draw
  conclusions, and communicate. These science
  process skills are covered under Georgia QCC1.

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Assessed QCCs

• QCC1 Uses process skills of observing,
  classifying, communicating, measuring,
  predicting, inferring, identifying, and
  manipulating variables. Also uses recording,
  analyzing, and operationally defining,
  formulating models, experimenting, constructing
  hypotheses and drawing conclusions.
• QCC3.2 Identifies SI units and symbols for
  length, volume, mass, density, time, and
  temperature.
• QCC3.4 Uses appropriate tools for determining
  mass volume, temperature, density, and length.

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Materials

• 1. Chart paper
• 2. Markers
• 3. Stopwatches
• 4. Lab notebooks
• 5. Pencils
• 6. Meter sticks
• 7. Tape measures (metered scale)
• 8. Masking tape
• 9. Computers
• 10. Overhead projector
• 11. Transparencies

7
Procedure (Engagement 75 minutes)

• Place the students in groups of four and assign
  group roles
• (discussion leader, recorder, reporter, and time
  keeper) using the Group Roles worksheet as a
  guide. Give each group 1 piece of chart paper, 1
  marker, and 1 stopwatch.
• Pique students interest by showing them a
  picture of popular basketball stars, such as
  Shaquille ONeal, Kobe Bryant, and Allen Iverson.
  Ask the students to brainstorm on what qualities
  they think each player possesses to make them
  successful in their field and record their ideas
  on the chart paper provided. The students will
  be instructed to generate as many ideas as
  possible, operate in their perspective group
  roles, and complete their discussion within 1
  minute. After each group completes their
  discussion, the reporter will post their groups
  chart paper in a designated location and read
  their groups ideas.
• Point out some of the best qualities from each
  piece of chart paper and then introduce the
  experiment for the day--Got Hops? Does a
  persons leg length affect how far they can jump?
  The teacher will inform the class that before
  they can perform the experiment, they must
  understand, and be able to implement, certain
  process skills.
• (Pictures courtesy of http//www.google.com)

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• List and explain the process skills students
  will need to master as well as the skills that
  will be used during the Got Hops? experiment.
  Tell the students that before they actually
  perform the Got Hops? experiment, they must
  develop an experimental design.
• Give each student an Experimental Design
  Worksheet and walk them through the process using
  a mock topic (guided practice) Will bananas
  brown faster on the counter or in the
  refrigerator? Have this worksheet on
  transparencies and complete it using student
  input.
• After the Experimental Design Worksheet is
  completed using the mock topic, discuss the
  process with the students and answer any
  questions. After the students understand how to
  complete the worksheet, have students complete
  their individual worksheets for the Got Hops?
  experiment with their group members.
• Review the worksheet with the class and discuss
  any pertinent information.

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Procedure(Exploration 40 minutes)

• Tell students to obtain their materials (lab
  notebooks, pencils, and tape measures) and take
  them outside.
• Demonstrate how to read a tape measure, how each
  students leg should be measured using a tape
  measure (vertically from the out seam of the leg
  starting at the middle of the hip bone and ending
  at the middle of the ankle, with no bend in the
  knees), and how each jump should be made (place
  the tip of shoes directly behind the start line
  and jump forward parallel to the distance scale.
  Land with both feet together). Note Supply a
  pre-made distance scale marked in 1 meter
  increments with centimeter markings in between
  using a meter stick that has been taped to the
  sidewalk. Designate a jump start line using
  masking tape on the sidewalk.
• After each student has been briefed on how to
  make their measurements, allow them to perform
  the experiment.
• First, the students will take the measurement of
  their group members legs using a tape measure.
  They will record their results in the data table
  provided.
• The students will then, one by one, approach the
  start line, and give their name as well as their
  leg measurement. All students will be required
  to record this data. Ensure that each student
  starts at the official start line and is
  positioned correctly.
• The student will then jump forward, with their
  hands clear and wearing rubber-soled shoes, as
  far as they can parallel to the distance scale.
  The students will not be allowed to get a
  running start, but must begin in a stationary
  position at the start line. The distance the
  student jumps will be read by the jumpers group
  members and verified by the teacher. This number
  will be read aloud for all students to record.
• After all of the students have jumped and their
  jump distances have been recorded, they will
  gather their materials and return to the
  classroom.

