| Note: Every attempt has been made to maintain the integrity of the printed text within the constraints of the electronic environment. In some cases, figures and tables have been reconstructed or omitted. |
INTRODUCTION
Evaluating a science investigation on bending light conducted in her eighth-grade English as a second language (ESL) class, Elena wrote,
I liked the science experiment we made and the 'how-to paper', too. I learned something new and it was fun to worked in groups.
Arturo elaborated on Elena's evaluation in his written follow-up:
The science help us comprehend the phenomenons of the Nature. For this reason the experiment was very interesting because working in groups helped us practice english. . . .Also I learned new vocabulary words for example: beam, divergent, coin, convergent, inclined surface, measure, path, refraction, etc. I like the experiment because I learned the objective of the experiment ''the refraction of the light'' I would like to make more experiments.
Studying factors that affect the taste of foods, fourth-grader Veronica wrote in her summary, ''I realy like doing this. I learned a lot of things today.'' In praise of his cooperative learning group, Ernesto added, ''We are group two. Science is the best subtec.''
These students have succinctly summarized the value of integrating science and language learning. Each student sees how doing science, especially through collaborative interactions, has an important payoff for learning language. Science activities in an ESL classroom or in a science classroom where students are acquiring English as a second language-either setting can effectively provide conditions for acquisition of both language and science concepts for students learning English as a non-native language at all levels of English language proficiency.
The purpose of this guide is to help teachers plan, design, and implement science activities for students learning English as a second language in Grades 4-8. Steps to designing science experiences that effectively integrate language and science content are presented. The sample activities presented in this guide have been successfully used with English language learners at the upper elementary and middle school levels. The information in this guide should be useful to teachers working with students in science classes, ESL classes, bilingual programs, or other programs that serve students who need special help in developing English language skills.
INTEGRATING SCIENCE AND LANGUAGE LEARNING
Science activities can provide meaning-making experiences about the biophysical environment for English language learners. In order for new knowledge to be acquired-in science and in language-it must be an active, meaning-making process. The science classroom can also provide an excellent atmosphere for developing the kinds of social behaviors students need in order to find solutions to local and global problems. In science, language becomes the tool for communicating meanings and solutions.
For students learning English as a second language, new science concepts can pose difficult problems. Abandoning previously acquired knowledge is a challenging process and may be accomplished only superficially even after formal science teaching. This is particularly relevant for learners who come from diverse cultural backgrounds with world-views that may differ from those reflected in the science classroom (Kessler & Quinn, 1987).
To promote the development of a second language through science, it may be helpful to examine learning and teaching principles that aid in the acquisition of both language and content. The principles of learning and teaching that form the basis for a new core science curriculum are remarkably similar to those widely recognized for promoting second language acquisition. The American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS) (1989) has formulated a set of recommendations on scientific literacy (including science, mathematics, and technology) as a conceptual base for reform in science education. Both the learning and teaching principles adapted from the Association's recommendations, as specified in Science for All Americans, are listed and explained below in the context of how science and language learning can be integrated (Kessler, Quinn, & Fathman, 1992).
The five learning principles proposed by the AAAS include the following:
1. Prior knowledge influences learning.
2. Learning moves from the concrete to the abstract.
3. Learning requires practice in new situations.
4. Effective learning requires feedback.
5. Learning is not necessarily an outcome of teaching.
1. Teaching is consistent with the nature of scientific inquiry.
2. Teaching reflects scientific values.
3. Teaching aims to lower learning anxieties.
4. Teaching extends beyond the school.
TEACHING STRATEGIES FOR LANGUAGE AND SCIENCE
Teachers of science to students acquiring English can help students understand the basic content of science while improving their English skills by using specific teaching strategies that reflect the learning and teaching principles discussed above. To successfully teach science concepts to English learners, teachers need to give simultaneous attention to the language used and the content presented. This can be done by using the following strategies:
Teachers of science to English learners can gain valuable ideas from language teachers on strategies that enhance the development of language skills. Sheltered English is an approach in which modified or simplified language is used to teach content area concepts to students who are acquiring English. In the science or sheltered English classroom, teaching strategies can include the use of language for purposeful communication, reading and writing that leads students to formulate questions about phenomena of interest to them, building and evaluating theories, collecting data, developing hypotheses, interpreting data, and communicating findings.
For cooperative learning to work as an effective form of classroom management, a number of elements must be in place:
Encouraging learners to serve as teachers for their peers is one way to create functional and successful learning environments. Because cooperative learning teams are not the same as traditional small groups, the teacher's role in structuring this kind of environment is critical.
