Planning the inquiry Reflecting on the inquiry Language A Mathematics

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Link to the Year Overview

Planning the inquiry Class/grade: Kdgn. - 2nd Grade Age group: 5 -8 School: ISOCS School code: 006841 Title: Water for Life Teacher(s): Christina, Brooke Date: December 2011 Last planner update: Proposed duration: 4 weeks Learner Profile: (Highlight) caring, principled, balanced, reflective, risk taker, open minded, thinker, inquirer, communicator, knowledgeable

1. What is our purpose? To inquire into the following transdisciplinary theme: (Highlight and delete) Sharing the planet ● An inquiry into rights and responsibilities in the struggle to share finite resources with other people and with other living things; communities and the relationships within and between them; access to equal opportunities; peace and conflict resolution. Central idea: All living things need water and we need to share it.

2. What do we want to learn? (Highlight) form, function, causation, change, connection, perspective, responsibility, reflection Related concepts: conservation, equity, processes What lines of inquiry will define the scope of the inquiry into the central idea? ● The science of water

Suggestion for next time: All humans are dependent on water so we need to find ways to use and share it responsibly. (See note at the end.)

Summative assessment task(s): What are the possible ways of assessing students’ understanding of the central idea? What evidence, including student-initiated actions, will we look for?

Juniors C: Learning Log: Poster explaining what they know about water and why it is important and our responsibilities for conserving it. Individual Interview: Form and change of water. Juniors B: Indiv interview: The importance of water/Living Vs Non living things. In class diagram: Draw the water-cycle

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Sources of water and how water is used What happens to water after we have used it Distribution and availability of usable water Responsibilities regarding water.

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What teacher questions/provocations will drive these inquiries?

What forms can water take? How does water change? Why is liquid water essential to life? Where does water come from? (water cycle) Where does it go? What do I do with water? How does my family use it? How much water do we use? Does everyone have clean water? Do I ’waste’ water? Will there be enough water to use in the future? Why is water so important? Do I really need to drink lots of water everyday? How is my water cleaned? Why do I need to drink clean water? Does everyone have clean water?

3. How might we know what we have learned? This column should be used in conjunction with “How best might we learn?”

What are the possible ways of assessing students’ prior knowledge and skills? What evidence will we look for?

Pre-assessment: Small group mind maps (w/focused teacher questions) What are the possible ways of assessing student learning in the context of the lines of inquiry? What evidence will we look for? ·

Observation regarding the ongoing use and change of attitude towards use and conservation of water. Formative: water experiments Observations of input and participation during focused learning sessions.

4. How best might we learn? What are the learning experiences suggested by the teacher and/or students to encourage the students to engage with the inquiries and address the driving questions? ● sharing new found knowledge (tips for saving water at home) through a class blog post ● Experimentation: properties of a liquid, solid, gas 1. liquid: water as a liquid takes the shape of the container it is in - try with various containers 2. clean water is odourless and clear but other things (not everything) can dissolve in it - try with salt (taste), food colouring, oil 3. a liquid cannot be squeezed int a smaller space- try squeezing water 4. Water can freeze and melt 5. Water can evaporate 6. Water can condense 7. creating crystals 8. filtering Connected Thinking Routines (link): Headlines

The following are EXPLICIT transdisciplinary links: Language connection: ● Writing to Explain (Experiment write-ups, general water write-up) ● Brainstorming clouds ● Cinquain Poetry - Snowflake Maths connection: ● Measurement: temperature and capacity German connection:

● winter, snow vocabulary EAL connection: ● PE connection: SWIMMING: -Safety in water. -How to control the water(arms/legs). -Sweating and why. -Games using equipment as water. PE: -Water/flow movement -Water/shark themed games -Use of water language (eg. freeze). -Pirate Ship -Octopus tag ● Music connection: ● Water Cycle song Visual arts connection: ● 2 Murals (What happens when we take care of our water/What happens when we don’t take care of our water.) ● Salt water fish ● Coffee filter ink spots ● Coffee filter rising ink ● Saving water posters ● Water art ● Water cycle mural ● Painting with water colours and salt (winter scene) ● Cutting out snowflakes ● Painted newspaper water pictures What opportunities will occur for transdisciplinary skills development and for the development of the attributes of the learner profile?

(Highlight) Attitudes: appreciation, commitment, confidence, cooperation, creativity, curiosity, empathy, enthusiasm, independence, integrity, respect, tolerance Skills: Thinking Acquisition of knowledge; comprehension; application; analysis, synthesis, evaluation, dialectical thought, metacognition. ● Social skills Accepting responsibility; respecting others; cooperating, resolving conflict; group decision-making; adopting a variety of group roles. ● Research skills Formulating questions; observing; planning; collecting data; recording data; organizing data; interpreting data; presenting research findings.

