NSTA - National Science Teachers Association

Member Login

Science StoreView Cart   View Cart

Uncovering Student Ideas in Science, Volume 4: 25 New Formative Assessment Probes


By: Page Keeley and Joyce Tugel

$23.96 - Member Price  
$29.95 - Nonmember Price

See below for special set pricing.



$30.11 - Member Price  
$37.64 - Nonmember Price

$18.82 - Member Price  
$21.71 - Nonmember Price


2010 Winner of Distinguished Achievement Award and 2010 Finalist for Golden Lamp Award
Details

Type of Product:NSTA Press Book (also see downloadable PDF version of this book)
Publication Title:Uncovering Student Ideas in Science Series
Publication Date:4/1/2009
Pages:208
Stock Number:PB193X4
ISBN:978-1-935155-01-0
Grade Level:Elementary School, Middle School, High School
Read Inside:Read a sample chapter: Catching a Cold

NSTA Recommends
Our reviewers—top-flight teachers and other outstanding science educators—have determined that this resource is among the best available supplements for science teaching.
[Read the full review]


Description

Wouldn't it be helpful to know what your students' ideas are about a science concept before launching into a new lesson or unit? Uncovering Student Ideas in Science, Volume 4, offers 25 more formative assessment probes to help reveal students' preconceptions of fundamental concepts in science, bringing the total to 100 probes for the popular series by author Page Keeley. Teachers of grades K-12 will find short probes with grade-band specifics that provide easy-to-follow suggestions for addressing students' ideas by promoting learning through conceptual-change instruction. Volume 4 adds to the probes in physical, life, and Earth and space science with a new category called "unifying principles." Also covered is a discussion on balancing formative assessment with summative assessment.


Ideas For Use

Additional Info

Science Discipline: (mouse over for full classification)
Global climate change
Water cycle
Moon
Sun
Energy sources
Energy transfer
Fuels
Gravity
Phases of the moon
Chemical reactions
Enzymes
Adaptations
Natural selection
Digestive system
Environmental change
Nonrenewable resources
Renewable resources
Disease
Nutrition
Acid base reactions
Combustion
Conservation of mass
Oxidation reduction reactions
Circuits
Electromagnetism
Energy transfer
Energy transformation
Electrical forces
Electromagnetic forces
Gravity
Magnetism
Weight
Temperature
Absorption
Reflection
Refraction
Chemical changes
Physical changes
Gases
Liquids
Solids
Atoms
Ionic bonds
Analyzing data
Collecting data
Interpreting data
Modeling
Scientific habits of mind
Using scientific equipment
Behavior
Viruses
Intended User Role:Curriculum Supervisor, Elementary-Level Educator, High-School Educator, Middle-Level Educator, Teacher
Educational Issues:Achievement, Assessment of students, Classroom management, Curriculum, Educational research, Inquiry learning, Instructional materials, Interdisciplinary, Professional development, Teacher content knowledge, Teacher preparation, Teaching strategies

Contents

Preface
Acknowledgments
About the Authors
Introduction

Physical Science and Unifying Themes Assessment Probes Concept Matrix

1 Sugar Water
2 Iron Bar
3 Burning Paper
4 Nails in a Jar
5 Salt Crystals
6 Ice Water
7 Warming Water
8 Standing on One Foot
9 Magnets in Water
10 Is It a Model?
11 Is It a System?

Life, Earth, and Space Science Assessment Probes Concept Matrix

12 Is It Food?
13 Biological Evolution
14 Chicken Eggs Adaptation
16 Is It “Fitter”?
17 Catching a Cold
18 Digestive System
19 Camping Trip
20 Global Warming
21 Where Does Oil Come From?
22 Where Would It Fall?
23 Moonlight
24 Lunar Eclipse
25 Solar Eclipse

Index


This Title Also Available as Part of a Set:
Set: Uncovering Student Ideas in Science, Volumes 1, 2, 3, and 4
Thousands of teachers are using these innovative classroom tools to improve student learning in science. This set includes all four published volumes of Uncovering Student Ideas in Science. The item/stock number for this four-volume set is PK193X4.
Member Price: $83.96 Nonmember Price: $104.95