Science investigations should be personally relevant, socially meaningful, and academically challenging. The emphasis on collaborative inquiry builds on the view that knowledge and understanding are socially constructed through talk, activity, and interaction on meaningful problems. Students share responsibility for analyzing and participating in activities. This is particularly helpful for second language learners who may have the cognitive ability to do the tasks and construct scientific meanings but may be limited in demonstrating this ability through English.
Focus on key words.
Science relies upon the presentation of many key vocabulary items. The introduction of new vocabulary should be limited to fewer than twelve words per lesson. Students' knowledge of scientific terms in their native language or of their Latin origins may be helpful in identifying meanings. Vocabulary can best be introduced using real objects, pictures, and visuals. In a lesson on nutrients, for example, words such as carbohydrates, starches, and proteins can be introduced by bringing in foods or referring to pictures of foods containing these nutrients. The meaning of a more abstract term such as calories can be demonstrated by using a chart that depicts the number of calories contained in various foods (e.g., bread, fruit, meat) or the number of calories burned by doing various activities (e.g., sitting, walking, running). Some students may grasp the meaning of calorie only after having participated in an activity such as burning different foods and measuring temperature changes. For the English learner, it is essential for the teacher to re-introduce key words in different contexts and guide students in using these words during scientific investigations.
Use words with personal references.
The meaning of scientific terms can be clarified and personalized through careful choice of vocabulary, as in the following:
Your body needs nutrients. You get these nutrients from your food.
The personal reference to your body and your food focus on the student and familiar everyday vocabulary and concepts.
Use shorter and less complex sentences.
Scientific language often contains complex sentences in the passive voice. These types of structures can be shortened and expressed in the active voice. For example, the statement
Nutrients are needed by living things; therefore, one's daily diet should contain the proper nutrients
could be simplified to:
All living things need nutrients. A good diet contains the proper nutrients.
Repeat or paraphrase whenever possible; pause frequently.
A concept, once presented, should be reintroduced in a number of ways and in various situations. Repeated exposure reinforces key concepts and helps ensure comprehension. The teacher can begin by consciously paraphrasing an idea in different ways using extended pauses between ideas. For example:
Food is the source of nutrients. You obtain the nutrients you need from food. Food provides your body with the nutrients it needs. Living things use different foods. But all living things need the same nutrients. Food is always the source of nutrients for living things.
Some students might be able to grasp an idea after listening to a discussion on it while others need to experience concepts through physical involvement before they are capable of full understanding. Science activities can provide different ways of exploring a concept, just as language can provide diverse ways of expressing an idea.
Intersperse more questions within discourse.
Teachers can ask questions to help students understand, to encourage critical thinking, or to find out what students know about a science concept. Questions can vary in both linguistic difficulty and cognitive complexity. Teachers should be aware of both aspects of the questions they ask, for a question that may be the least cognitively demanding may be quite linguistically complex.
The simplest questions in terms of cognition often involve a choice, e.g., ''Do horses eat grass or do they eat meat?'' Another type of question usually requiring linguistically simple answers is a factual recall question such as, ''What nutrients supply the energy for your body?'' A type of question frequently used in science lessons is the interpretive question that can be used to summarize or talk about what has been learned: ''Why do you need food? What would happen if an animal did not get food?'' Questioning during and after science activities can begin with factual recall and be expanded to explanations of causes or principles involved. Teacher questioning enhances interaction, serves as a model for student questioning, and encourages the development of inquiry skills in the science classroom.
Provide feedback on language through restatement, not overt correction.
When evaluating students' speaking skills, teachers should focus on the accuracy of information they give, not on the correctness of their pronunciation or grammar. Errors are a natural occurrence in the second language acquisition process, and the best way for teachers to encourage students to express themselves is to model correct forms through restatement. The following interaction between teacher and student demonstrates how a teacher can effectively use restatement.
Teacher: ''What are some foods that contain protein?''
Student: ''Some food are eggs, milks, meats.''
Teacher: ''Yes, some foods that contain protein are eggs, milk, and meat.''
This type of response by the teacher encourages the student and allows the teacher to model the correct forms indirectly.
Present new material orally, using real objects and visuals.
Teachers should introduce topics whenever possible by using demonstrations, real objects, pictures, films, and other visual or physical clues to clarify meaning. For example, real thermometers should be available to students when talking about temperature measurement.
Take into consideration the backgrounds and interests of the students in preparing and presenting materials.
Students bring varied and often rich experiences from their cultures. They should be encouraged to share their personal experiences when exploring science topics together. For example, discussions might center on weather differences in their native countries and how weather affects the way people live and dress. Personal experiences increase student interest in a topic, make a new topic relevant to previous experience, and motivate students to explore and learn more about a topic.
