Common Core. ELA-Literacy. SL.6.4, SL.7.4. Present claims and findings, sequencing ideas logically and using pertinent descriptions, facts, and details to accentuate main ideas or themes; use appropriate eye contact, adequate volume, and clear pronunciation.
Have groups write responses to the following questions in their lab journals or on scrap paper
Common Core. ELA-Literacy. W.6-8.1. Write arguments focused on discipline content.
Invite groups to create posters, maps, or other visual representations to summarize and share their findings
Common Core. ELA-Literacy.SL.6.5. Include multimedia components (e.g., graphics, images, music, sound) and visual displays in presentations to clarify information.
Have groups work together to develop a plan for their exhibit
Common Core. ELA-Literacy.WHST.6-8.2. Write informative/explanatory texts to examine a topic and convey ideas, concepts, and information through the selection, organization, and analysis of relevant content.
have them use the balance and the graduated cylinder to find the density
Common Core. Math.7.EE.B.4. Use variables to represent quantities in a real-world or mathematical problem, and construct simple equations and inequalities to solve problems by reasoning about the quantities.
If you were to randomly place your finger on a map of the world, with what certainty might you predict the climate of the place you land?
NGSS Science and Engineering Practices. 6 – Constructing Explanations and Designing Solutions. MS. Construct a scientific explanation based on valid and reliable evidence obtained from sources (including the students’ own experiments) and the assumption that theories and laws that describe nature operate today as they did in the past and will continue to do so in the future.
both text and any graphs or data they referenced
Common Core. ELA-Literacy.RST.6-8.7. Integrate quantitative or technical information expressed in words in a text with a version of that information expressed visually (e.g., in a flowchart, diagram, model, graph, or table).
Although the age at which maximum carbon sequestration occurs varies with tree species, the general shape of this relationship is similar for all species.
NGSS Crosscutting Concepts. 1 – Patterns. MS. Patterns in rates of change and other numerical relationships can provide information about natural systems.
Carbon flows through biological, physical, and geological systems with different processes and at different timescales.
NGSS Disciplinary Core Ideas. MS-ESS2.A – Earth’s Materials and Systems. All Earth processes are the result of energy flowing and matter cycling within and among the planet’s systems. This energy is derived from the sun and Earth’s hot interior. The energy that flows and matter that cycles produce chemical and physical changes in Earth’s materials and living organisms.
students understand the elements required in their argument, including claim, evidence, and reasoning
Common Core. ELA-Literacy.WHST.6-8.1. Write arguments focused on discipline content.