Set: Uncovering Student Ideas in Science (set of 7 books)
Member Price: $168.45 Nonmember Price: $210.57

National Standards Correlation

This resource has 138 correlations with the National Standards.  
[VIEW CORRELATIONS]

This resource has 138 correlations with the National Standards.  
[HIDE CORRELATIONS]

  • Physical Science
    • Properties of objects and materials
      • Objects have many observable properties, including the ability to react with other substances. (K-4)
      • Objects have many observable properties, including size, weight, shape, color, and temperature. (K-4)
      • Objects are made of one or more materials, such as paper, wood, and metal. (K-4)
      • Objects can be described by the properties of the materials from which they are made. (K-4)
      • The properties of objects can be used to separate or sort a group of objects or materials.
      • Materials can exist in different states--solid, liquid, and gas. (K-4)
      • Some common materials, such as water, can be changed from one state to another by heating or cooling. (K-4)
    • Properties and changes of properties in matter
      • A mixture of substances often can be separated into the original substances using one or more of the characteristic properties. (5-8)
      • Substances react chemically in characteristic ways with other substances to form new substances (compounds) with different characteristic properties. (5-8)
      • In chemical reactions, the total mass is conserved. (5-8)
    • Structure and properties of matter
      • Atoms interact with one another by transferring or sharing electrons that are furthest from the nucleus. (9-12)
      • Outer shell electrons govern the chemical properties of the element. (9-12)
      • Bonds between atoms are created when electrons are paired up by being transferred or shared. (9-12)
      • Atoms may be bonded together into molecules or crystalline solids. (9-12)
      • A compound is formed when two or more kinds of atoms bind together chemically. (9-12)
      • The physical properties of compounds reflect the nature of the interactions among its molecules. (9-12)
      • The interactions among molecules are determined by the structure of the molecule, including the constituent atoms and the distances and angles between them. (9-12)
      • In solids the structure is nearly rigid; in liquids molecules or atoms move around each other but do not move apart; and in gases molecules or atoms move almost independently of each other and are mostly far apart. (9-12)
    • Structure of atoms
      • Matter is made of minute particles called atoms, and atoms are composed of even smaller components. (9-12)
    • Chemical Reactions
      • Chemical reactions occur all around us, for example in health care, cooking, cosmetics, and automobiles. (9-12)
      • A large number of important reactions involve the transfer of electrons (oxidation/reduction reactions). (9-12)
      • A large number of important reactions involve the transfer of hydrogen ions (acid/base reactions) between reacting ions, molecules, or atoms. (9-12)
    • Light, heat, electricity, and magnetism
      • Light travels in a straight line until it strikes an object. (K-4)
      • Light can be reflected by a mirror, refracted by a lens, or absorbed by the object. (K-4)
    • Transfer of Energy
      • Energy is a property of many substances and is associated with heat, light, electricity, mechanical motion, sound, nuclei, and the nature of a chemical. (5-8)
      • Energy is transferred in many ways. (5-8)
      • Heat moves in predictable ways, flowing from warmer objects to cooler ones, until both reach the same temperature. (5-8)
      • Light interacts with matter by transmission (including refraction), absorption, or scattering (including reflection). To see an object, light from that object—emitted by or scattered from it—must enter the eye. (5-8) (5-8)
      • To see an object, light from that object--emitted by or scattered from it--must enter the eye.
      • Heat, light, mechanical motion, or electricity might all be involved in energy transfers. (5-8)
      • The sun is a major source of energy for changes on the earth's surface. (5-8)
      • The sun loses energy by emitting light. (5-8)
      • A tiny fraction of that light reaches the earth, transferring energy from the sun to the earth.
      • The sun's energy arrives as light with a range of wavelengths, consisting of visible light, infrared, and ultraviolet radiation. (5-8)
    • Motion and Forces
      • Gravitation is a universal force that each mass exerts on any other mass. (9-12)
      • The strength of the gravitational attractive force between two masses is proportional to the masses and inversely proportional to the square of the distance between them. (9-12)
      • Opposite charges attract while like charges repel. (9-12)
      • Between any two charged particles, electric force is vastly greater than the gravitational force. (9-12)
