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  • Is It Food for Plants?

    Lesson Plan |

    The purpose of this assessment probe is to elicit students’ ideas about the product of photosynthesis. The probe is designed to reveal (1) whether students recognize that the food a plant makes is the food it uses and (…

  • Digestive System

    Lesson Plan |

    The purpose of this assessment probe is to elicit students’ ideas about the digestive system. The probe is designed to find out whether students realize a main function of the digestive system is to break food down into…

  • Giant Sequoia Tree

    Lesson Plan |

    The purpose of this assessment probe is to elicit students’ ideas about the transformation of matter. The probe is designed to reveal whether students recognize that most of the matter that makes up the wood of a tree…

  • Camping Trip

    Lesson Plan |

    The purpose of this assessment probe is to elicit students’ ideas about the effect of solar radiation on Earth’s temperature. The probe is designed to find out whether students realize the Earth continues to cool after…

  • Do Plants Breathe?

    Journal Article |

    The idea that plants do photosynthesis but do not do cellular respiration is a common misconception among middle and high school students that often stems from an over-simplification of these processes in diagrams and…

  • Digestive System

    Lesson Plan |

    The purpose of this assessment probe is to elicit students’ ideas about the digestive system. The probe is designed to find out whether students realize a main function of the digestive system is to break food down into…

  • Data literacy 101

    Journal Article |

  • Marine Biologist Tori Cullins

    Journal Article |

  • Rotting Apple

    Lesson Plan |

    The purpose of this assessment probe is to elicit students’ ideas about decay and decomposers. The probe can be used to determine whether students recognize the need for a biological agent to break down once-living…

  • Science in Your Stacks

    Journal Article |

  • Integrated Outdoor and Classroom Science Experiences to Support Civic Engagement Among Middle and High School Students

    Journal Article |

  • Evidence of Molecular Motion

    Journal Article |

  • A Green Light for CFLs?

    Case Study |

  • Visual Literacy—the 3Rs or STEAM?

    Journal Article |

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