GRADE

4

Authors: K. Arinaga and P. Evans Lesson #: 1

Unit Title: Earth System Science Time Frames: Two 50­Minute Periods

Creating an ESS Model: Up Close and Personal

ABSTRACT An Earth science system model demonstrates how the Earth is comprised of many elements that interact together. Students will create various terrarium models using plants, animals, and abiotic factors to observe how changing certain components affect the whole system. Through inquiry and experimentation, students will further explore system processes, such as the water cycle.

PLANNING INSTRUCTION ASSESSMENT STANDARDS REFERENCES

BACKGROUND INFORMATION FOR TEACHERS A system is a group of elements that interact and function together. There are two types of systems, open and closed. An open system interacts with its surrounding environment by exchanging energy and materials. In its strictest sense, a closed system does not interact with the surrounding environment, allowing no exchange of energy or materials with the outside environment. In ecology, however, we often consider a closed system to be one that allows no exchange of materials, yet energy such as sunlight may be transferred. Creating an open system model will help students to understand the complexity of a system and observe how parts work together. Earth is a dynamic planet where complex and interconnected processes make up the Earth system. These systems include the geosphere, atmosphere, biosphere, and hydrosphere. There are two primary sources of energy in our Earth system. One is the Sun, the other is the Earth’s core. The Sun drives the living and atmospheric systems and all plants and animals depend on energy from the Sun to survive. Energy from the Sun cycles through open systems resulting in changes such as photosynthesis.

PLANNING Essential Questions

How do changes in various open systems affect plants, animals, and nonliving things in various environments?

How can a terrarium model help us learn more about the systems and interactions in the world that surrounds us?

How can I investigate and record these changes?

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Instructional Objectives

Students will: Create, observe and predict changes in multiple classroom terrariums. Experiment with location and quantities of water cycled through each open system. Record their observations by maintaining a daily observation chart for one week. Demonstrate their understanding of open systems by creating a graphic organizer that shows

the similarities and differences that they see in each terrarium model. Conclude their findings by writing a paragraph that summarizes their analyses.

Key Vocabulary

Terrarium Water cycle Open systems Photosynthesis Model

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INSTRUCTION

Preparation

At least three clear, plastic soda bottles need to be cut in half and have vertical slits in place so that the top and bottom can be pushed back together.

Materials for each terrarium will be the same. The amount of water and/or sunlight for each terrarium will be determined by the teacher.

Science notebooks and printouts of KWL. Materials

Per group Three two­liter soda bottles with cap Scissors A Marker Pebbles Activated charcoal Sphagnum or Spanish moss Potting soil Seeds or Seedlings

Resources

NASA: E­Clips: “Our World: What is Soil?”:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5TIebXYgQ80 Precipitation Education ­ A Tour of the Water Cycle:

http://pmm.nasa.gov/education/water­cycle Earth’s Water Cycle:

http://svs.gsfc.nasa.gov/cgi­bin/details.cgi?aid=11054 Bishop Museum:

Bishop Museum Science Programs for School Group: http://www.bishopmuseum.org/education/science_programs.html

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ENGAGE

1. Discuss students’ prior knowledge of the ground they walk on, such as the school playground, their

yards, or places they have visited. Begin a Know­Wonder­Learn chart and list their pre­existing understanding of systems in the Know section of chart.

2. Have students work in groups to answer the following questions and then share with the class:

What is a system? What do you know about systems? What are some examples of systems?

3. Display a picture of a forest ecosystem. Think­Pair­Share and group discussion following these

introductory questions:

Is this a system? Why? How are the things in this system connected? What can cause changes within a forest system?

4. Watch: NASA E­Clips “Our World: What is Soil?”

5. Student exit pass: Have students write a sentence or two on how soil and different amounts of water

can cause changes within a forest system.

EXPLORE

1. Students explore their understanding of open systems by constructing Earth system terrariums. In teams of four to five students, they will build terrariums using materials provided. Students will draw an illustration of how they built their terrariums.

Image Courtesy of Bishop Museum.

2. After building the models, pose the following questions:

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What will happen if we placed them in different areas of sunlight? What will happen if we change the amount of water each system receives? How will we know how much water each system receives?

4. Place terrariums in areas of the room receiving similar amounts of sunlight. Assign each group a

different amount of water to give to their terrariums throughout the week and record these amounts. In their science notebooks, students will record their own predictions.

