Science Lesson Plans
compiled in EDU 360 or EDU 553 or other Ed. Tech. Courses
in the Education Department at  Eastern Connecticut State University
last updated 1/9/01 back to Lesson Plans Index please contact David Stoloff
if you have any questions
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Two Lesson Plans on Nutritional Science by Peter Mc Devitt

Objectives: 1. Students will learn to calculate their daily calcium intake.
             2’Students will develop a database by listing the calcium-containing foods consumed in a full day of meals and snacks.
 3. Students will learn to use a Nutritional Web site that provides information
on the nutritional composition of foods. They will determine how much calcium is contained in each food item and total the results to get a precise daily intake total.

 4. Students will determine how their daily total matches the recommended amount
for someone their age and sex.

            Materials :Data base listing foods consumed ,amount, and calcium content(mg)

   A selected  Web site such as:
USDA Food and Nutritional Information Center:http://www.nal.usda.gov/fnic/foodcomp
Diet Analysis Web Page:http://dawp.anet.com
Dairy Council of California(http://www.dairycouncilofca.org).

Introduction to Lesson:

Students will work with partners  to develop  their data base ,list,,
and analyze their calcium intake.

Procedures:
Students will  research one of the web cites given to analyze their calcium intake.

Each group is asked to present a list of  high calcium rich foods they recommend.

Closure:

Students will share their findings and suggest how others  can improve their calcium intake naturally rather than taking supplements..
 

Lesson Plan 2.
 

Objectives:

1.To become a knowledgeable consumer.

 2. To investigate one ingredient in an over the counter food supplement or dietary aid.
.
3.To use your computer and selected health sites  to search and locate at least one research study on the chosen substance.

4.Select a study that relates to the claims made on the supplement.

Materials:

Computer and Printer and Microsoft Word.  Internet access.

Introduction:  Teacher will acquaint students with dietary aids and food supplements and provide statistics on consumption and costs .Student  will be allowed to pick their own supplement to research.

Procedures:  Students will work individually or with partner having the same interest.

Each team will have l0 minutes to make their presentation and give recommendations to the class.
Students must submit a written brief description of their findings.
Students should also search the FDA’s Web site(http://www.fda.gov)  for the substance investigated. The student should describe any health warning or report on adverse effects

Closure: Students should discuss the products studied and determine their values.

Two Lesson Plans developed by Tina D’Auteuil
EDU 553

                          NUTRITION - SCIENCE LESSON

GRADE LEVEL:  2-3
 

OBJECTIVE:   To have students understand that food has nutritional value. Students will
                          understand the importance of choosing the right foods.  What they eat is
                          related to how their bodies work and their body is better able to function
                          when they eat food with good nutritional value.
 

INITIATION:
? Have students compile a list of foods they eat on a regular basis, at least once a day or several times a week.
? Make a graph on the board listing the food groups as the categories and have students list their foods according to the food groups.
 

MATERIALS:  CD ROM Game Pajama Sam 3, I Am What I Eat From My Head To My
                         Feet, paper, food pyramid and eating journals.

PROCEDURES:
? Review with the students nutritional information pertaining to the food groups
? Have students categorizes their list of foods into the food pyramid.
? Discuss with the class the nutritional value and importance to the human body.
? Make a connection to the nutritional value and how well the body works well properly ‘fueled.’

CLOSURE:     How well do we eat as a whole class?    Have students review the
                        information that they compiled on the board.  Compare it to the food
                        pyramid and discuss what it is that students were eating and the benefits or
                       disadvantages of eating those foods.

ASSESSMENT:  Were the students able to keep the discussion going with the
                             information we had discussed and reviewed?
                             Did the students have a better understanding of the nutritional value of
                             foods?  Were students able to categorize the food into the food pyramid
                             and understand how to use it?

Second Lesson Plan developed by Tina D’Auteuil

Science / Astronomy
 
 

GRADE LEVEL:  3

OBJECTIVE:  Students will have a general understanding of the solar system.  They will
                        learn how to position the planets in their proper order.  Students will
                        explore Mars through a computer program and learn about its
                        characteristics and compare to Earth.

MATERIALS:  CD ROM Program, Magic School Bus Lands On Mars, diagram of the
                         solar system,  have books available on the solar system and Mars,
                         compare chart for students to complete on the differences and similarities
                         between Mars and Earth.

INITATION:  Have students begin will a discussion about what they know about the
                       solar system.  Do a KWL chart with the information.

