Absorbency Lab - Intro Lab for Experimental Design / Scientific Inquiry!
- Google Drive™ folder
Description
Looking for a differentiated, engaging lab activity to give students a chance to practice high-quality experimentation, data collection, and analysis? Look no further. In this Absorbency and Paper Towels Lab, students will test the absorbency of different brands of paper towel against the brand their school uses.
Students will:
-Design and conduct an experiment
-Organize data in a data table
-Visualize data with a graph
-Develop a claim and support it with evidence and reasoning
What’s included:
-pdf containing 2 differentiated versions of the lab and a handy Teacher's Guide
- Student versions in Google Slides, with text boxes for students to complete the activity digitally.
Prints well in COLOR and GREYSCALE!
This laboratory investigation comes in two Student Versions, which vary in the amount of structure and support included in order for you to best meet the needs of your students. Details of each are listed below.
Version A utilizes the Engineering Design process within the context of Scientific Inquiry by giving students the opportunity to design their own experimental procedure. Additionally, the open-ended nature of this version of the laboratory investigation will result in each lab group developing their own version of the experiment. Version B provides some support for students by including an experimental procedure for the laboratory investigation, while leaving data organization and visualization open-ended. Both versions provide opportunities for scientific argumentation using evidence and reasoning.
Additionally, you will receive a Teacher Guide that provides meaningful background information for the experiment, suggestions for implementation in the classroom, and additional tips and tricks to ensure a successful lab experience for you and your students. The Teacher Guide also includes a completed student lab sheet, sample data, and sample answers to the analysis questions.
From Deficiency to Proficiency
The Middle School NGSS builds upon K-5 NGSS, which include the fundamentals of Scientific Inquiry and Experimental Design. By the time students enter Middle School, they should come into your classroom with proficiency in these fundamental skills. This, however, is not often the case. Many of our students come from classrooms that do not offer sufficient opportunities to develop proficiency in the K-5 NGSS standards. This proves problematic for Middle School science teachers when tasked with bringing Middle School students from deficiency to proficiency within standards requiring prior knowledge in scientific thinking and inquiry.
Utilizing Land-Loving Pirate Co.’s laboratory investigations will give you the opportunity to do just that, with two versions of the lab to meet your students where they are and facilitate growth in scientific thinking. Additionally, this activity will also provide a framework for you to connect your students to the Science and Engineering Practices in the NGSS:
1. Asking questions and defining problems
2. Developing and using models
3. Planning and carrying out investigations
4. Analyzing and interpreting data
5. Using mathematics and computational thinking
6. Constructing explanations and designing solutions
7. Engaging in argument from evidence
8. Obtaining, evaluating, and communicating information
Cross-Curricular Connections
In addition to science standards, this activity engages learners in relevant math and ELA standards as well! Students will calculate mean and range using multi-trial data, and build a graph to visualize the data. Following visualization, students will develop a claim based upon the data, and utilize evidence and reasoning to support their claim.
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