LU Title: To Infinity and Beyond: A unit on Space

Author(s): Deb Fazio, Ellen McCann

Grade Level: 3/4

School Address: Stockbridge Valley Central Munnsville, NY

Subject Area: Science/Language Arts

School Phone/Fax: 315-495-4550

Declarative

Procedural

• The universe is vast and made up of many smaller components

• Take notes from oral and written material

• Components of the universe are effected by orbit rotation and revolution

• Research a topic

• Our solar system is made up of 9 planets each planet has specific characteristics

• Write a report with an introduction, body and conclusion

• Fiction and non-fiction have specific characteristics

• Write expository text

• The earth's orbit effects our seasons and the view of constellations

• Write a fiction story

• Communicate orally

What declarative knowledge should studentsbe in the process of acquiring & integrating? As a result of the unit, the student will know or understand…

What experiences or activities will be used to help students acquire & integrate this knowledge?

What strategies will be used to help students construct meaning, organize and/or store the knowledge?

Describe what will be done.

 Relative size, make-up of universe, big bang theory

Galaxies including the Milky Way, constellations

Characteristics of a solar system, concepts of vocabulary including orbit, rotation, revolution, gravity, atmosphere

Characteristics of the 9 planets of our solar system, asteroid belt and our sun

 Films, textbook, literature

Films, texts, movable planetarium

Reading various mythology stories concerning the constellations

Videos, Reference materials, lecture, class discussion

Chart of solar system

Video (Magic School Bus)

NASA Materials

Internet web sites

Expository text

Reference materials for research

Researching and writing a report

Oral presentations

 Construct string model

Web diagram

Develop questions to be answered, graphic organizer

KWL

Graphic organizer

Note-Taking

Human model of solar system acting out concepts

Cooperative group activity

Note-taking

Research with guide questions

Planets chart that students complete

 Through the use of a video and literature, students will be introduced to the universe and its vastness. They will be introduced to terms such as galaxies, solar systems, planets, stars, black holes, comets, asteroids, etc. The possible beginning of the universe will be discussed. Afterward, to help with the concept of its vastness, students will create a string model using students to represent galaxies spread throughout several rooms and hallways. Students will begin writing expository paragraphs in their journals summarizing what they have learned.

Students will learn about galaxies and constellations through films, texts, photos, and a portable planetarium. They will learn how the view of constellations changes with the seasons due to the earth's position in its orbit. Students will make a star chart wheel and will complete an activity of finding constellation positions at different times of the year. Students will have opportunities to identify the more common constellations through worksheets and activities taken from several sources.

Exploratory teams will complete a KWL on the solar system and the vocabulary terms. They will then be presented with information on what a solar system is, its components, and vocabulary definitions, through watching a video, note-taking, expository texts, and class discussion. As information is learned students will fill in a graphic organizer. To help understand and reinforce the vocabulary concepts the teacher will create a living model of a solar system using students who will act out the concepts of rotation, revolution and orbit. Through class discussion and visual presentations the class will discuss how orbit, rotation and revolution affect life on a planet. Students will then work in their exploratory teams to decide on the factors that make life possible on earth. After sharing ideas, a master list of acceptable factors will be created and posted.

As an EXTENDING AND REFINING ACTIVITY the students will work in cooperative groups to answer "What If?" questions about what might happen if the earth's rotation, revolution, orbit, gravity, or atmosphere were to change (within specific parameters i.e. increase, decrease, etc.) and give support to their choices. Groups will share their decisions through a class discussion.

Students will watch a video and read materials that outline the characteristics of our solar system and take notes using a guided question sheet. They will be divided into groups to research one of the nine planets or the sun. Through class discussion, students will create a set of guide questions for researching their planets. Students will be given a check-list and a rubric for the project. Using guide questions they will research their planet, dividing questions among members of the group. Members will share their findings with each other and each member will write a brief report. Each student will create a poster about their planet, dividing information between members. Students will complete their charts on the solar system using the information given during the presentations.

Students will use their completed solar system chart to complete an EXTENDING AND REFINING ACTIVITY as detailed in the learning experiences section

What procedural knowledge will students be in the process of acquiring & integrating? As a result of this unit, students will be able to:

What will be done to help students construct models, shape & internalize the knowledge?

Describe what will be done.

 Take notes on reading and class discussion

Write a report/Research paper

Write expository paragraphs

 Modeling

Think Aloud

Guided practice

Practice with variations

Assigned research

Present students with a written set of steps

Connect to prior knowledge of paragraph writing

Give models of finished products

Coaching

Teacher conferencing at designated check points during process

Examples and non examples

Flow chart on characteristics of expository writing

Practice with feedback

Writing reports

 Students will use note taking throughout the unit

Teacher will demonstrate examples of note taking on the board Do a think aloud with students providing information to demonstrate recognizing important facts

As information is given about the universe, galaxies, solar system students will take notes in their note books. The teacher will periodically check note book for errors and weaknesses and provide feedback for improvement

Students will research a planet and take notes from resources

Students will be introduces to the format of report writing. They will go over the 3 parts of a report: introduction, body, and conclusion, and what information is found in each part. Examples will be used to reinforce each section. Students will be assigned a planet to research in pairs. They will be given a written list of requirements and a set of steps for researching and writing a report. Students will review note-taking procedures and how to indicate sources.