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Procedure(Explanation 120 minutes)

• Once back into the classroom, have students
  assemble into their original groups.
• Ask the students to discuss the results of the
  experiment and tell if the data proved or
  disproved their hypotheses. This information
  will be discussed as a class. Have each group
  organize their data into a form that can be
  easily analyzed create a new table in which the
  leg lengths of the students are listed in order
  from shortest to longest and see if there is a
  correlation between the leg length and the jump
  distance. Ask each group to develop a written
  conclusion based on the results of the experiment
  and share it with the class. Student responses
  should be written on the board and discussed.
• Ask the students to brainstorm on ways the
  experiment could be performed differently to get
  the same or more accurate results. These
  comments should be shared with the entire class
  and written on the board.
• Display a grid on an overhead transparency and
  ask students how to set up the graph. The
  variables for the x and y axes should be
  determined as well as the scale for each axes.
  Plot the first 3 values on the overhead
  transparency and tell the students to plot the
  remaining values, with the help of their team
  members (line graph). After the students are
  done plotting their graphs, a student from each
  group should read aloud the coordinates of the
  graph as the they are plotted on the overhead
  projector. Check for any discrepancies between
  the students graphs against the correct graph.
• After the graph is complete, have the students
  transpose their data into an Excel document to
  produce an electronic graph. Analyze each
  students graph for accuracy and have students
  analyze the work of their group members.
• Have each group create a written report for this
  experiment and publish their work.

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Procedure (Evaluation)

• This lesson can be assessed using the following
  tools
• Rubric (for experimental design worksheet,
  written report, and student collaboration)
• Peer and teacher evaluation
• Large group discussion (sharing conclusions from
  small group discussions)
• Oral questioning
• Presentation and evaluation of student products

12
Procedure (Extension)

• This lesson can be modified by
• Increasing the number of variables in the
  experiment, such as foot size, height, weight,
  and gender.
• Having students take measurements using both
  English and Metric Units and convert between the
  two.

13
Procedure (Remediation)

• Students having difficulty will be given less
  data to graph, a graphing grid with pre-labeled
  axes, and will not be required to produce an
  electronic graph.

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Part Two Peer Education Plan

• Presentation to Long Middle School Science
  Teachers
• Using Problem-Based Learning

Increase Processing Skills
Teach the Scientific Method
Keep students engaged
Increase critical thinking skills
15
Are you boring your students when teaching the
science?
16

• Your solution is here!
• Use
• Problem-Based Learning

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What is Problem-Based Learning?

• Problem-based learning (PBL) is a simple
  framework by which a teacher can effectively move
  into a role of educational guide or coach. It
  also moves the student into an active, engaged,
  and inquiring role that requires real-life
  problem-solving processes such as brainstorming,
  collaboration, research, and presentation skills
  development. Problem-based learning promotes
  authentic assessment, presentation, and
  performance to communicate the results of inquiry.

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• Lets put PBL into action!

Problem-Based Learning
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Directions

• Get into a group with three other people
• Assign yourself a role from the Group Roles list
• Using your chart paper and markers, create a
  chart that looks like this

20
Case Study Scene 1

• Tom and Kathy Brown live in a farm in rural
  Missouri with their two sons Kyle, 3, and Rick,
  8. Tom takes care of the farm while his wife
  works as a secretary at a local law firm. One
  Saturday, while cleaning the house, Kathy notices
  that the food supplies are low. She goes into
  town to buy groceries and leaves Tom to take care
  of the kids. Tom, hot and sweaty after mowing
  the lawn, decides to take a quick shower. The
  boys, eager to play, sneak outside. Only later
  does Tom hear the children screaming from the
  back yard.  He quickly rushes outside and finds a
  horrifying scene...