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ICT in the PYP In the PYP, there will be opportunities to use ICT in the relevant, authentic context of the units of inquiry, as well as through teaching and learning experiences in other areas of the curriculum. Teachers have a responsibility to help students to make explicit connections between different aspects of their learning. Students need opportunities to identify and reflect on significant ideas within the different skills of ICT, the transdisciplinary themes, and other subject areas. The role of ICT to support inquiry is important as students engage in building understandings that contribute to their success as lifelong learners in a digital age.

skills to be focused on in this unit)

investigating, creating, communicating, collaborating, organizing and becoming responsible digital citizens. ·

5. What resources need to be gathered? What people, places, audio-visual materials, related literature, music, art, computer software, etc, will be available? People:

(Highlight

Places: Teuflibach stream & pond, lake of Zug; Audio-visual: Youtube, water around the world clips. Related literature: A Drop of Water- scholastic; Tabletop Scientist Water; Visual Science Encyclopedia Water; Turn on a Tap; Thirsty World; Flowers for the Snowman; Where Do Puddles Go?, Weather Rain, A Drop in the Ocean - j. Bailey and M Lilly; All About Water - M. Berger; A cool drink of WATER - B. Kerley; Snow, Facts at your Fingertips Weather; Our Earth Saving Water - P. Hock; Down the Drain conserving water; The Science of WATER (experiments); USBORNE 100 SCIENCE EXPERIMENTS, Did a Dinosaur Drink This Water by Wells; The Drop Goes Plop by Godwin; The Cloud Book by de Paulo. Music: The Water Cycle Song Art: THE USBOURNE BIG BOOK of SCIENCE THINGS TO MAKE AND DO USBORNE 100 SCIENCE EXPERIMENTS Computer Software: Websites: Drippy; Brainpop Unit Wiki at: Other Technology: Other resources: water; science and art materials as listed in the books above. How will the classroom environment, local environment, and/or the community be used to facilitate the inquiry? Learners: Parents: Community: Teuflibach stream & pond; Lake of Zug Others: Mini water cycle system

Further learning experiences in detail: LANGUAGE A (ENGLISH) LINK TO WRITING CONTINUUM FOCUS: Writing to Explain Assessment Tasks

Page No.

Notes

PREASSESSMENT:

JB: Class-led experiment write-up FORMATIVE ASSESSMENT:

Ongoing reports about water and experiments.

SUMMATIVE ASSESSMENT:

Poster explaining why water is important and our responsibilities for conserving it. JC: writng to explain about water JB: Independant experiment write-up

Major Teaching Emphases from First Steps Environment and Attitude Use of Texts

Learning Experience (and page number from WMD or WRB if relevant)

Teacher Questions

Resources

Comments/ Notes

First Steps writing resource book - writing to explain

P. 78 Concept maps P.79 Sequencing Labels Titles/Introductory sentences

Contextual Understandings

P.140 Questions about form and organisation -How will I organise my ideas? -How will I set the text out? Questions about purpose and audience -How can I write this so other people understand Questions about content -What information needs to be included or left out? -How do I link my information? -What points do I want to make?

Conventions

p.186 Punctuation (colons,)

p.185 Capitals (sentences, titles) p.178 Topic vocabulary p.189 Tense (past/instructional) Processes and Strategies

p.200 Creating images

MATHEMATICS LINK TO MATHS CONTINUUM FOCUS: MEASUREMENT Assessment Tasks

Page No.

Notes

PREASSESSMENT:

Individual interview focusing upon temperature and capacity

FORMATIVE ASSESSMENT:

Ongoing learning activities

SUMMATIVE ASSESSMENT:

Individual interview focusing upon temperature and capacity

Key Understandings from First Steps (if relevant)

Learning Experience / Name of activity Page number

Focus Questions

Resources

Comments

temperature

Capacity

Why is it important to have a set standard for measuring temperature? hand experiment using cold and warm water

Does hot or cold always feel the same? Have you ever been cold and someone else not? Why do you think that it is important to have a measurement that everyone understands? Could you just say bake the cake hot - it might turn out black....

Usborne book of experiments2 containers with water, ice

Daily temperature check and graphing.

What does it look like outside? How does it feel when you’re outside. What materials do you need outside when it is this temperature?

Class graph Thermometer Student-made thermometers

How Many? Verbal estimation of how many cups of water to fill a bucket.

