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  • Is the Sun a Star?

    Lesson Plan |

    The purpose of this assessment probe is to elicit students’ ideas about the Sun and stars. The probe is designed to uncover students’ ideas about the nature of stars and their recognition that the Sun is an average star…

  • NGSS Science and Language Shifts in a Diverse Fourth-Grade Classroom

    Journal Article |

    The Next Generation Science Standards (NGSS) offer rich opportunities for both science and language learning. This article presents science and language instructional shifts, grounded in the NGSS and contemporary…

  • What Do You Know About Volcanoes and Earthquakes?

    Lesson Plan |

    The purpose of this assessment probe is to elicit students’ ideas about plate tectonic features and events. The probe is designed to uncover commonly held misconceptions about volcanoes and earthquakes.

  • Apple in a Plane

    Lesson Plan |

    The purpose of this assessment probe is to elicit students’ ideas about force related to the interaction between inanimate objects. The probe is designed to determine which forces students think act on an object at rest…

  • Renewable or Nonrenewable?

    Lesson Plan |

    The purpose of this assessment probe is to elicit students’ ideas about Earth’s natural resources. The probe is designed to find out if students can distinguish between renewable and nonrenewable natural resources.

  • Shadow Size

    Lesson Plan |

    The purpose of this assessment probe is to elicit children’s ideas about how light interacts with an object to form a shadow. The probe is designed to reveal children’s ideas about the size of a shadow in relation to…

  • Habitat Change

    Lesson Plan |

    The purpose of this assessment probe is to elicit students’ ideas about adaptation. The probe is designed to reveal whether students think individuals intentionally change their physical characteristics or behaviors in…

  • Dinosaur Detectives

    Journal Article |

  • Coldest Winter Ever!

    Lesson Plan |

    The purpose of this assessment probe is to elicit students’ ideas about weather versus climate. The probe is designed to find out if students distinguish between a one-time weather-related change and a change in climate…

  • Pizza Problem

    Lesson Plan |

    The purpose of this assessment probe is to elicit students’ ideas about researching a problem. The probe is designed to determine the extent to which students are aware of the need to learn as much as possible about how…

  • Science Plus ELA: A Natural Fit

    Journal Article |

  • Spaceships

    Lesson Plan |

    This probe is designed to elicit students’ ideas about changing the direction of motion in the absence of air. Many students will have seen movies or television shows in which spaceships turn by banking or using wing…

  • Ecosystem Cycles

    Lesson Plan |

    The purpose of this assessment probe is to elicit students’ ideas about the transfer of matter and energy in ecosystems. The probe is designed to reveal whether students recognize that only matter is cycled through an…

  • Grand Canyon

    Lesson Plan |

    The purpose of this assessment probe is to elicit students’ ideas about the formation of the Grand Canyon. The probe is designed to find out if students recognize the role of rivers and flowing water and connect them to…

  • Is It Affordable?

    Lesson Plan |

    The purpose of this assessment probe is to elicit students’ ideas about trade-offs. The probe is designed to find out whether students recognize that trade-offs involve sacrificing one or more things in favor of another…

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