1. Elementary Science Countdown to the TAKS By Annette Venegas Created in cooperation with Education Science Specialists, Region 20

2. Is 75% Passing or Not? Currently students must get a 31/40 on the assessment to be considered passing. The test is post equated so the total items correct could go up or go down depending on the level of difficulty of the exam. There is no way to determine this until after the exam is given and analyzed. Either way the scale score will remain the same, 2100, and there really is no way for us to calculate the scale score.

3. Why the resource? Science will be what keeps most schools from earning their honor (recognized, exemplary) Three administrations of reading. Three administrations of math. Only one administration of science. Emphasizing the right areas Asking the right questions

4. Intent of the Resource Review strategies Review activities Not initial teach material, just meant to be an overview of all of the science covered up to this point.

5. Structure of the Resource –Warm-up questions Questions to review and get students to think about various situations. Ask as many or as few as you want on a daily basis. –Information piece Condensed write up of the key information to share with students. –Recommended activities Cut and paste, graphic organizers, games, charts, tables, investigation, that do not require a grand set up to review concept or vocabulary. –Assessment questions Formatted like the TAKS questions in a cluster style and taken from stems of previous years.

6. A consideration… 25% of exam involved math 35% of exam was nature of science items 25% of exam was content from previous grade levels 35% of exam dealt with plants, animals or environments 80% of exam was above the knowledge and skills level on Bloom’s Taxonomy 50% of exam had a table, chart, graph, or graphic

7. Nature of Science Can be the easiest most enjoyable part of science to teach. Most teachers are comfortable with the content. It is also the section that will carry the greatest number of questions on the exam (13)..

8. Nature of Science Focus Areas Proper laboratory tools to collect data. Make measurements using laboratory tools. Use the scientific process to problem solve and evaluate scientific situations. Evaluate models. Evaluate promotional materials.

9. The Scientific Process Students need to be able to use the scientific process to conduct proper laboratory investigations –Determining possible problems of investigations –Determining possible hypothesis –Determining needed materials for investigations –Determining logical procedure/steps for conducting investigations –Effective ways to gather, represent, and interpret data –Evaluating data to make logical conclusions

10. Examples

12. Charts and Graphs Students must be able to determine how to represent data using tables, graphs, and charts, as well as evaluate data from investigations. Using the data table above, make a graph to represent the information. What problem do you think was being investigated? What do you think the data says?

13. Evaluating Models

15. Promotional Materials

16. Laboratory Equipment and Measurement

17. Measurement

18. Measurement Reading a Balance

19. Life Science

20. Life Science Units Interactions within the ecosystem –Why do organisms interact within the ecosystem and how does it happen? –What is the important vocabulary involved in the interactions? Adaptation –Why do organisms go through adaptation? –What are the reasons for adaptations? –Why is adaptation is so important? The complex ecosystem –How is everything connected? –How does environmental change affect organisms? –How do organisms modify their environments? –What role does the changing earth play in the lives of organisms?

21. Areas to emphasize Characteristics of ecosystems Interactions between organisms Adaptation in an ecosystem How the system works as a whole, including the interaction of living and nonliving parts

22. Interactions within the Ecosystem Beyond the characteristics spend time on what is happening within the ecosystem. Organisms are interacting to meet their basic needs and establishing competition and cooperation along the way.

23. Food Webs/Food Chains

24. Remember the Terms Producer Consumer Decomposer Carnivore Herbivore Omnivore Predator Prey

25. Niche The niche of an organism is the role it plays within the habitat that it occupies. Several organisms can occupy a habitat, but each one has a different niche. –Bacteria is a decomposer in a habitat. –Hawks can be predators and consumers –Grasshoppers are primary consumers. –Cacti are producers. Each species has their niche in the environment and in a way depend on one another for survival.

26. Classifying Organisms In addition to being able to classify organisms as herbivores, carnivores, and omnivores, on the food web, we also want students to be able to identify producers, consumers (primary and secondary) and decomposers, as well as the role they play.

27. Adaptation Another major concept in the life science area is adaptation. –Why do organisms adapt? –How do they adapt? –What are examples of adaptations among the various ecosystems?

28. Reasons for Adaptation The ability of an organism to adapt to their surrounding determines if they survive and thrive or perish.

29. Life cycles Predictable patterns of change Given life cycle examples of plants or animals can students determine the predictable pattern of change?

30. Traits and Behaviors Common inherited traits Common learned characteristics

31. Making “Connections”

32. Physical Science

33. Physical Properties Consider the following as the major guiding concepts: –Physical Properties of matter –Changes in states of matter –Solutions and mixtures –Energy –Force and Motion

34. Matter Build vocabulary and understanding with students to understand the following physical properties: –Mass/weight –Magnetism –Gravity –Volume –Density/Buoyancy –Physical state –Ability to conduct/insulate heat, sound, or electricity.