5. Throughout the week, students will record their observations in drawings with labels to highlight any

changes in their system.

6. At the end of the experiment, students will view each groups’ terrariums and write down if there were any differences between terrariums in their science notebooks.

7. Exit pass: Individual students will post one big question they have about systems and/or what they

would like to learn throughout the upcoming lesson activities.

EXPLAIN

1. Small groups will discuss changes in soil, plants, rocks, clumps of dirt, condensation on the bottle,

and any other details they notice. They will discuss the NASA Precipitation Education ­ A Tour of the Water Cycle

Image courtesy of NASA.

2. Lead a whole group discussion on how the water cycle picture connects to what they are observing

in their terrariums.

3. Sample teacher questions that focus student observations include:

What happened to your terrariums? How did parts of the terrarium interact and change? Were there differences between each terrarium due to providing different amounts of water? What are some connections you made with your terrarium to the world around you (such as

the playground, your yard, etc).

EXTEND

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1. Record information about the terrarium experiment on a wall chart or in individual science

notebooks. Draw pictures with labels and/or photograph the different plant species both before and after conditions are changed in the experiment.

2. Cover the terrarium and observe how moisture collects on the glass and drips down the sides. Ask

the students to think about why this happened. A great example of condensation is an ice cold drink dripping on the outside on a hot day, or a hot shower steaming up a cold mirror.

3. Continue to track the conditions of the plants in a terrarium. To make the terrarium climate more like

Earth’s, change one of the conditions (either provide more or less water or reduce or increase the exposure to light). Monitor each of the plants’ growth under this new condition. Students should note all changes to the plants and how much water and sunlight they received. Plants will grow long, weak, and lose some of their color if they need more light. If they need more water they will wilt and dry out.

4. Please see Earth’s Water Cycle. Compare and contrast open and closed systems by posing

questions such as:

What would happen if you had put a cap on your terrarium and made it into a closed system? What would have happened to the soil, plants, and animals if your terrarium was a closed

system? Draw a picture and label features you are observing in your terrarium now. How would look if

it had been a closed system?

EVALUATE

1. Students will create a graphic organizer that shows how various parts of an open system are

connected.

2. Students will write a paragraph that addresses the following prompts:

Using the recorded data, graphic organizer, and conducted research: what changes might take place within an open system?

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ASSESSMENT OPTIONS Formative Assessment

As part of their ongoing work during the lesson, student learning can be observed by examining the KWL chart provided after the References section.

Summative Assessment

Students will demonstrate their learning with their “Exit Pass” provided after the References section.

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CULTURE CONNECTION

Image courtesy of K. Arinaga.

ʻŌlelo Noʻeau

A collection of Hawaiian proverbs, translated and annotated by Mary Kawena Pukui, offers a unique opportunity to savor the wisdom, poetic beauty, and earthy humor of finely crafted expressions.

Ola i ka wai a ka ‘ōpua. (Hawaiian proverb) There is life in the water from the clouds. (English translation)

Hawaiʻi’s lush rain forests have evolved over millions of years which is a characteristic that best utilizes the water cycle to support life on the land. Native Hawaiian wet forests of trees, shrubs, ferns, and mosses absorb moisture from the mist and rains then slowly and continuously release water into the ground; thus providing a steady renewal for fresh water sources.

DIFFERENTIATION Emerging Learners

Some students may need help with construction of their terrarium and recording daily data in their science notebooks. Emerging learners may use more pictures and diagrams to show their understanding of Earth systems.

Advanced Learners

Students may wish to create visuals and/or use technology to show their understanding of Earth systems. They may create and share presentations such as posters, flyers, newsletters, Powerpoints, podcasts, or Prezis to share with their classmates.

English Language Learners

Students may need help with academic vocabulary and might benefit from creating vocabulary notecards to use throughout their investigations. Their science notebooks may have more illustrations and diagrams with labels for sheltered English language development. Students may be given the option to share their findings verbally rather than in written form.

EXTENSIONS

Students may wish to create home terrariums and record results in their science notebooks to share with classmates. In home terrariums, they may wish to use other variables, such as using native versus invasive plants in their systems.

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Students state what they would like to learn about further and conduct research on their chosen topics. They explain and demonstrate fair trials, hypotheses and other steps in the scientific method and sharing these ideas with their classmates.