PROCEDURES:
? Have students begin with a discussion about the planets.
? Students will then break up into groups and using the books and charts have students learn the names of the planets and where they are positioned next to each other.
? Give the students in the groups each a turn at the computer to review the CD game and discuss what they learned.

CLOSURE:
Have students share what they have learned and write the information into the chart during the discussion.

ASSESSMENT:
              Were the students able to communicate what they discovered or learned during
              their group time?  Did most students contribute to the discussion, KWL chart
              and actively participate within their groups?  Through teacher observation and
              through student discussion the teacher will be able to assess the students
              understanding.

Two Lesson Plans developed by Jillian Kirchherr

Lesson One:  Title: Raindrops don’t have points

Subject: Science
Topic: Actual shape of a raindrop/Misconception
Grade: 3
Time: 45 min
Date: 1/8/01

Materials: white paper, crayons, clears container, water, water faucet, raindrop and bubble photographs

Resources: www.eskimo.com/~ billb/miscon/miscon4.html, Bad Physics: Misconceptions spread by k-6 textbooks

Objectives:
1. Students will understand that the symbol of water droplets (pointed) is different from what real water droplets look like (rounded).
2. Students will be able to observe the shape of raindrops and answer questions based on what they saw.
3. Students will draw a new conclusion about the shape of a raindrop after observing what they saw.

Procedure
10 minutes- The teacher will begin by having the students draw raindrops on a piece of paper.  After they are finished the teacher will ask the students what shape their raindrops are, and whether or not it is the right shape f all raindrops.  The teacher will let the students draw their own conclusions.

15 minutes- The teacher will choose groups and then lead each group to a separate table where they will be observing the raindrops (water) that come out of a faucet, a picture of raindrops and bubbles, and a container full of water that has bubbles coming up from the bottom.  The teacher will then facilitate a discussion based on what they observed.

10 minutes- The teacher will then give a brief lecture about the correct shape of raindrops.

10 minutes- The teacher will pass out a sheet with questions based on the observations the students did.  The students will write the answers down and then discuss them as a class when everyone is done.

Lesson 2 - Static Electricity

Subject: Physical Science
Grade: Fourth
Time: 40 min
Date: 1/9/01

Materials:
Teacher- notes
Students- Balloons, salt, pepper, plastic rulers, cloth or wool, torn up pieces of paper, paper plates, question sheets

Resources- Ericir.syr.edu/virtual/lesson/science/physical/phy0054.html

Objectives
1. The students will be able to demonstrate how electricity works by using the items provided under student materials.
2. Students will be using the items given under student materials to show how an object becomes negatively charged and attracts to other objects
3. Students will be able to answer questions based on static electricity.

Procedure

1-5 minutes- The teacher will have the students get into groups of five and find a table with materials on it.

10 minutes- The students will be given a sheet of paper with two different tasks on it.  Their job is to discover how static electricity works by exploring.  There are question given that are to be answered as well.

12-15 minutes- When each group has finished the teacher will facilitate a discussion based on the students’ observations.  The teacher will then discuss in further detail how static electricity occurs.

10-12 minutes- The teacher will pass out one more question for the students to answer while they do one more task.  The students will then have to write down their conclusion, making sure they base it on the discussion and investigation they did in class.  The students will pass this in for a grade.
 

Two lesson plans on Electronics       Cycle A developed by Mr. Beasley

Lesson Plan

Lesson: 1.  DC Electronics

Materials:  IBM PC, Edison Software

Objective:
1. Using Edison, draw a series circuit and include the following:
a. A DC Source
b. Resistor
c. Switch
d. Lamp

Procedure:
1. Open Edison
2. Click on each component you want to use
3. Drag each to work area
4. Pull each component together to complete the circuit

Assessment:
Print out schematic and turn it in for teacher approval

 Grade 9       Mr. Beasley
Electronics       Cycle A
Lesson Plan

Lesson 2.  DC Electronics

Materials:  Mac II,  Digital Circuits Software

Objective:
1. Using Digital software, build a digital circuit using a 7400 Quad NAND IC chip
Procedure:
1. Using the instructions from your textbook, build your circuit on the computer
2. Drag each component on the breadboard
3. Drag a line between each component to complete the circuit

Assessment:
Send your work via emil to Mr. Beasley at “beasleyf@yahoo.com for approval

Lesson Plan developed by Steve Babyak
Title: Your own planet!

