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Experimental Design
$4.95 - Member Price  
$5.95 - Nonmember Price

Details

Type of Product:SciGuide
Average Rating:
 based on 7 reviews
Publication Date:8/1/2008
Grade Level:Elementary School, Middle School, High School


Description

SciGuides are a collection of thematically aligned lesson plans, simulations, and web-based resources for teachers to use with their students centered on standards-aligned science concepts.

This SciGuide addresses how students can improve the design of investigations and understand how scientists do science. The format of this SciGuide is designed to help all precollege teachers (K-4, 5-8, and 9-12) design inquiry investigations.


Ideas For Use

A Science Guide is a valuable classroom resource for science teachers interested in integrating the web into their teaching. Each guide consists of approximately 100 web-accessible resources (URLs) that have been aligned to the National Science Education Standards (NSES) and vetted across eight educational rubrics, such as Inquiry, Interactivity, Communication/ Collaboration, How Scientists Learn, etc. These URL resources have been assembled in a thematic drill-down structure with linked lesson plans, vignettes, samples of student work and MP3 files that demonstrate how the Guide’s URLs can be utilized in a classroom. Ultimately, a Science Guide is a resource that saves educators time by providing exemplary web resources that have been pre-evaluated and aligned to the National Science Education Standards.

Additional Info

Science Discipline: (mouse over for full classification)
Analyzing data
Asking questions
Classifying
Collecting data
Communicating
Hypothesizing
Interpreting data
Measuring
Modeling
Observing
Predicting
Scientific habits of mind
Using mathematics
Using scientific equipment
Using technology
Intended User Role:Elementary-Level Educator, Learner, Middle-Level Educator, New Teacher, Professional Development Provider, Teacher
Educational Issues:Achievement, Assessment of students, Careers, Curriculum, Inquiry learning, Instructional materials, Integrating technology, Professional development, Teacher content knowledge, Teacher preparation, Teaching strategies

Technical

Resource Format:application/msword, application/pdf, application/x-shockwave-flash, audio/mp3, image/gif, image/jpeg, text/html, video/quicktime


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National Standards Correlation

This resource has 2 correlations with the National Standards.  
[VIEW CORRELATIONS]

This resource has 2 correlations with the National Standards.  
[HIDE CORRELATIONS]

  • Process Standards for Professional Development
    • Research-Based
      • Address teachers' needs as learners and build on their current knowledge of science content, teaching, and learning. (NSES)
    • Learning
      • Incorporate ongoing reflection on the process and outcomes of understanding science through inquiry. (NSES)


Customer Reviews
A deeper look into inquiry
  Reviewed by: Sherilynn C on October 20, 2012
  This SciGuide has given me such a deeper understanding of inquiry-based learning. We easily use the word inquiry without thinking much into the different levels of inquiry and how we actually want our students to become scientists. I am very much a culprit of setting detailed parameters of a task to be completed or setting up a challenge and having students explore that way. However, this SciGuide has opened my eyes to a variety of ways to instruct on inquiry. No longer are “hands-on” activities enough, but the SciGuide suggests that students must be “minds-on” as well. I couldn’t agree more! If my students are engaged in an activity, I want to seriously consider what they are learning: do I want them to learn a process or concept? Upon reflecting and thinking of my own values, I want to build true scientists. I want them to be able to think on their own, create a hypothesis, test it, and analyze the results. This SciGuide helped me to identify the various levels of inquiry within a lesson, determine the design process for students to follow, and helped me to see how to assess the students throughout their journey of inquiry.

Experimental Investigations
  Reviewed by: Yolanda Smith-Evans (Houston, TX) on October 17, 2012
  Good resource for planning experimental investigations. Easy to follow and practical for the novice teacher.

Exploring "Experimental Design"
  Reviewed by: Paula Roknick-Evans on July 14, 2012
  I enjoyed going through this SciGuide specifically because it was broken down into various grade-levels (K-4, 5-8, 9-12) and discussed the importance of looking at what students should be able to do across the continuum of grades. It also stressed the importance of designing investigations that are authentic, active processes that are both hands-on and minds-on. The lessons were mapped out according to grade level, as stated, and this was further divided into sections called "Designing an Experiment", "Scientific Investigations", and the "Scientific Method". These had links for both teachers and students (SciLinks) that had a great number of resources to use in the classroom. I especially liked learningscience.org and the link "Tools to do Science", as well as some of the science games for students. I will definitely use the information for my grade four students in laying the foundations of inquiry based learning. I thought the lessons were grade-appropriate and a good place to start the four phases of asking, predicting, trying, and observing. Overall, the site was full of useful links and ideas for the beginning of the year and getting kids involved in the scientific process.

Experimental Design
  Reviewed by: Yolanda Smith-Evans (Houston, TX) on April 12, 2012
  Although I have not had an opportunity to use all the material listed in this resource what I have reviewed is great. Lots of ideas all together to pick and choose from for designing my curriculum unit. There is obviously more than I can use at one time.

My Review on Experimental Design
  Reviewed by: Ronaldo Relador (Bowie, MD) on January 17, 2012
  How I wish I had found this sci-guide long time ago. Its got complete array of linkages for preparing students for investigatory lessons in science. It's got solid resources on teaching the rudiments of inquiry based learning as well as the foundation for project based learning. This can also make a good resource for those preparing for science fairs.

Okay Resource
  Reviewed by: Jessica on January 2, 2012
  This is an okay resource. After browsing through, I thought that their would be more credible sites. I did not expect to have found wikipedia sites, I expected more, but still found the information useful.

Jump start inquiry in your classroom
  Reviewed by: Jennifer Rahn (Delafield, WI) on May 18, 2011
  We all want to implement inquiry experimentation in our science classrooms, but learning how to do it successfully without our own experimentation and probable failures discourages us from making the needed changes in curriculum. I liked the links that explain inquiry to our students - after all, they need to understand it as well, and they have had the "scientific method" drilled into them for years. It may not be all inclusive, but there is a wealth of information in this SciGuide.

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