      • Most observable forces such as those exerted by a coiled spring (elasticity) or friction may be traced to electric forces acting between atoms and molecules. (9-12)
      • Electricity and magnetism are two aspects of a single electromagnetic force. (9-12)
      • Moving electric charges produce magnetic forces, and moving magnets produce electric forces. (9-12)
    • Conservation of energy and increase in disorder
      • As energy transfers occur, the matter involved becomes steadily less ordered. (9-12)
      • All energy can be considered to be either kinetic energy, which is the energy of motion; potential energy, which depends on relative position; or energy contained by a field, such as electromagnetic waves. (9-12)
      • Heat consists of random motion and the vibrations of atoms, molecules, and ions. (9-12)
      • The higher the temperature, the greater the atomic or molecular motion. (9-12)
    • Interactions of energy and matter
      • Waves, including sound and seismic waves, waves on water, and light waves, have energy and can transfer energy when they interact with matter. (9-12)
  • Life Science
    • The characteristics of organisms
      • Organisms have basic needs. For example, animals need air, water, and food; plants require air, water, nutrients, and light. (K-4)
      • Organisms can survive only in environments in which their needs can be met. (K-4)
      • Each plant or animal has different structures that serve different functions in growth, survival, and reproduction. For example, humans have distinct body structures for walking, holding, seeing, and talking. (K-4)
    • Life cycles of organisms
      • Plants and animals have life cycles that include being born, developing into adults, reproducing, and eventually dying. The details of this life cycle are different for different organisms. (K-4)
    • Organisms and environments
      • An organism's patterns of behavior are related to the nature of that organism's environment, including the kinds and numbers of other organisms present, the availability of food and resources, and the physical characteristics of the environment.
      • When the environment changes, some plants and animals survive and reproduce, and others die or move to new locations.
    • Structure and function in living systems
      • Living systems at all levels of organization demonstrate the complementary nature of structure and function (5-8)
      • Important levels of organization for structure and function include cells, organs, tissues, organ systems, whole organisms, and ecosystems (5-8)
      • Cells carry on the many functions needed to sustain life. They grow and divide, thereby producing more cells. (5-8)
      • This requires that cells take in nutrients, which they use to provide energy for the work that cells do and to make the materials that a cell or an organism needs. (5-8)
      • The human organism has systems for digestion, respiration, reproduction, circulation, excretion, movement, control, and coordination, and for protection from disease. These systems interact with one another. (5-8)
      • Disease is a breakdown in structures or functions of an organism. Some diseases are the result of intrinsic failures of the system. Others are the result of damage by infection by other organisms. (5-8)
    • Regulation and behavior
      • All organisms must be able to obtain and use resources, grow, reproduce, and maintain stable internal conditions while living in a constantly changing external environment. (5-8)
    • Diversity and adaptations of organisms
      • Millions of species of animals, plants, and microorganisms are alive today. (5-8)
      • Although different species might look dissimilar, the unity among organisms becomes apparent from an analysis of internal structures, the similarity of their chemical processes, and the evidence of common ancestry. (5-8)
      • Biological evolution accounts for the diversity of species developed through gradual processes over many generations (5-8)
      • Species acquire many of their unique characteristics through biological adaptation, which involves the selection of naturally occurring variations in populations. (5-8)
      • Biological adaptations include changes in structures, behaviors, or physiology that enhance survival and reproductive success in a particular environment (5-8)
    • The cell
      • In the development of multicellular organisms, the progeny from a single cell form an embryo in which the cells multiply and differentiate to form the many specialized cells, tissues and organs that comprise the final organism. (9-12)
      • Every cell is surrounded by a membrane that separates it from the outside world. (9-12)
      • Most cell functions involve chemical reactions. (9-12)
      • Food molecules taken into cells react to provide the chemical constituents needed to synthesize other molecules. (9-12)