How many? Less or more? Why does it need more/less?

Water tray Different sized cups and buckets

How Many? Verbal estimation of how many unifix cubes to fill a water glass, small coffee cup, sand bucket.

How many? Less or more? Why does it need more/less?

Unifix cubes Water glass Small coffee cup Sand bucket. Estimation work sheet

Written estimation of how many deciliters are needed to fill various containers

How many deciliters do you think it would take to fill this container?

a wide variety of clear containers, measuring cups

Students actually asked ‘when can we do the temperature’.

Comparing and converting units of measurement

what do you see written on the measuring cup? Do how many …..... do you think are in one …......? If you had ….......units could you say that using another unit? What would it be?

measuring cups chart paper

measuring for a real reason fancy drinks

When do we need to measure a liquid in real life? Why do we need to measure the ingredients? What might happen if we just poured it in?

measuring cups glasses pitchers drink ingredients recipes cutting boards and knives

Reflecting on the inquiry 6. To what extent did we achieve our purpose? Assess the outcome of the inquiry by providing evidence of students’ understanding of the central idea. The reflections of all teachers involved in the planning and teaching of the inquiry should be included.

7. To what extent did we include the elements of the PYP? In each case, explain your selection. What were the learning experiences that enabled students to: ●

We were both very impressed with the learning that took place during the unit and the end. The hands on nature of this unit kept the children involved and eager to learn. The water cycle song helped them to remember the new vocabulary. The children were using the new vocabulary almost daily and making a lot of connections.

We had a mini-water cycle which allowed us a hands on experience of the cycle. Various experiments that illustrated the various forms of water and stages of the water cycle. Class discussions about the results of said experiments. ●

How you could improve on the assessment task(s) so that you would have a more accurate picture of each student’s understanding of the central idea. Having the poster and the interview worked well in gauging what the children have learned. JB: I would have made my interview questions less abstract.

What was the evidence that connections were made between the central idea and the transdisciplinary theme Although we kept the transdisciplinary theme in mind during the unit a lot of our time was given to the science aspect of the unit. This is what the children expressed the most interest in. One child commented that we shouldn’t waste water because we only need a little bit and everyone else needs it to live. The children were more aware of the conservation of water and were less

likely to waste it within the classroom. Turned the tap off quicker.

develop an understanding of the concepts identified in “What do we want to learn?”

demonstrate the learning and application of particular transdisciplinary skills?

Class brainstorming on the different living organisms that need water to illustrate who/what we must share with. Class brainstorm: What would happen if there was no water? ●

develop particular attributes of the learner profile and/or attitudes?

Inquirer: Finding ice outside and bring it show classmates, freezing water, looking at the dew, making water evaporate and condense, filtering water, trying to compress water, adding colour and flavour to water, Carrying out these experiments and actively participating in the following reflections and discussions. Caring: Discussions about caring for water (conservation of). Working together in partners and teams to collect snow in the playground.

Taking turns and sharing responsibilities during experiments. Working together to measure water and make fancy drinks. Knowledgeable: Developing a vocabulary around the theme ‘water’. Learning about the properties of water (experiments) Writing down our questions and trying to think of possible answers. Designing and explaining groups and individual posters about the water cycle. “Research Corner”: Using the class books to research answers to questions and then sharing these with their classmates. Reading the temperature daily and keeping a record of the results. Making a thermometer.

8. What student-initiated Inquiries arose from the learning? Record a range of student-initiated inquiries and student questions and highlight any that were incorporated into the teaching and learning. JB: Inquiries that arose during class experiments and discussions: Why do we have to put ice at the top of our mini-water cycle system? Why do we have to put water in the middle (of our mini-water cycle system)? Why is it melting? Why is there foam in the Teuflibach water? JC: Certain children posed very specific questions related to the unit: ● How does it snow? ● Why are there no clouds today? ● How does it hail? ● Why is the grass white? (dew) We explored the answers to these questions together. At this point teachers should go back to box 2 “What do we want to learn?” and highlight the teacher questions/provocations that were most effective in driving the inquiries. What student-initiated actions arose from the learning? Record student-initiated actions taken by individuals or groups showing their ability to reflect, to choose and to act. -The children were more likely to not let the tap run and reminded others of wasting water. -Children spontaneously broke out singing the “Water Cycle Song”.

9. Teacher notes Note from PYP coordinator: The CI has been difficult for me to pinpoint the precise langauge, but using the concepts of dependency, water, sharing, use & responsibility I would tighten the CI to: All humans are dependent on water so we need to find ways to use and share it responsibly.