35. Physical Properties

36. What Students Need to Know and Understand Students must understand that any piece of matter has characteristics specific to it. For Example… –Rubber band Estimate the mass (weight) How does gravity affect the object? Is not very dense so it floats in water (buoyant). Can be found in the form of a solid Is not magnetic Does not conduct electricity

37. Other Physical Properties

38. Solutions and Mixtures An emphasis should be placed on how to separate a mixture, not just the properties of each.

39. Mixtures –Solids and solids –Liquids and liquids –Liquids and solids Physical properties will most likely determine how we are able to separate the mixture.

40. Energy Most of us have covered the different energy types, but do not forget the flow of energy.

41. Critical Concepts –Energy and its behavior Sound vibrates Light reflects/refracts Electricity and circuits Heat with conduction/convection Energy in a food chain Energy in the water cycle Sunlight in photosynthesis

42. Energy Forms and Flow Chemical energy Physical energy Light energy Sound energy Electrical energy Heat energy Mechanical energy Magnetic energy (force) Solar energy

43. The Flow of Energy

44. Force/Motion & Change How force causes motion (pushes, pulls) and how it can stop motion (friction, gravity). How forces work so that they can make work easier.(simple systems)

45. Application of the Laws* Students do not need to know these in fifth grade, but it helps if teachers understand these laws when teaching the concepts Newton’s Laws of Motion to predict possible outcomes –1 Objects in motion, tend to stay in motion, and objects at rest, tend to stay at rest, unless an unbalanced opposite force acts upon them –2 Force is equal to mass times acceleration –3 For every action there is an equal and opposite reaction

46. Predicting outcomes A large marble comes into contact with a small marble, what would the outcome be? A fully blown balloon is released, what is the outcome? A large rubber ball and a small one roll down a hill, which of the two will reach the bottom of the hill the fastest? A girl hangs on a rope with weights at both ends, what is the result if she lets go of the rope?

47. Predicting Outcomes When discussing these pictures, refer to the illustrations as “simple systems” and emphasize the parts working together.

48. Earth Science Students should be able to show their understanding of earth’s physical features, how they form, and how they change over time.

49. Highlights of Earth Science The areas critical to the understanding of Earth Science: –Earth’s structures & materials –Earth processes –The past vs. the present –Systems and cycles that help shape the surface of the earth. –The Solar System –The Sun/Earth/Moon

50. Earth’s Structure and Materials Review the structure of the earth. Next go into the materials found on earth and their importance. –What are the different types of soils and their properties? –Why are rocks and minerals so important to us on earth? –What is the significance of the gases found on earth? –What is the significance of water on earth and role does it play?

51. Layers of the Earth

52. Crust Mantle Core –Students should understand that the Earth has layers and they should know how a model might look.

53. Earth’s Resources Emphasis is on examples of renewable, nonrenewable, and inexhaustible resources.

54. Earth Processes that Cause Change: Some changes are fast, Some changes are slow. Erosion Weathering Deposition Glaciers Volcanoes Earthquakes Flooding Landslides/mudslides Tsunamis

55. The Process (Is it constructive or destructive) and the Outcome What are the landforms and what processes do you think caused their formation.

57. Plate Tectonics You do not have to go into great detail, but students should have a general idea of what happens when plates interact. –Earthquakes –Mountains –Volcanoes –Ridges

58. Events in the “Past” This is an important area to discuss types of resources, their origins, and how we classify them. This is also an opportunity for you to cover types of fossils, rocks, tree rings and other ways we can investigate “what happened before”.

59. Significance of Fossils

60. Significance of Tree Rings!

61. Sedimentary Rock Layers

62. Space Science Start with the Solar System Positions of the planets in relation to the Sun Relationship between the Earth and Moon, and Earth/Moon and Sun. Characteristics of the Sun Structure and composition Function of the Sun Energy, growth (plants), water cycle & creation of wind Physical characteristics of the moon. Earth materials and objects in the sky Constellations, meteors, comets, lightning Patterns of change occur in cycles Lunar cycle, day/night, and seasons

63. Planets in Relation to Sun Students need to know what the order of the planets is in relation to the Sun and what constitutes a good model.

64. Characteristics of the Sun The Sun has black spots on it called Sunspots that are actually cool spots. They are very unstable. They often erupt into Solar Flares. These are caused because of magnetic in-balances and the energy they give off is carried through the solar system by Solar Wind. This solar wind can pass through Earth’s magnetic fields disrupting many systems on Earth.

65. Energy from the Sun The Sun provides Earth with most of its energy that powers various activities on the planet. –Food Webs (flow of energy) –Growth of plants (photosynthesis) –The Water cycle (drives the cycle) –Creation of winds –Weather These are all driven by energy from the Sun.

66. Objects in the Sky Planets The Sun Comets vs. Meteors Constellations The Lunar Cycle Lightning Clouds

67. Lightning Lightning as a pattern of change can signify that there is indeed a change coming. It’s also a critical part of the nitrogen cycle.

68. Patterns and Cycles of Change Students need to understand that change can occur in cycles. –Daily –Weekly –Seasonal –Lunar –Water –Carbon/Oxygen –Nitrogen.

69. Day/Night and Seasons Tilt/Axis/Rotation/Revolution

70. Lunar Cycle

71. Questions/Comments

72. Region 20 Contacts Annette Venegas, Science annette.venegas@esc20.net@esc20.net (210) 370-5478