6th Grade Weather and Climate CTS by Brett Walker Standards- and Research-Based Study of a Curricular Topic Section

n and Outcome I. Identify Adult Content Knowledge Selected Sources and Readings for Study and Reflection Current Research on Topic General Questions 1. What big ideas and major concepts make up this topic? Science for all Americans focuses on The Earth as its big idea with a very general overview of earths composition, surroundings, and cyclic patterns. Science Matters zones in on a more specific major concept-The Atmospheric Cycle, and explains subtopics like convection and the weather, weather report jargon, the greenhouse effect, and global climate change. 2. What new content did you learn or improve your understanding of? As important as tides are to me as an avid surfer, I almost forgot that they are caused by not only the moon but also by the Suns gravitational pull. This is why there are usually two high tides every day; the bulges on both sides of our planet are results of the gravitational tugs of the sun and moon. 3. OMIT 4. What other new insights about the topic did you gain from this reading? A completely new concept I learned is that the same phenomena the ocean experiences with tides being caused by the Sun and the Moon also happens with the layer of air blanketing earth- it experiences the high-tide effect too. IA. Science for All Americans Chapter 4, The Earth, pages 42-44 1. What enduring understandings should all adults, including teachers, know about this topic? All adults should know that the moon and sun have a gravitational pull on the earth that cause tides to raise about twice each day. A similar phenomenon occurs with the atmosphere as well due to the sun and moons gravitational pull. As far as we know, Earth is the only life supporting planet in our solar system. The Earth is able to retain its atmosphere due to its large mass that is capable of its own gravitational pull, and adulterating the delicate percentages of

specific gases within that atmosphere can be detrimental to our global ecosystem. Earth is located at a perfect distance from the Sun so that water is able to exist in all three states of matter (not so for any other planet in our solar system.) All adults should definitely know that the Sun is the main energy source and is responsible for heating earths surface. They should also know that the tilt of earths axis and its revolution around the sun results in differential heating on earths surface (and its atmosphere). These differences in temperature, combined with rotation, are the reasons for the seasons! Lastly, it is the energy transfers of this renewable heat that result in different layering of temperatures in our atmosphere. 2. What rich interconnections within the topic emerge from the reading? The reading connects earths massive atmosphere to everyday human life. It talks about the oceans and atmosphere as being huge natural systems that are capable of absorbing and recycling profuse amounts of materials. Then, it interconnects this natural recycling to humans by reminding us that the atmosphere is only able to withstand a certain margin of change without having measurable effects on global ecology. If there is a disturbance large enough, it could produce very unfavorable effects on humans. 3. How does the reading help you see what a K-12 education is aiming toward? I am pleased to see that this book encourages K-12 education to maintain a large perspective. Rather than scoping out to only discussing why there are seasons or how seasons affect climate, the book discusses reasons why they exist in the first place in relation to our planet within our solar system (mainly providing an explanation linking climate to solar radiation.) IB. Science Matters Chapter 14, The Atmospheric Cycle, pages 202-205 Chapter 18, The Greenhouse Effect, pages 270-274 1. How does the reading clarify the content of the topic? What additional content knowledge did you gain from this reading? This reading pointed out the average Joes interpretation of how one should distinguish amongst weather, seasons, and climate. It summarized those three key terms as all being cycles, but more notably, they are all cycles with respectively increasing lengths. This interpretation is correct, and page 246 also indicated another

commonality: they all involve Earths atmosphere. I learned that the atmosphere behaves similarly to earths mantle! (convection) 2. How does the reading help you identify the basic ideas underlying the science topic? This reading identifies the basics of the topic as being the layers of the atmosphere, understanding convection as a mechanism, defining key terms often used by weather reporters, learning the importance of carbons role in earths climate, and the results of excessive addition of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere. It breaks it down into easy-tounderstand sections within my big idea of weather and climate systems. 3. Are there explanations or vivid examples you can use with students to explain concepts in an interesting, comprehensible way? Yes! I could relay to students that the earths atmosphere behaves similarly to its oceans. Like the currents in the ocean, which I earnestly hope each student has seen or experienced, the air circulates. Also like the ocean, the atmospheric system has layers that are pressure and temperature dependent. (My class that I have been observing has just completed learning about convection as a method of heat transfer and have even built models themselves to represent it in earths mantle. If a student is utterly (and tragically) unfamiliar with the ocean and its currents, I could ask the student to pick up their model they made, which are all still sitting in the back of the classroom, and describe to me the process of convection specifically detailing which temperatures and densities tend to transfer in which general direction.) II. Consider Instructional Implications General Questions 1. What suggestions are provided for effective instruction of the topic? The reading materials in this section suggest that students solidify learning when projects or activities are completed in (or out of) class because the demonstration of concepts with models that they can manipulate help then be active with their own learning. When students learn something that they really get, it encourages them and boosts their confidence. This leads to them feeling capable of conducting their own scientific investigations so that they can gain the understanding of a concept. It also suggested that students should seize opportunities to learn science outside and in nature by keeping a field notebook and recording their observations. After this, students are encouraged to share their observations with their community including their family, friends, teachers, and classmates.