Encourage students to talk about what they have done and have them provide feedback to each other.
Communication occurs naturally when students work in groups, and teachers should design oral and written tasks that require students to communicate and share information at every step. Teachers should frequently model questioning and provide special instruction on how to formulate questions and use them appropriately in various contexts. A group investigation in which students examine changes in water vapor is an example of an activity that encourages and requires students to exchange information. Such an activity might proceed as follows:
1. As a group, students make predictions about humidity in the air.
2. Pairs of students work together using thermometers to build hygrometers.
3. Student pairs test humidity in the air in various locations.
4. As a group, students record and share their results.
Science problem-solving activities such as this one provide a common experience on which students can build other experiences, such as questioning, exchanging ideas or results, and arriving at conclusions.
Extend the learning activities beyond the classroom.
Activities that bring adults other than the teacher into the classroom or encourage investigation outside the classroom can greatly benefit students with a limited knowledge of English and the American culture. Almost all science inquiries can be successfully extended beyond the classroom. Activities such as the following could be incorporated into a unit on weather:
All science inquiries should be open-ended to the extent that students are encouraged to continue questioning and investigating outside the classroom.
Teachers may find useful some of the strategies for adapting written science materials discussed below. Examples are taken from a chapter in a sixth-grade science text on ''Force.''
Identify the most essential facts, vocabulary, and skills.
Teachers should analyze textbook chapters from the point of view of the language learner. Important facts and vocabulary are relatively easy to identify in written materials. In adapting materials, teachers should focus on words in bold print, in headings, and in the chapter summaries found in textbooks. In a chapter on force, for example, the words force, lever, fulcrum, inclined planes, wheels, and pulleys describe key topics. Teachers can pool material from each unit and prioritize vocabulary items and facts for presentation to students acquiring English.
Provide sociocultural knowledge where students might not share background.
Texts written for native speakers of English may assume previous knowledge about concepts or objects that are unfamiliar to students from another culture. For example, a text may use examples of different kinds of levers to clarify the meaning of lever. However, many English learners may have never seen or used the objects mentioned, such as pruning shears, tweezers, a nutcracker, or a seesaw. Teachers should make a special effort to bring in objects or use visuals that provide all students with the background necessary to understand written science materials.
Summarize written material orally first.
An oral preview on a topic using objects and visuals can facilitate reading comprehension on that topic for second language learners at all levels. Oral previews may include teacher-directed summaries, audiotapes of summaries or readings, language master cards of key words, or oral activities (e.g., pair activities or role plays). In preparing students for a reading on force, a teacher might show slides of a child pedaling a bicycle, rowing a boat, or hitting a ball, and get students to talk about what kinds of forces are involved.
Teach skills for previewing, questioning, and reviewing written material.
Students acquiring English should be taught study skills for dealing with written science materials. In any given class, these students will exhibit a wide range of previous educational experiences. Students may need to be guided in how to use science textbook aids such as glossaries, captions, titles, headings, graphs, and charts. Most science texts for the upper elementary and middle school are full of pictures, illustrations, and examples that can be used to help language learners comprehend what they are reading in English. Teachers can encourage students to use study techniques such as the Survey, Question, Read, Recite and Review (SQ3R) approach, that suggests students first scan the material in a textbook chapter for key concepts and vocabulary, develop questions regarding the reading passage, read the passage, recite the key ideas, and review the chapter to ensure nothing essential has been missed.
Science teachers may want to become familiar with techniques associated with various second language teaching methodologies and approaches. For example, Total Physical Response methods (Asher, 1977) emphasize the importance of physical involvement in language learning. In science activities, students can be encouraged to describe their actions orally while they demonstrate how to do something. Hands-on science inquiries provide a perfect setting for talking while being physically involved. The Natural Approach (Krashen & Terrell, 1987) suggests that students be allowed to progress naturally through various stages of language acquisition. Teachers are encouraged not to force students to speak but to allow a silent period when working with beginning students or introducing new topics. Teacher presentations and science manipulative activities provide a means for students to listen or participate without being forced to speak or answer questions. A familiarity with various methodologies (see Richard-Amato, 1988) will allow teachers of science to use techniques that have been successfully used in teaching English to second language learners.
Teachers should vary instructional strategies according to the proficiency levels of their students (Richard-Amato & Snow, 1992). Beginning students are more dependent on gestures, visuals, and objects, and may comprehend only words or phrases. Intermediate students may express themselves with difficulty and often be misunderstood. These students can benefit from simplified language input, both oral and written, and can be expected to write with numerous errors, using simple grammar and limited vocabulary. More advanced students can comprehend most of what is said in the mainstream classroom but may make occasional errors and have a limited vocabulary in speaking and writing. They continue to benefit from lessons that incorporate contextual support and redundancy to clarify science concepts. Science teachers, whether in mainstream or sheltered classes, should be aware of each student's language proficiency level and adapt their teaching strategies accordingly.
