Shakeshia Banks

GA

Tue, Jan 16, 2024 2:09 PM
Young Learners

This article discusses the connections between the Common Core State Standards for English Language Arts and Literacy (CCSS) and the Next Generation Science Standards (NGSS) and how these documents can complement each other to enhance teaching and learning in grades preK through five, with a focus on the discipline of science. The CCSS emphasizes literacy skills across multiple disciplines, including science, and underscores the importance of close, attentive reading of challenging texts, including informational texts related to science. On the other hand, the NGSS introduces three dimensions: practices, crosscutting concepts, and core ideas. These dimensions highlight the scientific community's methods, the organization of scientific ideas, and fundamental scientific principles. The passage provides examples of how teachers can synergistically integrate the CCSS and NGSS, emphasizing the role of crosscutting concepts and core ideas in enhancing students' understanding of scientific texts and concepts.

Tue, Jan 16, 2024 2:07 PM
Nature of Science

This article discusses the fundamental importance of understanding the Nature of Science (NOS) in achieving scientific literacy, particularly in the context of the Next Generation Science Standards (NGSS). Scientific literacy involves not only knowledge of scientific facts but also an understanding of the nature and development of scientific knowledge. The NGSS highlights the integration of NOS within its dimensions of science and engineering practices and crosscutting concepts. The passage emphasizes that NOS is critical for individuals to make informed decisions about scientifically based personal and societal issues. Despite the challenges in teaching NOS, the passage argues that it must be made visible during instruction, and it provides examples of how specific aspects of NOS, such as the variety of scientific investigation methods, can be explicitly integrated into science instruction.

Tue, Jan 16, 2024 2:05 PM
Integrating the Nature of Science

The article describes an instructional approach to integrating the Nature of Science (NOS) into a third-grade life science unit, centered around the "Variation in Population" Environments Unit and the Next Generation Science Standards (NGSS) performance expectation 3-LS4-3. The lesson involves using colored paper "organisms" as models to demonstrate how variations in color can lead to different levels of camouflage in a given habitat, affecting the survival of the population. The authors emphasize the importance of modeling as a tool for scientific thinking, noting that models progress from concrete representations to more abstract forms. The lesson aims to engage students in scientific practices, such as collecting empirical data through observations and inferences, and using the "claims, evidence, reasoning" (CER) framework. The authors highlight the role of a science education professor in guiding the integration of NOS concepts and the creation of a NOS poster.