Grade: 3rd

Objective:  The student will apply concepts from the unit on Our Solar System to develop their own planet.  The student will demonstrate an understanding of the characteristics of the planets in our solar system.

Materials:  Computer with Internet access
         Paper and pencils
         Crayons and construction paper

Classroom arrangement and grouping of children:
 Children are grouped in pairs and are assigned to work two at a computer.

Role of Teacher
 To provide children with the materials necessary for designing their planet.
To guide children in applying the concepts they learned in the Our Solar System lesson to their individual planets (i.e. asking open ended questions).
To ensure that the partners are working cooperatively on planets.

Procedure
a) Initiation:  As a wrap up for the lesson on the solar system engage students in a discussion about characteristics of the solar system paying particular attention to the physical characteristics of the planets.
b) Procedure:  Ask students what they would include on their planets.  Keep the discussion open, and have them brainstorm for a while, jotting down notes of what they want their planets to be.  Pair up children in groups that are appropriate for scaffolding and cooperative learning (i.e. pair children with stronger computer, writing skill with a child that my have a strong creative skill but weaker computer or writing skills.)  Ask the children to work on the computer and go to the website www.tcsn.net/afiner/intro.htm, and investigate as far as they choose, what are the characteristics of the planets.  Have them record the aspects of the planets and with their partner write a profile of the planet.  After writing the profile they will draw a planet that will have the written profile attached to the middle of the planet.  That planet will then be included in Our Solar System, located on the ceiling of the classroom, which includes the already existing planets.
c) Closure:  Have the children lay on the floor of the classroom and each pair can present to the classroom their planet and all the characteristics, as the class “stargazes”.

Questions to ask children (both during and after the lesson).
 Between what two planets is your planet going to be?
 Is there water, gas, land, life, fossils on your plant?
 What does the landscape look like?
 Did anyone from earth explore your planet? When? What did they find?
 How many moons does your planet have?
 Is there a ring around your planet?
How heavy would a human be on your planet? Gravitational pull? (may be to advanced for third grade but worth a shot.)

Extensions:
Have children write a fictitious story about a day in the life of an organism on their planet.
 

Grade 1 World of Dinosaurs - Lesson Plan by Paula McIntyre

The objective of this lesson plan is to familiarize children to the computer
while learning about dinosaurs.

The software that will be used is "The World of Dinosaurs"

Students will pair off and have a 20 minute time frame to utilize the
program.  They will play the Colossal Fossil game and willcollect Dinosaur
Fact cards.  After all the children have had their turn, the class will
gather as a group and share their fact cards with the class.  They will
ecplain facts about their particular dinosaur and the sound it makes.

The project will take one week to complete and at the end of the last day is
when the group will gather to share experiences.

A teacher or aide will always be working with each pair of students to
facilitate the use of the program and printing of the fact cards.

Lesson: Writing a Science Fiction Story
By Cindy Stitz-Galvan

Grade: 2-8

Objectives: Students should be able to:

Connections: Reading, Writing, Science, Technology

Materials:

Initiation:

Read a short science fiction short story to the students. Depending on the grade level some suggestions for stories can be obtained through this web address and others http://bookadventure.com/ki/bs/ki_bs_helpfind.asp. Another suggestion is to read previous science fiction stories written by students. Allow 5-10 minutes.

Procedure:

  1. Introduce and discuss the characteristics of science fiction after reading a story to the class. The characteristics include: Allow 10-15 minutes.
  1. Create a list of story starters with the class.
  2. Discuss creating a science fiction story using the characteristics of science fiction and the list of story starters created by the class. Allow 5-10 minutes.
  3. Have students explore and investigate the Solar System by directing them to the computer and the Internet.
  4. Instruct and model for the students how to connect to the web sites www.seds.org and www.fi.edu
  5. Have students investigate the Solar System using these web sites.
  6. Encourage students to download and print helpful information.
  7. Allow students 20-30 minutes to explore the galaxy using the World Wide Web.
  8. Students will write a science fiction story. Allow 15-30 minutes to begin.
  9. Continue exploring the Solar System on the web and completing stories for two or three 50 minute segments during the week.
Closure: Extensions: Modifications: Assessment:

Constant evaluation of students during access and use of the Internet as well as during the writing of the story. The final story can also be used to assess whether the characteristics of science fiction were included. A class discussion to include why the story is fiction compared to non-fiction information and the sources of that information will assess the students understanding of the Solar System, the Galaxy, Science, Science fiction, and the Internet resources.