Implementation Strategies
Beginning this unit with a puzzling phenomena anchors student exploration, investigation and explanation of how and why phenomena occur with the use of science ideas. For my students, this provides a familiar start to how we begin each of the units that they experience in my classroom. This provides students with a specific real-world scenario to focus their explanations paired with a BIG (overarching) question. It also allows for application and transfer of learning to new concepts learned back to the initial phenomenon. Students revise their thinking after one or a couple of activities, revisiting the initial phenomenon and apply their new learning back to the overarching question in the unit. Through this process, my students are constantly revising and molding their understanding. This process helps my students to retain what they are learning, enhance their critical thinking, and apply all their learning to an array of general situations.
Explanatory models accommodate different learning styles. They do not just stop at reading and writing, they allow students to visually represent their thinking (i.e., through drawing). Research shows that having students draw out their explanations supports learning.33 Asking students to represent their ideas through illustrations provides a window into their thinking for the teacher and supports students in making sense of the content. Drawing is not only a helpful strategy for ELL and diverse learners who struggle with writing, but for all students. As students acquire new learning and evidence over the course of a unit, they need periodic opportunities to revisit and revise their models. Explanatory models require students to use science principles and ideas to explain real world events/occurrences. Stated another way, explanatory models require students to relate the observable (effects) to their unobservable (causes).
Incorporating summary charts is a common practice in my classroom. The goal of the summary chart is to help students connect the classroom activities to the BIG question of the unit; encouraging student ownership and ensuing learning. A summary chart becomes a living, breathing document in the classroom that tracks the learning. Summary charts display a record of all activities that were done to track and explain the puzzling phenomenon. For each activity, the class makes observations about evidence or data collected and new information they have learned that can help inform their answer to the BIG question. They then interpret this evidence and connect it to an overarching explanation of the phenomenon. Having the summary chart assists students to make their final models, explaining the phenomenon. It helps students to revise and critique their thinking as they go.
Students love to debate and prove that they are right. Meaningful discourse in my classroom occurs when students build on each other’s ideas to make meaning about the content they have investigated. By engaging in meaningful discourse, students are able to improve their ability to make connections, reason logically, and listen to and enhance each others’ ideas. These 21st century skills are imperative to college and career enthusiasm as well as meaningful participation in a democratic society.
Comments: