Science with Mr. Dowst!

Today we finished our presentations and turned in our sports drink labels and written evidence! We’re done with Chapter 1.

Learning Target:

Scientific Inquiry is a rigorous, multifaceted process that includes both skills and understandings.

Upcoming: Chapter 2: The Material World

On Wednesday/Thursday (depending on your schedule), we started presenting our labels and advertisements!

See Tuesday’s post for more details about the presentations.

Learning Target:

• Scientific Inquiry is a rigorous, multifaceted process that includes both skills and understandings.

Upcoming:  Finishing our presentations and starting Chapter 2:  The Material World

Today groups finished off doing tests (the evaporation is kinda tricky!) and began preparing for their presentations. (Process and Procedure:  9 & 10, page 47)

Label:  Your label should include information about the contents of your sports drink (what would athletes want to see in terms of beneficial ingredients?). And it should be coloful and interesting. (Labels due on Friday)

Advertisement:  You should present your sports drink in a fun and engaging manner. You could do a video, radio commercial, a print advertisement, or a skit. Make sure you include the scientific data you collected! (Advertisements due Tomorrow, Thursday, or Friday, depending on your group)

Written Information:  You will also need to turn in a typed information sheet that includes your recipe, how to perform each of the tests, and your data. The requirements are on the back of the rubric for this project. (The written information sheet is due on Friday)

Learning Target:

• Scientific Inquiry is a rigorous, multifaceted process that includes both skills and understandings.

Upcoming:  Finishing up all of the above

 We spent another day testing our Homemade Sports Drinks! Most students had finished the Benedict’s and Conductivity tests on Friday, so today was spent on the Evaporation test.

Remember, you have to do more that attempt the Evaporation test–you have to prove that your sports drink is beneficial. If your percentage of solids is off, you’ll need to adjust your recipe to get it right.

Learning Target:

• Scientific Inquiry is a rigorous, multifaceted process that includes both skills and understandings.

Upcoming: preparing for our sports drinks presentations.

Here’s a summary of everything we’ve done so far this semester. For simplicity’s sake, I am not including a day-by-day account of our progress. However, you should recall that you are responsible for all work that was assigned in class or as homework, so if you’ve been absent, make sure you have everything on the list.

Chapter 1: The Process of Scientific Inquiry

Engage: Who Did It?

Learning Target:

• What do you know about scientific inquiry?

Process and Procedure: 1, 2, 6
Reflect and Connect: 1-4

• Scientists use evidence and inference to develop scientific explanations.
• Evaluating alternative explanations is an important part of scientific inquiry.

Process and Procedure: 3 and 4
Reflect and Connect: 1-4
Extra Credit:  Write a 2 paragraph summary of “An Interview with Mary Leaky” (pages 14-15)

Learning Targets:

• Scientifically testable questions guide investigations.
• Evaluating what is already known is an important aspect of scientific inquiry.
• Using technology and mathematics contributes to scientific investigation.
• Science includes communicating and defending scientific arguments.

Part I: Asking a Testable Question
Process and Procedure: 1, 2, 3
Stop & Think: 1-3

Part II: Testing… Testing… Testing
Process and Procedure: 2-4, 8, 9 (Note:  we did 8 & 9 in class on posters. If you were gone that day or want to improve your score, record your answers in your notebook)
Reflect and Connect: 1-4

Learning Targets:

• Scientific Inquiry is a process that includes using what is known to ask questions, design investigations, collect evidence, develop explanations, analyze alternative explanations, and communicate findings.
• The use of technology can improve the quality of scientific investigations

Part I: The Process of Scientific Inquiry
Process and Procedure: 1-3
Stop & Think: 1-3

Part II: Where’s the Evidence?
Process and Procedure: 1-3

Part III:  It’s All on the Label
Process and Procedure: 2 (Note:  see Mr. Dowst for the “It’s all on the Label” handout)
Reflect and Connect: 1-4

Learning Targets:

• Analyzing the work of scientists contributes to the discipline and informs specific work.
• Communicating findings is an important feature of the scientific endeavor.

Process and Procedure: 2-6, 9
Reflect and Connect: 1-3

Evaluate: Homemade Sports Drinks

Key Idea:

• Scientific Inquiry is a rigorous, multifaceted process that includes both skills and understandings.

Process and Procedure: 1-7