In addition to being knowledgeable about instructional strategies, teachers should also become familiar with various assessment procedures. The progress of each student should be continually monitored in language and in science. Assessment can be conducted in numerous ways, e.g., through oral questioning and reviewing, written assignments and tests, and portfolios. Continual assessment of conceptual understanding as well as of oral and literacy skills allows a teacher to know where individual student strengths and weaknesses lie. Alternative (non-standardized) methods of assessment should be used, since a student may be strong in conceptual understanding but weak in literacy and test-taking skills needed for succeeding on standardized tests. Information generated by alternative assessments can be invaluable in determining which students need individual help, in planning assignments, and in developing and evaluating the science curriculum. For a description and examples of how to develop alternative assessment procedures for language minority students, see Pierce & O'Malley (1992). For information on alternative assessment in science, see Educational Testing Service (1987) and Hein (1990).
Teachers who collaborate with each other, modify their language, adapt science materials, and encourage student involvement and cooperation in the classroom provide a setting that allows students to progress in the understanding of science concepts while developing English listening, speaking, reading, and writing skills.
By investigating each science concept through these three types of activities, students progress from a carefully guided presentation to an organized group inquiry to open-ended individual study. The sequencing of activities from teacher-directed to group-centered and student-initiated activities allows students to progress naturally through stages of language learning - from observing to solving, listening to speaking, interacting to initiating.
The focus in all three types of activities should be on inquiry. Even during a demonstration activity, the teacher should guide students into questioning and discovering relevant facts and concepts. Teachers should encourage critical thinking that facilitates comprehension of oral and written material and develops students' abilities to analyze that material. Activities should be open-ended so students can initiate and discover different ways of solving problems. Whether observing a demonstration, participating in a group, or working individually, students should develop an understanding of how to investigate through scientific observation and the collection and interpretation of data.
Before doing a demonstration, the teacher should find out what students already know about the topic to be presented. In this way, students' prior knowledge is activated. A teacher demonstration can serve a number of important functions such as: introducing a concept, creating interest in a topic, stimulating thinking so that students are ready to continue investigating on their own, showing students how to do something, and raising questions or presenting problems to solve. A demonstration can give students the opportunity to listen and observe before having to produce any language. The focus can be on the development of comprehension skills or on the learning of new vocabulary or concepts. In a demonstration, students watch and listen as the teacher speaks. A demonstration can be extended by having students repeat or modify what was said or done or take part in the discussion accompanying the demonstration. An initial oral and visual preview to a concept can greatly benefit a student's understanding of that topic.
After the teacher demonstration, a group investigation enhances comprehension and production skills through student interaction and allows for further exploration of science concepts. Cooperative work in science activities provides an ideal environment in which to learn a new language. Language is acquired naturally as students listen to others and express themselves while working in a group.
Heterogeneous grouping of students at different proficiency levels is important for providing models of good language use. More advanced students may need little guidance in following directions or carrying out an inquiry, and they can provide help for students who have less English proficiency. Roles taken by students within a group can be varied according to each student's proficiency level. For example, a student who is able to read and write English can record the results of an investigation while a student who writes little English might record numbers on a chart or draw pictures illustrating the group's findings. Student participation and interaction should be encouraged through the questioning, observing, recording, and interpreting of data obtained by each group.
As a follow-up to the group activity, an independent investigation allows each student to examine a science concept on his or her own. Independent activities can also be carried out by pairs of students who may not yet be ready to work individually. An independent activity allows students to explore questions related to a science concept already familiar to them and extend their inquiries outside the classroom. Students at almost all levels of English proficiency can carry out individual inquiries, but they will differ in their ability to describe their observations and express solutions.
The selection of appropriate science concepts for English learners will depend on the school curriculum, program objectives, and the type of class and students involved. Usually a curriculum or science framework will determine the concepts to be addressed in an upper elementary or middle school classroom. Science textbooks and materials are the obvious source for selecting concepts; units or chapters focusing on concepts and subtopics can be used as the basis for demonstration, group, and individual activities. Teachers can focus on the science concepts they want to teach and the language their students will need in order to communicate about these concepts.