      • Both breakdown and synthesis are made possible by a large set of protein catalysts, called enzymes. (9-12)
      • The breakdown of some of the food molecules enables the cell to store energy in specific chemicals that are used to carry out the many functions of the cell. (9-12)
    • Biological evolution
      • Species evolve over time. (9-12)
      • Evolution is the consequence of the interactions of the potential for a species to increase its numbers. (9-12)
      • Evolution is the consequence of the interactions of the genetic variability of offspring due to mutation and recombination of genes. (9-12)
      • Evolution is the consequence of the interactions of a finite supply of the resources required for life. (9-12)
      • The great diversity of organisms is the result of more than 3.5 billion years of evolution that has filled every available niche with life forms. (9-12)
      • Natural selection and its evolutionary consequences provide a scientific explanation for the fossil record of ancient life forms, as well as for the striking molecular similarities observed among the diverse species of living organisms. (9-12)
      • The millions of different species of plants, animals, and microorganisms that live on earth today are related by descent from common ancestors. (9-12)
    • Matter, energy, and organization in living systems
      • Living systems require a continuous input of energy to maintain their chemical and physical organizations. With death, and the cessation of energy input, living systems rapidly disintegrate. (9-12)
      • The chemical bonds of food molecules contain energy. (9-12)
      • Energy is released when the bonds of food molecules are broken and new compounds with lower energy bonds are formed. (9-12)
      • As matter and energy flows through different levels of organization of living systems--cells, organs, organisms, communities--and between living systems and the physical environment, chemical elements are recombined in different ways. (9-12)
      • Each recombination of elements that occurs between living systems and the environment results in storage and dissipation of energy into the environment as heat. (9-12)
      • Matter and energy are conserved in each change. (9-12)
    • Behavior of organisms
      • Like other aspects of an organism's biology, behaviors have evolved through natural selection. (9-12)
      • Behaviors often have an adaptive logic when viewed in terms of evolutionary principles. (9-12)
  • Earth Science
    • Properties of earth materials
      • Earth materials are solid rocks and soils, water, and the gases of the atmosphere.
      • Earth materials provide many of the resources that humans use.
      • Fossils provide evidence about the plants and animals that lived long ago and the nature of the environment at that time.
    • Objects in the sky
      • The sun, moon, stars, clouds, birds, and airplanes all have properties, locations, and movements that can be observed and described.
      • The sun provides the light and heat necessary to maintain the temperature of the earth.
    • Changes in earth and sky
      • Objects in the sky have patterns of movement.
      • The moon moves across the sky on a daily basis much like the sun.
      • The observable shape of the moon changes from day to day in a cycle that lasts about a month.
    • Structure of the earth system
      • Water, which covers the majority of the earth's surface, circulates through the crust, oceans, and atmosphere in what is known as the "water cycle." (5-8)
      • The atmosphere is a mixture of nitrogen, oxygen, and trace gases that include water vapor. (5-8)
      • The atmosphere has different properties at different elevations. (5-8)
      • Living organisms have played many roles in the earth system, including producing some types of rocks, and contributing to the weathering of rocks. (5-8)
    • Earth in the solar system
      • Most objects in the solar system are in regular and predictable motion. (5-8)
      • The motions of most objects in the solar system explain such phenomena as the day, the year, phases of the moon, and eclipses.
      • The sun is the major source of energy for phenomena on the earth's surface, such as growth of plants, winds, ocean currents, and the water cycle. (5-8)
    • Energy in the earth system
      • Earth systems have internal and external sources of energy, both of which create heat. (9-12)
      • The sun is the major external source of energy. (9-12)
      • Global climate is determined by energy transfer from the sun at and near the earth's surface. (9-12)
      • The greenhouse effect is the warming effect on the air caused by heat rising from the surface of the Earth and being trapped by gases in the troposphere. (9-12)
