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Reviewed by: Susan Allison (Benton, AR) on 11/10/2020 9:36:21 PM
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This data analysis activity includes all supporting materials including color photos of leaf sets that can be analyzed by students. The leaf sets show the results (including controls) of what happens to ivy leaves under a variety of conditions, such as the absence of sunlight and in a plastic bag to limit CO2 intake, as well as the results from starch tests done on the leaves exposed to each condition. This lesson plan is a good foundation to a lesson sequence surrounding the requirements of photosynthesis. From the observations that students make of the data and the resulting analysis, students will be able to develop conceptual understanding of how light and air are required for photosynthesis and develop some potential ideas to test regarding the other needs of plants to complete photosynthesis.
MS-LS1-6 Construct a scientific explanation based on evidence for the role of photosynthesis in the cycling of matter and flow of energy into and out of organisms. Clarification Statement: Emphasis is on tracing movement of matter and flow of energy. Assessment Boundary: Assessment does not include the biochemical mechanisms of photosynthesis.
This resource is explicitly designed to build towards this performance expectation.
Comments about Including the Performance Expectation Students can analyze the appearance of the leaf sets to develop their understanding that light energy and air (CO2) are needed for the process of photosynthesis to occur. The photos of leaf sets show the results of whether the leaf contained starch or not. Since starch is a polymer of sugar molecules, students will need this information available to them. The teacher must allow students time to develop their own analysis of the pictures. Students will need to have the background information (provided in the materials) on the starch test in order to understand what the spots indicate. Students should have some background understanding that starches are chains of sugar (glucose) molecules and that the glucose molecules are matter that has energy stored in its chemical bonds. The teacher should build a lesson sequence around this activity since the students will need to understand the matter inputs/outputs of the photosynthesis reaction.
This resource is explicitly designed to build towards this science and engineering practice.
Comments about Including the Science and Engineering Practice This is a great opportunity to analyze another scientist’s data to develop potential explanations. Students should be given the opportunity to review several sets of photos to verify that the results are consistent. The teacher should allow small groups to make observations of the sets and record their ideas. Students can discuss their interpretation of the data in small groups and then report out to the class. The teacher can facilitate the discussion to be sure that all data is discussed, but students should be the ones framing the ideas.
This resource appears to be designed to build towards this disciplinary core idea, though the resource developer has not explicitly stated so.
Comments about Including the Disciplinary Core Idea The teacher will have to allow students time to analyze the results of the testing and develop some ideas about why starch is not as prevalent in the leaves that were covered with foil and the leaves that were in a bag. The teacher should use probing questions to elicit student ideas during class discussion in order to allow sharing of collective ideas. Through development of the ideas from this activity, students can build their understanding through a lesson sequence that addresses the phenomena of photosynthesis. This disciplinary core idea is implicit within this activity as it is written, but can be made explicit through careful class discussion and further lessons that illustrate the process.
This resource is explicitly designed to build towards this crosscutting concept.
Comments about Including the Crosscutting Concept As student groups add their own interpretation of the results, each group can discuss why this is happening and develop a model of the phenomena of photosynthesis. In the model, energy can be represented by one type of arrow and matter can be represented by a different arrow. This will allow students to demonstrate their understanding of how the cycling of matter is driven by the flow of energy through plants during the process of photosynthesis. The first draft of the model may not be complete/accurate but can be revised as students discuss their ideas with the class and review the ideas of other groups. The teacher should explicitly look for how the relationship between the cycling of matter and the flow of energy is understood by students and ask probing questions if it is not explicitly shown in the model. (note that modeling is not the NGSS practice that is included as the lesson is written, but modeling will make the crosscutting concept of Energy and Matter more explicit.) The observation of leaves that were covered from sunlight having no/less starch should be a clincher to illustrate how the flow of energy is absolutely necessary for the process to occur.