In addition to science textbooks and materials, many other popular sources provide ideas for problem-solving activities in science. Some useful resources include:
The Science Teacher (National Science Teachers Association);
National Geographic World (National Geographic Society);
Mr. Wizard's 400 Experiments in Science (Herbert, 1968);
Mr. Wizard's Supermarket Science (Herbert, 1980);
Science on a Shoestring (Strongin, 1976);
Science Weekly (Science Weekly);
Wonderscience (Nichols & Nichols, 1990); and
Project AIMS Materials (AIMS Education Foundation).
The sample concepts and activities that follow are brief examples of how to present science concepts using a teacher demonstration followed by group and independent activities.
1. Concept: Electrical energy causes motion.
| Teacher Demonstration: Use an inflated balloon to pick up small pieces of paper. | Group Investigation: Use an inflated balloon to cause another balloon to move. | Individual Investigation: Use an inflated balloon to test what objects it will pick up. |
2. Concept: Rapid motion causes the temperature of objects to rise.
| Teacher Demonstration: Rub a wooden block over sandpaper to show how the temperature of the block goes up. | Group Demonstration: Bend a paper clip rapidly back and forth and use cheeks to test for temperature change. | Individual Investigation: Find other objects (e.g., saw, chisel, file) outside of class that change temperature after rapid motion and test them for temperature change. |
3. Concept: Animals move in different ways; some animals move by stretching.
| Teacher Demonstration: Use earthworms to show how they move by stretching because they have no legs. | Group Investigation: Observe earthworm activity when these are placed in a carton of soil. | Individual Investigation: Find examples of other animals without legs outside of class or in pictures. Name and classify them according to how they move. |
4. Concept: Rapidly moving air causes some objects to rise.
| Teacher Demonstration: Hold a long piece of paper to the bottom lip and blow hard across the top of the paper to show how it moves up. | Group Investigation: Blow hard across the top of a balloon and then try to explain why it rises and what makes airplanes rise into the air. | Individual Investigation: Use a fan to see what objects you can lift up into the air. |
| directing | defining | advising |
| requesting | describing | suggesting |
| questioning | expressing opinions | praising |
| refusing | agreeing | cautioning |
| accepting | disagreeing | encouraging |
Teachers can focus on language functions through oral (''What to Discuss'') and written (''What to Record'') exercises completed by students during and after an investigation (Fathman & Quinn, 1989). These exercises should vary in difficulty so that students at different proficiency levels can participate in activities, record their observations, and comment on their findings.
Language functions can be incorporated throughout science activities. For example, directing (giving and following directions) may be emphasized in an activity where the teacher first gives directions on how to build a rocket. This can be followed by an activity in which students work in groups to direct each other in building their own paper rockets.
Steps for Designing a Science Unit
The steps outlined below suggest how a teacher can develop activities on a science concept or theme.
1. Select a topic, e.g., heat, light, animals.
2. Choose a science concept, e.g., light bends, water condenses.
3. Identify the language functions necessary for science activities, e.g., requesting, directing, informing.
4. Design a teacher demonstration related to the concept.
5. Design one or more student group investigations to explore the concept.
6. Design individual or paired student investigations to explore the concept.
7. Plan oral exercises for developing listening and speaking skills.
8. Plan written exercises for developing literacy skills.
The following activities are based on Science for Language Learners (Fathman & Quinn, 1989). Examples from units on Heat, Animals, and Plants show how science concepts and language functions can serve as the basis for the three types of activities in each unit (teacher demonstration, group investigation, and individual investigations). These examples present basic concepts and suggest activities that can lead to further study and investigation of each topic.
Science Concept: Heat is a form of energy that changes the size and shape of things.
Language Functions: Describing and defining
TEACHER DEMONSTRATION
The teacher pops some corn to show that heat causes a change in size and shape (by changing liquid to vapor/gas inside the kernel).
What to Use
air popcorn popper, popcorn, metric ruler
What to Do
1. Ask students to notice the relatively small size of the corn kernels.
2. Ask students to measure the depth of the corn in the pan.
3. Have them predict what changes will occur in the popcorn; write these on the board.
4. Pour corn into the popper and turn it on.
5. Have students measure the depth of the popped corn and observe the shape of grains.
Words to Study
The teacher or students can identify key words used during the demonstration, such as heat, shape, kernel, grain, and pop.
What to Discuss
1. Students should describe the kernels of corn before and after heating.
2. Have students describe and follow each step of the teacher's demonstration.
3. Ask students to think of other foods that change size and shape when heated, and discuss why these changes occur.
4. Discuss questions such as: When do the kernels of corn change? What kind of energy is changed to heat energy?
What to Record
1. Ask students to draw a picture of a kernel of corn before and after heating. They should write words that describe each picture.
2. Have students measure the kernels before and after heating. They should also record the measurements on a chart and describe changes in their color and shape (see Figure 1 below).
