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  • Emmy’s Moon and Stars

    Lesson Plan |

    The purpose of this assessment probe is to elicit students’ ideas about the relative position of common objects seen in the night sky. The probe is designed to find out if students recognize how far away the stars are…

  • Lunar Eclipse

    Lesson Plan |

    The purpose of this assessment probe is to elicit students’ ideas about eclipses. The probe is designed to find out what students think causes a lunar eclipse.

  • Working Together to Save Lives

    Lesson Plan |

    The purpose of this assessment probe is to elicit students’ ideas about the role of different professions in contributing to the solution of a problem that benefits society, such as the development of a lifesaving…

  • Where Would It Fall?

    Lesson Plan |

    The purpose of this assessment probe is to elicit students’ ideas about the distribution of land, oceans, freshwater, and ice. The probe is designed to find out whether students realize that most of the Earth is covered…

  • Ice-Cold Lemonade

    Lesson Plan |

    The purpose of this assessment probe is to elicit students’ ideas about transfer of energy. The probe is designed to determine whether students recognize that heat flows from warmer objects or areas to cooler ones.

  • Mountain Age

    Lesson Plan |

    The purpose of this assessment probe is to elicit students’ ideas about processes that affect the shape of mountains. The probe is designed to reveal whether students understand the role of weathering in shaping…

  • Functions of Living Things

    Lesson Plan |

    The purpose of this assessment probe is to elicit students’ ideas about life processes. The probe is designed to find out if students recognize that plants and animals share several life functions, even though they are…

  • Salt Crystals

    Lesson Plan |

    The purpose of this assessment probe is to elicit students’ ideas about crystalline solids. The probe is specifically designed to determine how students think atoms are arranged and move in a crystalline lattice.

  • Adaptation

    Lesson Plan |

    The purpose of this assessment probe is to elicit students’ ideas about biological adaptation. The probe is designed to find out if students think animals intentionally adapt to a change in their environment.

  • 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 (…

  • Solar Eclipse

    Lesson Plan |

    The purpose of this assessment probe is to elicit students’ ideas about eclipses. The probe is designed to find out what students think happens during a solar eclipse.

  • Floating Logs

    Lesson Plan |

    The purpose of this assessment probe is to elicit students’ ideas about floating and sinking. The probe is designed to find out if students think changing the size of an object affects how it floats.

  • Is It a Rock? (Version 2)

    Lesson Plan |

    The purpose of this assessment probe is to elicit students’ ideas about an Earth material, rocks. The probe is designed to determine whether students can distinguish between humanmade, “rocklike” materials and…

  • Hot and Cold Balloons

    Lesson Plan |

    The purpose of this assessment probe is to elicit students’ ideas about conservation of matter. The probe is designed to reveal whether students recognize that the mass of a warm gas in a closed system is the same after…

  • Biological Evolution

    Lesson Plan |

    The purpose of this assessment probe is to elicit students’ ideas about biological evolution. The probe is designed to find out if students distinguish the theory of biological evolution from ideas about the origin of…

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