There are a variety of other activities you can offer to your students to extend their learning by visiting these sites:

­ NASA Goddard Visualization studios for videos on Water Cycle: https://svs.gsfc.nasa.gov/ ­ Bishop/NASA Science on a Sphere: “Footprints”

http://www.nasa.gov/centers/goddard/visitor/exhibits/footprints_detail.html ­ NASA’s Visible Earth:

http://visibleearth.nasa.gov/view_cat.php?categoryID=734 ­ NASA’s Visible Earth: Hawaiʻi:

http://visibleearth.nasa.gov/view.php?id=82975

STANDARDS Next Generation Science Standards

Cross Cutting Concepts: Patterns ­ In grades 3­5, students identify similarities and differences in order to sort and

classify natural objects and designed products. They identify patterns related to time, including simple rates of change and cycles, and to use these patterns to make predictions. Patterns can be used as evidence to support an explanation.

Cause and Effect ­ In grades 3­5, students routinely identify and test causal relationships and use these relationships to explain change. They understand events that occur together with regularity might or might not signify a cause and effect relationship. Cause and effect relationships are routinely identified, tested, and used to explain change.

Science and Engineering Practices: Planning and Carrying Out Investigations Analyzing and Interpreting Data

Disciplinary Core Idea: 4­ESS2­1 Make observations and/or measurements to produce data to serve as the basis

for evidence for an explanation of a phenomenon. 4­ESS2.A Earth Materials and Systems: Rainfall helps to shape the land and affects the

types of living things found in a region. Water, ice, wind, living organisms, and gravity break rocks, soils, and sediments into smaller particles and move them around.

Common Core

4.RI.4 Craft and Structure: Determine the meaning of general academic and domain­specific words or phrases in a text relevant to a grade 4 topic or subject area.

Hawaii Content & Performance Standards III SC.4.3.2 Describe how an organism’s behavior is determined by its environment. SC.4.5.3 Describe how different organisms need specific environmental conditions to survive.

General Learner Outcomes

Self­directed Learner Complex Thinker Quality Producer

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ADDITIONAL RESOURCES

NASA Earth Observatory Glossary: http://earthobservatory.nasa.gov/Search/index.php?q=glossary

REFERENCES Arinaga, Kalei. (Photographer). (2015). Untitled. [Photograph]

Diagram of the Water Cycle [Photograph]. Retrieved March 14, 2015, from:

http://pmm.nasa.gov/education/water­cycle

Dunbar, Brian. "Our World: What Is Soil?" NASA. NASA, 20 Apr. 2011. Web. Retrieved 12 June 2015 from: http://www.nasa.gov/audience/foreducators/nasaeclips/search.html?terms=&category=1000

Earth’s Water Cycle. (n.d.) Retrieved June 12, 2015, from:

http://svs.gsfc.nasa.gov/cgi­bin/details.cgi?aid=11054 Make A Soda Bottle Terrarium. [Photograph]. Retrieved June 14, 2015, from:

http://www.stormthecastle.com/terrarium/soda­bottle­terrarium.htm NASA Earth Observatory. (n.d.) The Water Cycle. Retrieved April 19, 2015, from:

http://gpm.nasa.gov/education/water­cycle Pukui, M. (1983). Ōlelo noʻeau: Hawaiian proverbs & poetical sayings. Honolulu, Hawaiʻi: Bishop Museum

Press. What you need to make this Soda Bottle Terrarium. Retrieved June 14, 2015, from:

http://www.stormthecastle.com/terrarium/soda­bottle­terrarium.htm

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Name: _______________________________ Date: ______________________

Know, Wonder and Learn Chart

The purpose of the KWL is to activate students' prior knowledge by asking them what they already think they Know; then students (collaborating as a classroom unit or within small groups) set goals specifying

what they Wonder; and after reading students discuss what they have Learned.

Know What I already know:

Wonder What I wonder about:

Learned What I learned:

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Name _____________________________ Date _______________________

3­2­1 Celestial Islands Exit Slip

3 Three new things you learned: ____________________________________________________________________ ____________________________________________________________________ ____________________________________________________________________

2 Two questions you still have:

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1 How does what you learned apply to your life?

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Name _____________________________ Date _______________________

3­2­1 Celestial Islands Exit Slip 3 Three new things you learned:

____________________________________________________________________ ____________________________________________________________________ ____________________________________________________________________

2 Two questions you still have:

____________________________________________________________________ ____________________________________________________________________

1 How does what you learned apply to your life?

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