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• Fill in your T-Charts with the appropriate
  information from Scene 1

22
Case Study Scene 2

• Kyle is bleeding from the chin, while Rick is
  holding his left forearm. The snake that bit the
  children is slithering off into the nearby woods.
  Tom fetches a hoe and cuts off the snake's head.
  He quickly wraps a tourniquet around Rick's arm
  and bundles the kids into the car. Knowing that
  he will need the snake, he tosses the head and
  body into a sack and races toward the hospital.
  Sadly, Kyle dies at the hospital, and Rick is
  placed in critical condition. The patient chart
  beside his bed reads, "Diagnosis Venomous snake
  bite. Symptoms low blood pressure, swelling,
  hemorrhaging and initial tissue necrosis in left
  forearm. Urine discolored.
•   
• (Picture courtesy of http//bioquest.org/lifeline
  s/summer2002/santos_bassham.htm)

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• In the meantime, the snake was sent to the local
  university. There, a herpetologist examined the
  snake and made the following notes.
•   A couple of days pass, and Rick's condition
  improves significantly. Dr. Smith takes the Tom
  and Kathy to his office and says, "Rick's
  condition is very delicate, but he is
  recovering.  The snake that bit your boys was not
  one of the most dangerous species known. However,
  I've read some research that talks about how some
  snakes seem to be evolving more harmful venoms. I
  will see if I can find more information on this
  issue. The good news is, Rick is going to be
  alright!"

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• Fill in your T-Charts with the appropriate
  information from Scene 2

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• Using the information gained from the two scenes,
  design an experiment to determine which venom
  types cause death in humans.

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Learning Outcomes

• Identify external morphology of snakes for
  classification purposes
• Explore venom types and their physiological
  effects on humans
• Elaborate on the adaptations occurring in the
  snake to help it survive in its environment
• Identify the relevance of snakes for humankind
  and human beliefs about snakes

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Student Products

• Pamphlet describing how to differentiate between
  venomous and non-venomous snakes. 
• Newspaper article describing misconceptions
  involving snakes as well as the different ways
  that snakes are viewed by distinct cultures.
• A report detailing the physiological effects of
  snake venom on the human body
• A poster demonstrating snake adaptations to the
  environment (predatory behavior, venom,
  physiology, anatomy, etc)

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Student Assessment

• Test questions based on student presentations
• Large group discussion (sharing conclusions from
  small group discussions)
• Peer evaluation
• Presentation and evaluation of student products

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References

• "Is Rattlesnake Venom Evolving?"http//www.amnh.o
  rg/naturalhistory/features/0700_feature.html
• "Is Rattlesnake Venom Evolving?" The Cold Blooded
  News The Newsletter of the Colorado
  Herpetological Society.http//coloherp.org/cb-new
  s/cbn-0009/Venom.html
• "Safety Information Rattlesnake
  Bites"http//wellness.ucdavis.edu/safety_info/poi
  son_prevention/poison_book/rattlesnake_bites.html
  
• "Snakes of North America"http//www.pitt.edu/mcs
  2/herp/SoNA.html
• "Herps of Texas-Snakes"http//www.zo.utexas.edu/r
  esearch/txherps/snakes/           
• "Georgia Museum of Natural History"http//museum.
  nhm.uga.edu/index.html

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PBL Resources

• http//www.pbli.org/
• http//www.cse.emory.edu/sciencenet/coll_curr/pbl_
  links.html
• http//www.cse.emory.edu/prism/
• http//www.bioquest.org16080/lifelines/prism/reso
  urces.php
• http//www.udel.edu/pbl/problems/
• http//meds.queensu.ca/medicine/pbl/pblhome.htm
• http//www.mcli.dist.maricopa.edu/pbl/lodestar_8_9
  7.html
• http//edweb.sdsu.edu/clrit/learningtree/Ltree.htm
  l

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PBL Investigative Cases

• http//www.udel.edu/pbl/others.html
• http//ublib.buffalo.edu/libraries/projects/cases/
  case.html
• http//ublib.buffalo.edu/libraries/projects/cases/
  ubcase.htm
• http//ublib.buffalo.edu/libraries/projects/cases/
  biblio.htm
• http//ublib.buffalo.edu/libraries/projects/cases/
  article.htm
• http//bioquest.org/lifelines/summer2002/cases_200
  2.htm
• http//bioquest.org/lifelines/emory/
• http//www.bioquest.org/
• http//serc.carleton.edu/introgeo/icbl/index.html

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Now that we know what to do

• Lets get busy!!!