3. Write a description of what steps the teacher took to pop the corn.
4. Describe in writing the changes in shape, color, and form of the corn kernels.
| COLOR/SHAPE AFTER
HEATING | 1.__________mm
| ____________mm
| _______________________ | 2.__________mm
| ____________mm
| _______________________ | 3.__________mm
| ____________mm
| _______________________ | 4.__________mm
| ____________mm
| _______________________ | |
What to Use
two birthday candles, two pieces of foil paper, a clock or watch with a second hand, matches
What to Do
1. Predict how long it will take for a candle to change to a puddle of wax.
2. Fasten a candle to foil paper, light it, and note how long it takes for it to burn out.
3. Repeat Steps 1 and 2 with another candle of the same size in a different place in the room.
4. Compare the results with the predictions.
Words to Study
The teacher or students can make a list of words that might be used to talk about the burning process such as: light, flame, and melt.
What to Discuss
1. Describe to others how the candle changed as it burned.
2. Ask classmates to give definitions of words such as: size, shape, solid, and liquid.
3. Discuss questions such as: Do candles always take the same number of minutes to burn? If there is a difference between the time it takes two candles to burn, how can you explain this difference? Why does the candle change from a solid to a liquid?
What to Record
1. Make a chart showing the time predicted for the candle to burn and the difference between the time predicted and the actual time observed, including: the time the candle started burning; the time the candle went out; and the time the candle actually burned. Repeat for candle two.
2. Define important vocabulary by drawing pictures or writing definitions.
3. Describe how a candle turns into a puddle of wax.
4. Write and answer questions about observations and predictions.
What to Use
plastic cup, plastic bag, two ice cubes, newspaper, ruler, paper towels
What to Do
1. Cover a desk with newspaper.
2. Measure each ice cube.
3. Put one cube in a cup and one in a bag. Repeatedly squeeze the plastic bag with the ice cube in it.
4. Predict what changes will occur.
5. After five minutes measure both ice cubes and compare sizes.
6. Repeat Steps 1-5.
What to Study
1. Compare measurements of each ice cube and try to explain any difference in sizes.
2. Think of other things a person could do to make ice cubes melt.
3. Think of other cold or frozen things that melt and what to do to make them melt faster.
4. Ask and answer questions about observations.
What to Record
1. Record the size of the ice cubes in centimeters (see Figure 2).
2. List five ways to melt ice.
3. Answer questions such as: When does ice melt? What kind of energy is involved in the changes you observed?
Science Concept: Animals are living things that move by means of their own power.
Language Functions: Suggesting and expressing opinions
What to Use
newspapers, clay, flour or sand
What to Do
The teacher should use newspapers, clay, and flour or sand to show students how tracks are made.
1. Cover a large area of the floor with newspapers. Sprinkle flour or sand on the papers.
2. Have students predict what will happen when they walk across the dusted newspapers.
3. Ask a student to walk across the floured/sanded papers. Ask another student to do the same.
4. Have students examine their tracks. Ask questions that lead students to conclude that tracks can be made only by moving things.
5. Call attention to the different size tracks and that they cross one another.
6. Redust the floor. Ask two students to walk up to one another and then walk away. While they do this, all other students should have their eyes closed.
7. Ask the other students to examine the tracks and determine what happened.
Ask students to look for animal tracks on their way home from school. Give them pieces of clay and ask them to make the paw print of a dog or cat, either by pressing the clay to the animal's paw or into a print that has hardened on the ground. They can also sketch the prints they see. If possible, they can bring the prints and/or sketches to school the next day.
Words to Study
The teacher or students can identify new words used in the demonstration, such as track, print, and movement.
What to Discuss
1. Make suggestions to classmates on how to find tracks outside the classroom.
2. Name animals that make tracks.
3. Describe different track patterns.
What to Record
1. Draw a set of tracks that tell a story.
2. Write the names of animals that make tracks and the best place to find the tracks.
3. Write suggestions for where and when a person might find animal tracks.
What to Use
books, magazines, plain paper, pencils, ink pad
What to Do
1. Use an ink pad to obtain a print from an animal.
2. Draw the print of the animal using the ink pad print.
3. Compare the shape of the print to those of others in the group.
4. Find pictures of various animals in books and magazines.
5. Observe animal behavior in a film, on television, or in the neighborhood.
6. Make track stories by drawing a series of animal prints to show the behavior of animals. For example, show two different animals meeting and going away from each other.
Words to Study
The teacher or students can define new words for this unit, such as approach, back off, run away, walk away, footprints, attack, fight, meet, and sequence.
What to Discuss
1. Students show their track stories to the others in their group and ask them to guess where the animals were and what they were doing when they made the tracks.