St designated check points students will conference with the teacher on notes, rough drafts of paragraphs, rough draft of complete report and final editing

During the course of the unit students will read both fiction and non-fiction writing. They will also be given numerous examples of expository and fiction writing to compare. With the assistance of the teacher, students will create a flow chart of the characteristics of expository writing. As students learn about the universe, galaxies, etc., they will write expository paragraphs in their journals. They will receive feedback on their progress. After practice, students will write a brief report on a planet they have researched.

What knowledge will students be extending and refining? Specifically, they will be extending and refining their understanding of…

What reasoning process will they be using?

Describe what will be done.

• Comparing
• Classifying
• Inductive Reasoning
• Deductive Reasoning
• Error Analysis
• Analyzing Perspectives
• Constructing Support
• Abstracting
• Other:

Planning Guide

Unit:

Step 1

Step 2

Step 3

What knowledge will students be using meaningfully? Specifically, they will be demonstrating their understanding of and ability to...........

What reasoning process will they be using?

Describe student's products and performances and the criteria for evaluation.

[ ] Decision Making
(selecting from seemingly equal alternatives or examining the decisions of others)
[ ] Problem Solving
(seeking to achieve a goal by overcomming constraints or lmiting conditions)
[ ] Invention
(creating something to meet a need or improve on a situation)
[ ] Experimental Inquiry
(generating an explanation for a phenomenon and testing the explanation)
[ ] Investigation
(resolving confusions or contradictions related to a historical event, a hypothetical past or future event, or to the defining characteristics of something)
[ ] Systems Analysis
(analyzing the parts of a system and how they interact)
[ ] Other:

Products/Performances

Criteria for evaluation

Element #1

Element #2

Element #3

Element #4

Scale

 Written Report

Oral Report

Poster

Weights

 60

20

20

4

 Report has an interesting introduction, a body and conclusion. Information is well organized with all required information and adds extra details to help explain. Uses complete sentences with little or no mechanical errors. Used consistent sentence variety with specific, descriptive language

 Usually looked at the audience and spoke in a clear voice that everyone could hear. Spoke at a moderate pace, didn't speed up or slow down

 Poster is large and colorful. Shows a good likeness to the planet with details in the drawing. Neatly put many planet facts (7-10) on poster in an attractive way

3

 Report has an introduction, body and conclusion. Information is fairly well organized with all the required information but few or no extra details to help explain. Used complete sentences that had a few mistakes. Had some sentence variety with some clear describing words.

 Sometimes looked at the audience and spoke in a clear voice that could be heard most of the time. Sometimes spoke too quickly or slowly

 Poster is large and colorful. Shows a good likeness to the planet but few details in the drawing. Neatly included some planet facts (4-6)

2

 Report is missing an introduction or conclusion, or they are not clearly written. Information is somewhat organized with most of the required information but no extra details to help explain. Used complete sentences but had some mistakes in them. Used very little sentence variety or describing words.

 Only looked at the audience a few times and their voice was sometimes hard to hear or understand. Spoke quickly but was still understandable

 Poster is somewhat hard to see, colors are dull and do not catch your eye. Has a simple drawing of the planet with 1-3 facts

1

 Report is incomplete because it has neither an introduction or conclusion. Information has very little organization and only has some of the required information. Usually used complete sentences but had many mistakes in them. Used almost no sentence variety or describing words. Reports getting a score of 1 will be revised and presented again.

 Did not look at the audience and their voice was usually hard to hear or understand. Spoke so quickly that audience could not understand.

 Poster is small and hard to see. Has a very simple drawing of the planet with no details. Did not add any planet facts to the poster.

Element #1

Element #2

Element #3

Element #4

Scale

 Oral Report

 Organization and Grammar

 Required Information

 Cooperative Team Rating

Weights

 20

20

20

20

4

 Always uses a clear voice with expression and can be easily heard. Spoke at a moderate pace without speeding up or slowing down. Kept looking into video link to Space Command

 Information was well organized and moved smoothly from topic to topic. Spoke using proper grammar and used a variety of vivid descriptive words

 Accurately gave all required information with interesting details. Gave detailed information on new planet, properly using all vocabulary terms. Recommendation is creative and linked to new planet facts

Over-all presentation of information was done in an interesting, creative way. Team shared responsibilities equally. Map is colorful, accurate and detailed, Model is visually interesting and creative

3

 Voice is usually clear and can be heard. Usually speaks at a moderate pace. Makes eye contact most of the time

 Information was organized. Speaker used proper grammar and used specific language with few or no errors

 Accurately included all required information. Gave all required information on new planet, properly using vocabulary terms. Recommendations linked to data

 Presented all information with each member participating equally. Map and model are accurate and colorful

2

 Uses a somewhat clear voice but not always heard. Speech is often fast or slow. Makes eye contact some of the time.

 Information has some organization. Speaker sometimes used improper grammar and had little variety in descriptive language

 Most required information is given but some omissions/inaccuracies. Most data for new planet given but some errors or omissions. Recommendation not supported by data

 Presented most information but members did not participate equally. Included a simple map and model

1

 Voice is unclear or could not be heard well, rushes or speaks too slowly most of the time. Makes little or no eye contact

 Information was not organized, speaker made grammatical errors that interfered with understanding. Did not use specific language or variety.

 Missing 1/2 or more of required information or inaccuracies. Missing data on new planet or inaccurate use of vocabulary terms. Incomplete or no recommendation

 Presented some information. 1 or more members did not participate or did very little. Model or map was missing

Score Point 4

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