Getting to know Assessment Focus 1

Understanding Scientific Thinking This theme is about assessing children’s understanding of scientific thinking. That when doing science we must weigh up the evidence before offering an explanation Scientists role is to try to find explanations to questions big or small Developing the big ideas of science That scientific ideas must be based on evidence collected and verified

Assessment grid for AF1

AF1 Scientific thinking Weighing up the evidence Finding an explanatio n Developing scientific ideas Science ideas must be based on evidence It doesn’t seem fair to me? Themes that are developed through this focus

Developing scientific ideas Weighing up evidence Finding an explanation Ideas based on evidence

Theme: Developing scientific ideas 5Use abstract ideas or models or more than one step when describing processes or phenomena 4Use scientific ideas when describing simple processes or phenomena 3Respond to ideas given to them to answer questions or suggest solutions to problems 3Represent things in the real world using simple physical models 3Identify differences, similarities or changes related to simple scientific ideas, processes or phenomena 1Ask questions stimulated by sensed experience of their world 5 Jane made a model of the water cycle and was able to explain each of the steps in turn 4 Use the words evaporation and condensation appropriately when explaining the water cycle 3 In a discussion about how to keep warm at night in winter, children able to give reasons for their choice of insulation materials. Able to justify their choice on the basis of insulating properties and suggest practical ideas for keeping warm.

AF1: Weighing up the evidence 5 Recognise scientific questions that do not yet have definitive answers 2 Respond to suggestions to identify some evidence (in the form of information, observations or measurements) needed to answer a question 2 Make comparisons between simple features or components of objects, living things or events 1Select information from a given list that could/has been used to answer a question 5 When talking about space children able to recognise that they can’t have we don’t have the complete answer. Or When trying to understand environmental issues there are so many factors involved that a complete answer may be impossible to find 1 When talking about how they were going to make a parachute to get Old Ted from the loft. Children able to identify things that they have to think of from a list.

AF1: Finding an explanation 5Explain processes or phenomena, suggest solutions to problems or answer questions by drawing on abstract ideas or models 4Use simple models to describe scientific ideas 5 When dealing with explaining changes of state children able to talk about ice/water particles and how the behave.

AF1: Science ideas must be based on evidence 5Identify the use of evidence and creative thinking by scientists in the development of scientific ideas 4Identify scientific evidence that is being used to support or refute ideas or arguments 3Use straightforward scientific evidence to answer questions, or to support their findings 2Draw on some evidence in the form of observations collected and ideas they have to try to answer a question, 1Respond to suggestions to identify evidence (information, observations, measurements) that has been used to answer a question 3 Children looked at images of tea bags and their contents. They explained that the pictures showed the contents were too big to go through the tea bag material 4 When studying a habitat children able to identify evidence to support idea that too many rabbits are eating the crops and that more foxes have been seen than usual which refutes that.

Examples of activities that provide AF1 opportunities KS2KS1

Use physical models of planets and how they move to explain their ideas Able to offer reasons for classification of planets using the given criteria Children’s response to the assessment focus Offer an explanation as to why Pluto is/is not a planet based on scientific evidence Able to explain how the planets move Able to explain about what planets are and why some objects may not be planets Where evidence can be found from this task?

Polar Bears Scientists in California are trying to find out if the noise of Arctic ice melting is affecting bears' hearing. In the wild, polar bears live in silence but increasing noise levels may threaten their breeding patterns if they can’t hear each other over long distances. Also they may be afraid since human activity signals danger to them. Conversely, the animals may mistakenly think unusual noises indicate food and they could be encouraged to migrate to inappropriate areas. In this activity the children consider how we hear and decide what affects a polar bear’s hearing. Science: QCA Unit 1F: Sound and Hearing that we hear with our ears that we use our sense of hearing for a range of purposes, including recognising hazards and risks Scientific enquiry making, recording and presenting observations drawing conclusions opportunities to relate understanding of sound and hearing to everyday experiences

Polar Bears Introducing the activity Display Page 1 through a data projector or on an OHT. Discuss the images with the children. Ask the children what they use to hear things. Discussion starters Do they think other animals hear? What do they use? What sounds can they hear? Sit in silence for 30 seconds, what do you hear? What do you think you would hear in the Arctic? Has any one they know got a problem with hearing? What did they do about it? Leading the main activity Display Page 2 through a data projector or on an OHT. Polar bears also use their ears to hear but their ears are much more sensitive than humans. This means they can hear quieter sounds than us! Scientists in California are trying to find out if the noise of Arctic ice melting is affecting bears' hearing.

Polar Bears Optional practical activity Ask children to draw a picture or describe how they think we hear. Carry out a number of short activities eg ask them to point to where a sound is coming from; using ear muffs over both or one ear see if children can hear as well as with both ears which will test their ideas. Encourage them to raise questions during the activities e.g. What will happen if we use earmuffs? What happens if we only cover one ear? Listen to sounds whilst: - facing the sound source back to the sound source hands cupped round ears coat hood up and compare differences. Discuss with children what they have found out and help them to record this using drawings and writing. Display Page 3 through a data projector or on an OHT and give the children a copy of the sheet. Ask them to cut out the pictures and group them into those where the polar bears could hear well and those in which they would have more difficulty in hearing clearly. The picture of the polar bear with the ear trumpet will hopefully lead to an interesting discussion and possibly the opportunity to try it out using a paper or cardboard trumpet. Link this to animals with large ears.

Children’s response to the assessment focus Where evidence can be found from this task? Talk about how noisy it can be and how difficult it is to sort out sounds Come up with ideas as to how they can find where sounds come from When faced with silence or a sudden loud sound can come up with a ‘I want to find ‘ Able to compare the loudness of two sounds Can answer the question ‘How might we know that the polar bear has a hearing problem’