2. Discuss questions such as: How can we tell what tracks belong to which animals? Why are tracks different?
What to Record
1. Keep a record of the prints and names of all the animals we can identify by their prints.
2. Draw a track story with prints. Then write the story in words.
3. Name four things a person can learn from examining a track sequence.
What to Use
medium-sized potato, knife or other cutting instrument*, pencil, ink pad, white paper
* Teachers are advised to use discretion in allowing students to use a knife. Whereas the authors have successfully used this activity with students in Grades 4-8, they suggest teachers closely monitor students working with sharp instruments.
What to Do
1. Select an animal footprint to use.
2. Prepare a carrot or potato so that it has a flat surface on which to draw.
3. Use a pencil to draw a footprint of an animal on the flat surface.
4. With a knife, carve around the drawing so that the print stands out.
5. Use the footprint stamp and the ink pad to create a track story.
6. Make another stamp and draw a track story about two animals.
What to Study
1. Think of different ways to suggest how a person can make a cat's paw print.
2. Answer questions such as: What did your tracks tell about the animal that made them? Why would tracks be close together?
What to Record
1. Describe the animals whose tracks were recorded.
2. Describe the track pictures in words.
3. Ask other students to interpret the track stories and write down what they say.
Science Concept: As they grow, plants change light energy into chemical energy.
Language Functions: Agreeing and disagreeing
What to Use
a cup of dried kidney and lima beans (soaked overnight before class), two clear plastic cups, paper towels, jar of water, newspapers to cover student desks
What to Do
1. Give each student six or eight kidney and lima beans.
2. Show students how to remove the bean coating with a toothpick.
3. Explain about and show them the three parts of each bean: embryo, food supply, and covering.
4. Ask students to pull their own seeds apart and examine them.
5. Place three or four beans in a crumpled paper towel that has been soaked in water, and place this in one of the plastic cups.
6. Cover the cup with the beans in it with the empty cup. Fasten the two cups together with tape, and place it in a sunny spot (see Figure 3).
7. Ask students to predict what will happen and how long it will take.
8. Ask students to watch the seeds germinate over the next few days.
Germination Cup
(NOTE: Because of the limitations of the electronic environment, Figure 3 has been omitted)
Words to Study
The teacher and/or students can make a list of words to study, such as: bean, seed, embryo, protective covering, encase, curved, supply, germinate, and crumble.
What to Discuss
1. Students should give each other step-by-step directions on how to prepare seeds for germination.
2. Discuss such questions as: Do all seeds have the same parts?Are all seeds the same size or color? Why do the seeds have to be soaked before they can be pulled apart? Why do seeds have a food supply? What are the parts of a seed? Which part is the largest? Agree or disagree with one another's answers.
What to Record
1. Students should draw a picture of a seed and label its parts.
2. Write step-by-step directions for preparing seeds to germinate.
3. Write answers to the discussion questions.
What to Use
newspapers, two clear plastic cups, scotch tape, paper towels, jar of water, ruler, soaked seeds (e.g., lima beans, kidney beans, dried corn kernels, dried peas)
What to Do
1. Examine the germination system that the teacher made.
2. Prepare germination systems the way the teacher has, but put in two of each type of seed.
3. Each group tapes its group number on its system and places it in the sun. Each group should keep its system damp and observe it for several days.
What to Discuss
1. Students should explain why they did the following things: used clear cups, soaked the towels, taped the cups together, and placed the cups in the sun.
2. Answer questions such as: How do seeds get food as they germinate? How do they change as they germinate? How long does it take a seed to germinate? Do they all germinate at the same time?
What to Record
1. Record the type of seeds and the date they were prepared. Indicate the date(s) they germinated. Write the height of each plant every day for at least a week after the plants germinate. To do this, the students can make a chart with four columns (see Figure 4). In the first column, they can write the date they measured the plants. In the third column, they can write the height of each plant, and in the fourth column, they can write a description of each plant.
2. Describe how to make a germination system.
| Date the seeds were prepared: _______________________ Type of seed: Plant 1 ________________ Plant 2 _______________ Date the seeds germinated: Plant 1 ________________ Plant 2 ______________ | |||
| __________ | Plant 1 | ______________ | _______________________________ |
| Plant 2 | ______________ | _______________________________ | |
| __________ | Plant 1 | ______________ | _______________________________ |
| Plant 2 | ______________ | _______________________________ | |
| __________ | Plant 1 | ______________ | _______________________________ |
| Plant 2 | ______________ | _______________________________ | |
| __________ | Plant 1 | ______________ | _______________________________ |
| Plant 2 | ______________ | _______________________________ | |
| __________ | Plant 1 | ______________ | _______________________________ |
| Plant 2 | ______________ | _______________________________ | |
What to Use
a shoe box lined with plastic or three foil pans, pieces of cardboard, paper and an old pencil, metric ruler, scissors, about twelve corn seeds that have been soaked in water, planting soil, spoon, newspapers, masking tape, a jar of water, paper towels or rags to clean up
What to Do
1. Fill the lined box or foil pans about two-thirds full of soil.
2. If using a lined box, put pieces of cardboard in the box through the soil so that the box of soil is divided into three equal parts (see Figure 5).
