Download and read a sample chapter from this book to learn more.
Are you interested in helping your elementary students learn the practices of science, including constructing explanations and engaging in argument from evidence? Argument-Driven Inquiry in Fifth-Grade Science will provide you with both the information and instructional materials you need to get started right away. The book is a one-stop source of expertise, advice, and investigations. It’s designed to help your fifth graders work the way scientists do while integrating literacy and math at the same time.

Argument-Driven Inquiry in Fifth-Grade Science is divided into two basic parts:

1. An introduction to the stages of ADI—from question identification, data analysis, and argument development to evaluating and revising ideas.

2. A well-organized series of 16 field-tested investigations designed to be much more authentic for instruction than traditional activities. The focus is on making sense of how the world works. Investigations cover matter and its interactions; motion and stability; ecosystems and their interactions, energy, and dynamics; Earth’s place in the universe; and Earth’s systems. Using the Student Workbook, your students will explore important content and discover scientific practices. They’ll investigate questions such as: What happens to a substance’s weight when transforming from a solid to a liquid? Where does the matter that plants need to grow come from? Why do days change length in different locations on Earth? And why do people use hot water instead of cold when making tea?

This book is part of NSTA’s bestselling series about ADI in elementary, middle, and high school science. Like its predecessors, this collection is designed to be easy to use, with teacher notes, investigation handouts, and checkout questions. The lessons support the Next Generation Science Standards and the Common Core State Standards for English language arts and mathematics. The book can also help emerging bilingual students meet the English Language Proficiency Standards with its tips for teaching English language learners.

Many of today’s elementary school teachers—like you—want new ways to engage students in scientific practices and help students learn more from classroom activities. Argument-Driven Inquiry in Fifth-Grade Science does all of this while giving students the chance to practice reading, writing, speaking, and using mathematics in the context of science.