      • The energy transfer from the sun at and near the earth's surface is influenced by dynamic processes such as cloud cover and the earth's rotation, and static conditions such as the position of mountain ranges and oceans. (9-12)
    • Geochemical cycles
      • The earth is a system containing essentially a fixed amount of each stable chemical atom or element. Each element can exist in several different chemical reservoirs. (9-12)
  • Science as Inquiry
    • Abilities necessary to do scientific inquiry
      • Employ simple equipment and tools to gather data and extend the senses. (K-4)
      • Use appropriate tools and techniques to gather, analyze, and interpret data.
      • Develop descriptions, explanations, predictions, and models using evidence.
      • Think critically and logically to make the relationships between evidence and explanations.
    • Understandings about scientific inquiry
      • Simple instruments, such as magnifiers, thermometers, and rulers, provide more information than scientists obtain using only their senses.
      • Mathematical tools and models guide and improve the posing of questions, gathering data, constructing explanations and communicating results. (9-12)
  • Science and Technology
    • Understanding about science and technology
      • Technological solutions have intended benefits and unintended consequences. Some consequences can be predicted, others cannot. (5-8)
  • Science in Personal and Social Perspectives
    • Personal health
      • Individuals have some responsibility for their own health. Students should engage in personal care--dental hygiene, cleanliness, and exercise--that will maintain and improve health.
      • Understandings include how communicable diseases, such as colds, are transmitted and some of the body's defense mechanisms that prevent or overcome illness.
      • Nutrition is essential to health.
      • Students should understand how the body uses food and how various foods contribute to health.
      • Food provides energy and nutrients for growth and development (5-8)
      • Nutrition requirements vary with body weight, age, sex, activity, and body functioning. (5-8)
    • Types of resources
      • Resources are things that we get from the living and nonliving environment to meet the needs and wants of a population.
      • Some resources are basic materials, such as air, water, and soil.
      • Some resources are produced from basic resources, such as food, fuel, and building materials.
      • The supply of many resources is limited.
    • Changes in environments
      • Changes in environments can be natural or influenced by humans. Some changes are good, some are bad, and some are neither good nor bad.
    • Personal and community health
      • The severity of disease symptoms is dependent on many factors, such as human resistance and the virulence of the disease-producing organism. (9-12)
      • Selection of foods and eating patterns determine nutritional balance. (9-12)
      • Nutritional balance has a direct effect on growth and development and personal well-being. (9-12)
    • Natural resources
      • Human populations use resources in the environment in order to maintain and improve their existence. (9-12)
      • The earth does not have infinite resources. (9-12)
      • Increasing human consumption places severe stress on the natural processes that renew some resources, and it depletes those resources that cannot be renewed. (9-12)
    • Environmental quality
      • Materials from human societies affect both physical and chemical cycles of the earth. (9-12)
  • History and Nature of Science
    • Nature of science
      • Scientists formulate and test their explanations of nature using observation, experiments, and theoretical and mathematical models. Those ideas are not likely to change greatly in the future. (5-8)
  • Process Standards for Professional Development
    • Research-Based
      • Connect and integrate all pertinent aspects of science and science education. (NSES)
    • Design
      • Uses learning strategies appropriate to the intended goal. (NSDC)
  • Content Standards
    • Quality Teaching
      • Deepens educators’ content knowledge, provides them with research-based instructional strategies to assist students in meeting rigorous academic standards, and prepares them to use various types of classroom assessments appropriately. (NSDC)
  • Teaching Standards
    • Teachers of science plan an inquiry-based science program for their students.
      • Select teaching and assessment strategies that support the development of student understanding and nurture a community of science learners.
    • Teachers of science engage in ongoing assessment of their teaching and of student learning.
      • Analyze assessment data to guide teaching.
      • Use multiple methods and systematically gather data about student understanding and ability.


Customer Reviews

This resource has not yet been reviewed by a customer.

If you wish to review this resource, click here.

All