2. What student learning difficulties, misconceptions, or developmental considerations are mentioned? The phases of the moon continues to have numerous and reoccurring misconceptions among students (and even some adults.) Reasons for seasonal changes are another big topic that many students have a difficult time thinking out. 3. Does the reading suggest contexts, phenomena, representations, or everyday experiences that are effective in learning in the topic? Yes, a great example would help clarify the previously mentioned concept of the phases of the moon. Since all of the students have probably seen the different phases of the moon at some point or another in their lives, they may have an understanding of what each phase looks like, but they might have a hard time understanding or explaining why the moon looks the way it does during each phase. An activity that involves a ping pong ball, cut out paper, and a flashlight could easily be set up for the student to figure out how they could model the process on their own. IIA: Benchmarks for Science Literacy 4B, The Earth general essay, page 68; grade span essays, pages 67-60 1. How does the general essay help you gain a K-12 big picture view of the topic? Our earth is a large and complex system. With any large and complex system, it will take a long time to repeatedly instill the basic concepts of in order for students to piece all together. This is why it takes years and years for students to build up knowledge that will last them a lifetime on this subject matte IIB: National Science Education Standards Grades K-4, Standard D essay, pages 130, 134; Vignette Weather, pages 131133, and Weather instruments, page 136 Grades 5-8, Standard D essay, pages 158-159 Grades 9-12, Standard D essay, pages 187-189 1. How do the essays and vignettes illustrate the central role inquiry plays in learning the ideas in the topic? I found the middle school student development to be particularly crucial to the role inquiry plays because it is in my future Earth and Space Science class where I will be responsible to link these two

cosmic systems. By linking these two systems (earth and the solar system), I provide the foundation for students to investigate an infinite number of relations between and within earths major systems (the geosphere, atmosphere, and biosphere.) Inquiry is responsible for providing students with a desire to learn about things that they may or may not have direct access to. What students have seen their whole lives up till the fifth grade will provide the foundation to what they will build upon in middle school. If a phenomena cannot be seen directly by the student, perhaps it was an inquiry lesson that has taught or will teach it to them. 2. OMIT III. Identify Concepts and Specific Ideas General Questions 1. Which learning goals align well with the topic? Earth and Space systems is quite literally the biggest system taught in schools. Well, it covers the greatest amount of space anyhow. Anything that has to do with earth or space systems could will align with my topic. Some example of learning goals include climate and weather of course, as well as basic understandings of astronomy, geology, and paleontology. 2. What concepts, specific ideas, or skills make up the learning goals in this topic? Earths dynamic oceans, energy gained from the Sun each day, and the atmosphere that encompasses it all have everything to do with weather and climate. Science changes, just like the earth! So if the earth is changing and constantly evolving, so is science. The thought that humans are the main contributor to the unusually high recent climate changes is a valid scientific thought. Learning about how our atmosphere works and what the differences between weather change and climate change is important for science education and our future. 3. OMIT 4. How do these goals help you determine what you can eliminate or place less emphasis on? Age breakdowns of when specific learning goals are best taught at helped me to know which ones to spend less time getting into details on. With this CTS being mainly aimed for helping a sixth grade science lesson, I looked at the content that would be deemed as prerequisite knowledge for an eighth grade student so that I will not deny any

