Unit 2: Activity 3
Observation
Estimated time required: One forty minute class period.
LEARNING OBJECTIVES
- Students will make observations about family artifacts based upon physical attributes.
- Students will understand that scientific observations must be objective, not subjective.
- Students will determine what characteristics of an object are considered important details.
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STANDARDS FROM MCREL STANDARDS
Science Standard 11: Understands the basis of scientific knowledge
- Knows that scientific explanations must meet certain criteria to be considered valid (e.g., they must be consistent with experimental and observational evidence about nature, make accurate predictions about systems being studied, be logical, respect the rules of evidence, be open to criticism, report methods and procedures, make a commitment to making knowledge public)
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Thinking and Reasoning Standard 1: Understands and applies the basic principles of presenting an argument
- Understands that when people try to prove a point, they may at times select only the information that supports it and ignore the information that contradicts it
- Understands that to be convincing, an argument must have both true statements and valid connections among them
- Evaluates the overall effectiveness of complex arguments
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Thinking and Reasoning Standard 6: Applies decision-making techniques
- Secures factual information needed to evaluate alternatives
- Predicts the consequences of selecting each alternative
- Makes decisions based on the data obtained and the criteria identified
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Standard 22: Working With Others
- Contributes to the overall effort of a group
- Displays effective interpersonal communication skills
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TOOLS & MATERIALS
- Students will need to bring in their interesting items, or if unable to bring these items into class, they will need to bring photographs of these items.
- You may also wish to provide access to computers with word processing software.
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Procedure
- Explain to students that good researchers are required to make observations about the objects that they discover or bring back from the field. This is the basis of any future findings.
- Have students compile a list of interesting items they have found in the attic.
- For each interesting item, have students list important characteristics about it. If students are having trouble with this process, ask them why they found the item interesting. Ask them what about the item might make it easier to determine the true history behind that item. You may provide a few suggestions such as color, material, craftsmanship, any writing on it, where the object was found, etc.
- Tell students to make sure each of the characteristics they list are observable. In other words, they should not list characteristics such as, "My parents told me it was 40 years old," or, "Looks authentic." Remind students that observations are measurable characteristics, not speculation, hearsay, or opinions.
- Inform students that the next activity will be to group these observations, so it may be beneficial to make similar observations about each item, such as always noting where the object was found or of what material it is made.
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