SCE 640,
Thematic Standards-based Science II
Instructor: Rebecca Burton, Ph.D.
Office: CO 221, 382-6153
Email: rebecca.burton@alverno.edu
Text: Planning Curriculum in Science, Shelly Lee, Wisconsin Dept. of Public Instruction and additional readings
Introduction
Change, rates of change, constancy, and the relationships between variables are vital concepts in science. While the laws that control the physical world (conservation of matter, entropy, etc.) are constant, the world itself is constantly changing. In our own bodies, millions of chemical changes are occurring every second. Over the course of our development from a zygote to an adult, our bodies organize and change. Over the course of millions of years, species and the shape of the Earth itself change. Understanding relationships is also critical to understanding the world. The tilt of the Earth (which changes) creates our climates, which determine what can live in a region of the Earth. Every organism is connected to the living and non-living world through many powerful relationships.
This course will help develop your ability to teach these critical concepts effectively to middle school students, using curriculum that is based on national and state standards for science teaching.
Course Goals
After successfully completing this course, you will be able to:- Analyze the reactions of matter and energy in living and non-living systems. (Conceptualization and Coordination)
- Interpret change, rates of change, constancy, and the relationships that develop and are overcome during these processes. (Conceptualization and Integrative Interaction)
- Develop scientific explanations that include evidence of logic, high levels of analysis, tolerance of uncertainty, and a clear demonstration of the relationship among logic, evidence, and current scientific knowledge. (Communication and Coordination)
- Create an integrated instruction that demonstrates the theme of matter, energy, change, or constancy for grade 5, 6, 7, 8, or 9. (Communication and Coordination)
- Implement and evaluate the designed instruction’s effectiveness. (Diagnosis and Integrative Interaction)
- Analyze published instructional materials for effective application of the themes of energy, matter, change, and constancy. (Diagnosis)
Resources
National and state standards and resouces
Learning Styles and Strategies
Another version of
Learning Styles and Strategies
| Research Tools |
| Sample Lab Report |
| Writing in Biology |
| Creating Posters |
| Statistics on Excel |
|---|
Last update:6/19/02 by Rebecca Burton, Dept. of Biology, Alverno College