students from learning the things they will be responsible for in the future. After reading, I now know what I should and should not incorporate into my lesson plan. 5. OMIT 6. How do the ideas in the Benchmarks compare to the ideas in the NSES? Both books use a similar format that involves the theme of building upon previous knowledge in order to finally gain a firm understanding of Earth and Space that gradually paints a picture into a masterpiece. Benchmarks suggests that teachers should ask provocative questions for students to work out in their minds. They should be attention grabbing and open ended, yet have a correct answer. The NSES urges that it is important to maintain the spirit of inquiry by focusing the teaching on questions that can be answered by using observational data, the knowledge base of science and processes of reasoning. Because most things in and on Earth and out in space are not able to be directly observed, both books presented ideas to get the learning goals of each benchmark in each students attention with a way to logically figure out any described process. IIIA: Benchmarks for Science Literacy (omit all) 4B, The Earth, pages 67-70 IIIB: National Science Education Standards Grades K-4, Standard D, Objects in the Sky, page 134; Changes in the Earth and Sky, page 134 Grades 5-8, Standard D, Structure of the Earth System, pages 159-160; Standard F, Natural Hazards, pages 168-169; Risks and Benefits, page 169 Grades 9-12, Standard D, Energy in the Earth System, page 189; Standard F, Natural and Human Induced Hazards, pages 198-199 1. 1. What facts, concepts, principles, or theories are embedded in the standards? The standard under Earth and Space Science in K-4 calls for students to develop an understanding of: properties of earth materials, objects in the sky, and changes in earth and sky. Embedded within this is the fact that earth materials like the air, water, soil, and rocks are all things that provide us with the resources we use every day. Students at this age should learn to observe and describe objects in the sky that they might come across like birds, planes, and clouds. They should know that the moon, stars, and sun are not located on this earth, but in outer space. K4 students will also learn to describe the patterns of these objects above and know that weather has the potential to change every day and can be described by how hot or cold the air is, which way the wind is blowing

from, and how much it is raining. The standard under Earth and Space Science in 5-8 calls for students to develop an understanding of: the structure of the earth system, Earths history, and Earth in the solar system. Students will be well rehearsed with the concept that the earth has different layers made of different compositions. They will know that heat transfers like mantle convection drive theories like plate tectonics. Because of plate tectonics, constructive and deconstructive forces exist and continually (but at many various rates) shape the crust with different structures. Soil has a different chemical composition than solid rocks do, but are made up partly by finely weathered rocks. Students will also understand that water is a solvent that plays a large role in many cycles by dissolving various gases and minerals and transporting them into oceans. The oceans, lakes, and ice caps cover the majority of the earths crust and water circulates from this crust in the oceans and land up through the atmosphere and back down again via evaporation, condensation, and precipitation. Students will know the composition of the atmosphere at being a combination of mainly oxygen and nitrogen. An important fact for my specific topic within this standard is that condensing water vapor forms clouds which have an effect on the regions climate and weather where they exist over. Since water is good at holding heat, oceans are great for regulating temperatures. The atmosphere fluctuates similarly as tides do and thus causes an effect on local weather. Humans and other living organisms can affect all of these systems. The processes that occur today mirror those that happened in ancient geologic time, evidence in rocks and fossils provide proof of this principle (formally known as the Principle of Uniformitarianism.) Students will learn where earth is located within the solar system and that it, like many other things in the solar system behave in such a manner that is often able to be predicted. The force of gravity, and the basic fact that the sun is the source of energy that fuels countless processes on earth. Lastly, this standard states that seasons are caused my how much heat a vast region of the surface of the earth receives. The reason this heat received varies is due to earth revolving on its tilted axis and its revolution around the sun. The standard under Earth and Space Science in 9-12 calls for students to develop an understanding of: energy in the earth system, geochemical cycles, origin and evolution of the earth system, and origin and evolution of the universe. 2. How do the organizers used in the standards help you think about how to organize ideas in a topic? They help to display how I should choose the ideas for my lesson that

are most pertinent to my 6th grade classroom. The book does this in such a way that caters to how much time a teacher has at that moment, and how in depth he or she wants to go within the topic. It is truly wonderful and encourages me to not focus on one detail for too long if it means there wont be time left to address a major sub topic within the topic. It organizes content standards within Earth and Space Science for grades 5-8 into three subtopics that all students should develop an understanding of. These subtopics call for students to understand earths history, and the structure of it acting as both its own system and as a part of the solar system. IV. Examine Research on Student Learning General Questions 1. What specific misconceptions or alternative ideas might a student have about this topic? The most prevalent difficulty that came up for students studied in the Existence of Air passage was the idea that air is not a material matter. Students described in these research studies expressed that air had similar properties (or lack thereof) as thoughts might have. 2. Are there suggestions as to what might contribute to students misconceptions or difficulties? This misconception (described in the previous answer) was understandably due to the fact that air, although a material matter, is not always a visible nor tangible matter. Some students only conserved mass for air when it was directly affecting their senses like when a strong gust of wind is felt or smoke from a fire can be seen. 3. OMIT 4. Is there an age or grade where students are more likely to learn certain ideas in the topic? The Sere study on page 105 of Making Sense of Secondary Science explicitly breaks down their results and offers a clear suggestion to teachers: although some students between the ages of 11 and 13 think that air has negative mass (that is, the property of lightness), the concept of air having mass is easily acquired when taught at the age of 13. This conclusion was most probably made because at this age, most students are completing middle school and have had a solid foundation of Earth within the solar system and are more than ready to begin thinking more microscopically. 5. How does the research draw attention to important prerequisites?

According to the CPALMS website, elementary school benchmark SC.3.E.5.4 requires students to explore the Law of Gravity by demonstrating that gravity is a force that can be overcome. In order for students to have deep knowledge regarding what air is and how its properties affect weather and climate, it is crucial that students are able to draw upon a solid foundation of prerequisite knowledge detailing gravity as a mechanism that influences almost everything on this planet. The research conducted by Ruggiero et al discovered an intriguing relationship that 12 and 13 year olds made between the relationship of gravity and air. Some students believed that the two were inseparable, and that objects dont fall in outer space since it lacks an atmosphere. They based their reasoning on this by writing in the absence of air, weight becomes zero. Research like this signals educators to make sure that students assess, activate, and if necessary reteach prior knowledge/ prerequisites. IVA: Benchmarks for Science Literacy 1. How can the research be used to clarify the benchmark ideas? (read The Role of Research on page 327-329) The research methods and results presented in this section reveal many ways educators can begin to elucidate benchmarks for their lessons. Rewording complex controlled experiments into a simplified fair comparison has been found to be suitable for younger/elementary aged students. Also, the incorporation of prerequisite knowledge into benchmarks helps clarify what exactly the students are learning that is new to them. For example, if a high school benchmarks idea has a similar concept to the corresponding middle-school grade levels benchmark, incorporating prerequisite knowledge in the high schools benchmark will help to link the benchmarks across the K-12 range and conspicuously reveal the parts of the concept that have been reworked to be more/less detailed. IVB: Making Sense of Secondary Science: Research into Childrens Ideas Chapter 13, Existence of Air, pages 104-105; Wind, page 111 1. Are there examples of questions or tasks that could be used to find out what students know about the topic? Yes, Wind gave an example of some students ideas of what wind is and described a common theme amongst the students accounting wind by means of things they could directly see like the moving clouds or changing tides. I could ask an open-ended question that directly asks my class what makes wind?

Existence of Air details a study that confirmed 11+ year old children know that air exists in open containers by providing them with an open ended question about the properties of air. I would also be interested to see what middle school students will say when I ask, can there be air without wind? 2. Are there suggestions for helping students avoid or overcome misconceptions? Absolutely. Wind outlines what the major misconceptions found in the study were which included some students ideas that wind is caused by earths rotation relating to the cooler temperature at the poles. Students also incorrectly linked strong winds with cold winds and gentle breezes with warm winds. To fix this, Making Sense of Secondary Science suggests to point out that wind is caused by differentiating pressures between the layers within our atmosphere. 3. Is there a framework or set of rules students use to reason about ideas in the topic? Yes, Stavys study described on page 104 in the book gave students a framework that involved the prediction and conduction of an experiment. This study asked students to formulate a hypothesis relating the result of how much a CO2 cartridge would weigh both before and after it was utilized to make carbonated water AND how much the cup of soda would weigh both before and after the gas bubbles had escaped. This framework in particular reminded me of the framework I utilized in my acid rain lab which hinted students to (by designing their own experiment) hypothesize how much a limestone rock would weigh before and after being exposed to a weak acid. Some students successfully thought to test not only the initial and final weight of the rock sample, but also of the saturated and unsaturated solution of the vinegar provided. V. Examine Coherency and Articulation V: Atlas of Science Literacy 1. How does a map help you trace a concept or skill from its simple beginning to a culminating, interconnected, sophisticated idea? An arrow connects one benchmark to another and the concept the arrow stems from needs to first be understood by the student before he or she is able to fully grasp the one the arrow is pointing to. In one case on my map there is a double arrow. This means that the concepts within them are interrelated. In other words, a student cannot truly understand one concept without the other. 2. What connections can you identify among concepts or skills in the

topic? Atlas of Science Literacy eloquently quotes that Logic alone is seldom adequate to characterize growth of understanding. Psychological and developmental factors must also be considered. The connections between benchmarks in this book are not only based off of the content matter, but they also reflect how the students learn. The benchmark boxes have concepts that link to another box by an arrow that points to essentially the same concept presented in a more advanced way. This often includes the addition of new key terms and other new learning skills. 3. What connections can you identify to different content areas within and outside of science? Learning about earth patterns and systems is vital to science education. Connections within science can be made stemming towards learning about how these processes are fueled by heat transfers and understanding that a heat transfer is an energy transfer. We can connect this to the behavior of earths atmosphere by learning about and observing the different patterns it exhibits. Outside of science, skills in other content areas are needed. What is science without math or physics? Teachers must make the connections jumping from subject to subject in order to show students that everything in this world is a system and thusly is related. 4. What prerequisite ideas can you identify for learning the topic at your grade level? Students in the K-5 range should have acquired the following prerequisite knowledge: the Sun heats earths surfaces; liquid water can turn to gas or vapor through a process called evaporation; excess heat that we may need does not escape our planet thanks to the greenhouse effect that traps it in the atmosphere; weather may change by the day or even hour, however climate change spans for longer periods like years, decades, or eras.

5. How do the storylines or conceptual strands in a map help you think about the way to coherently organize the concepts and skills in a topic? Rich interconnections among the concepts showed me how to sort out the specific skills within a topic. A good, solid concept map should show this organization, and the storylines within the map encourage me to demonstrate the same coherency skills while I am teaching my topic.

6. How do the map and its narrative section improve your overall understanding of the topic? The narrative section was most useful to highlight specific key terms that are integral to learning my benchmark. I gained a large perspective of the topic by being able to look at what a student in the K-12 system will be expected to learn over the entire course of his or her school career. 7. How do the skill benchmarks relate to the knowledge benchmarks? Skill benchmarks articulate what students should physically already be able to do. If presented with a form of assessment, the skill benchmarks describe the task that the student ought to be able to complete. A skill benchmarks sets up a knowledge benchmark, which describes what concepts the students should know from a previous grades. VI. Clarify State Standards, 21st Century Skills, and District Curriculum General Questions 1. Which suggestions from Sections II-V align well with your state or district standards or frameworks? Where do you see gaps that need to be addressed? Clearly this or any CTS is going to be way more thorough on a given topic than most state or district standards will be, but Alachua County Public Schools pacing guide does still provide a solid outline for 6th grade Earth and Space Science. The specific benchmark concepts within both align perfectly, but as far as addressing teaching techniques, sharing research, and recognizing common student misconceptions, the ACPSPG is lacking. The Suggested Resources column has the potential to be a gold mine for teachers, yet has suggestions like periodic table in back of textbook paired with a moderate cognitive level benchmark like: SC.8.P.8.4 which asks students to classify and compare substances on the basis of characteristic physical properties that can be demonstrated or measured; for example, density, thermal or electrical conductivity, solubility, magnetic properties, melting and boiling points, and know that these properties are independent of the amount of the sample. Seriously? For any teachers that wish to have resources on this topic, please feel free to use this CTS as a reference. I have also provided book titles with page numbers next to each section of this CTS. The readings from section II discussed the importance of instilling a big picture into students minds and then elaborating deeper and deeper on that picture in order to get a full understanding. Section III honed in on looking at guides to the content standard and detailed information on weather and climate systems. Section IVs theme was student misconceptions within

this concept and possible underlying/prerequisite concepts. 2. How does the addition of cognitive performance verbs affect the learning of the ideas in the topic? Are the verbs in your state or district standards appropriate for the nature of the content and researchidentified difficulty of the ideas in the topic? My benchmark is a level 2 cognitive complexity and appropriately calls for students to differentiate. This cognitive performance verb affects how I would expect my students to demonstrate knowledge when given an assessment. The verb also might play a role in how I design the assessment. In this case, I feel that presenting the students with descriptions of various cities weather or climate, students will be able to match each description to the correct key term. 3. How can the research findings inform the placement of your state or district standards? Are they appropriately places, or are there some that may need to be reconsidered? The research seems to have been consulted and incorporated by the county standards because the pacing guide flows well with sorting content matter and building upon prior knowledge throughout the K-12 system. After reading through the pacing guide, a teacher will be able to understand what a child at that benchmark in time is expected to know already, and what might be new to them. 4. How do the readings improve your interpretation and understanding of the concepts and skills associated with the topic in your standards, curriculum guide, or materials? Without these readings, I could not hope to teach as good of a lesson as I could after reading all of the provided materials and writing up this CTS. Also without these readings, I would not have understood how much I did not know (or at least needed to brush back up on.) As they say, the more you know the more you realize you dont know. VIA: State Standards: Link Sections II-IV to learning goals and information from your state standards or frameworks that are informed by the results of the topic study. 1. Which learning goals in your state standards are integral to learning the ideas in the topic? Earth systems and patterns is the fundamental learning goal in my standard. This goal encompasses all of the benchmarks that are needed for this topic. The next learning goal listed in the standards is Earth Structures, which is a very interesting topic that may help some

students understand earths systems and patterns, however it is a bit more advanced, so I would incorporate it wisely. 2. How did reading sections I-V help you better understand the meaning and intent of your standards or frameworks? I learned about handling student misconceptions, identifying what every adult should know about the topic, and how concept maps help both student and teacher understand the interconnections between Earth and Space Systems. 3. How did your results help make a bridge between a broad content standard and a learning goal? Starting out with a specific benchmark topic like differentiate between weather and climate, I was able to bridge that learning goal to fit into the big idea of Earth systems and patterns by completing this CTS and reading up on all of the provided materials listed in sections I-V. 4. How can the study results help you improve K-12 articulation of your standards? By looking at the results, I was able to point out what a fifth grader knows that a third grader doesnt, or even what an 8th grader knows that a sixth grader doesnt. I now know what details I should refrain from getting into until high school. I also found the Atlas of Science Literacy book very helpful with improving my stand-back view of what students need to know at each age. 5. How do the end points in the 9-12 section of your standards related to the topic compare with the adult literacy ideas in Section I? Adults should have basic knowledge on the topic that would be equivalent to the benchmarks represented in the 9-12 section of my standards. It is true that many adults will know far more on the topic thanks to college and other resources, but sadly it is also possible that not many know earths systems and patterns including patterns of weather and climate created partly by our atmosphere because some adults still have not achieved in getting their high school diploma. 6. How do the results of Sections I-V improve your understanding of students opportunity to learn and demonstrate your state standards? Since I am now familiar with what students have learned in the past working up to this section, I am able to activate that prior knowledge by asking open ended questions related to weather and climate to assess

where they stand. During this introductory discussion on the topic, this CTS has also prepared my ears to hear red-flag misconceptions and assess them quickly. VIB: District Curriculum Guide or Instructional Materials: Link Sections II-IV to learning goals and information from your district curriculum guide or instructional materials that are informed by the results of the topic study. 1. Which concepts or skills, essential to developing a coherent understanding of the topic, are included in your district curriculum guide or curriculum materials? What gaps would you fill, based on your study? My students will be expected to fully know the difference between weather and climate. Since we live in Florida, and not all students have experienced many different types of colder temperate climates. For a student that has not seen snow before, describing the effects of how serious a blizzard can be is an important gap to fill in order to reach the learning goal. 2. How do the results help you recognize that some topics need to be revisited within or at different grade levels with new contexts and increasing sophistication of concepts? The results specifically helped me recognize the misconceptions students had and how to address them. The results also made me recognize that revisiting topics that may be easy to understand, but difficult to define is important. Going back over the mechanisms that drive various weather phenomena like convection within ocean currents is key to making sure the knowledge foundation I will be building upon with these students is solid.