3. Use the pencil to make holes in the soil for the seeds. Make all the holes the same depth.
4. Plant eight evenly spaced seeds in the first section of the box.
5. Plant two evenly spaced seeds in the second section and only one seed in the last section of the box.
6. Cover the planted seeds with soil. Water the entire box lightly. Place it in the sun, and observe the plants as they grow.
Planter Box
* *
* *
* *
* *
| *
* | * |
| I 8 seeds | II 2 seeds | III 1 seed |
What to Study
1. Using packages of garden seeds, read each package to determine how far apart different kinds of seeds should be planted.
2. Find which seeds should be placed farthest apart.
3. Try to determine which seeds grow best and why.
4. Try to determine the spacing that is best for corn seeds.
What to Record
1. Make a chart showing the date, height, and a picture of the plants for each section of the plant growing box.
2. Make three graphs to show the average height of plants in each section of the box (Sections I, II, and II) for one week after they germinate (see Figure 6).
3. Study plants near home. Write their names, a description of each one, and how far apart they grow.
| Plant height in centimeters: | 35 - 30 - 25 - 20 - 15 - 10 - 5 - 0 - _______________________________________
1 2 3 4 5 6 7Days following germination |
Principles for effective science teaching relate closely to those that promote language learning. These principles call for providing concrete experiences in which learners raise questions, make predictions and observations, collect data, and reach conclusions. They also call for classrooms where students come to see science as a process of inquiry, where anxieties are lowered and students actively collaborate with one another, and where learning extends beyond the classroom.
Principles that promote both language learning and the acquisition of science concepts require relating new knowledge to prior knowledge, moving from the concrete to the abstract, applying concepts in various settings, providing feedback, and making instruction meaningful (not overwhelming) to the learners. One approach to accomplishing this is to explore each science concept in different ways. A model has been presented in which science concepts are examined through three types of activities: a teacher demonstration, a group investigation, and independent student activities.
Teachers of learners of English have the opportunity to help their students progress in understanding science concepts while developing English listening, speaking, reading, and writing skills by applying specific teaching strategies that incorporate language functions and structures into science activities. These teaching strategies include promoting collaboration between teachers and among students, modifying teacher talk, making science relevant to students' everyday lives, adapting existing science materials and textbooks, and using language teaching techniques in presenting science concepts. By applying these strategies, teachers can give English learners the preparation they need for succeeding in the English language science classroom and ultimately in the larger school context.
American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS). (1989). Science for all Americans. Washington, DC: Author.
Asher, J. (1977). Learning another language through actions. Los Gatos, CA: Sky Oaks Productions.
Cook, V. (1989). Universal grammar theory and the classroom. System, 17(2), 169-182.
Educational Testing Service. (1987). Learning by doing: A manual for teaching and assessing higher-order thinking in science and mathematics. Princeton, NJ: Author.
Fathman, A.K., & Quinn, M.E. (1989). Science for language learners. Englewood Cliffs, NJ: Prentice Hall Regents.
Hein, G. (Ed.). (1990). The assessment of hands-on elementary science programs. Grand Forks, ND: University of North Dakota.
Herbert, D. (1968). Mr. Wizard's 400 experiments in science. North Bergen, NJ: Booklab.
Herbert, D. (1980). Mr. Wizard's supermarket science. North Bergen, NJ: Booklab.
Kessler, C., & Fathman, A.K. (1985). ESL activities for Heath science, Books 1-6. Lexington, MA: D.C. Heath.
Kessler, C., & Quinn, M.E. (1987). ESL and science learning. In J. Crandall (Ed.), ESL through content-area instruction. Englewood Cliffs, NJ: Prentice Hall Regents.
Kessler, C., Quinn, M.E., & Fathman, A.K. (1992). Science and cooperative learning for LEP students. In C. Kessler (Ed.), Cooperative language learning. Englewood Cliffs, NJ: Prentice Hall Regents.
Krashen, S.D. (1987). Principles and practice in second language acquisition. Englewood Cliffs, NJ: Prentice Hall Regents.
Krashen, S.D., & Terrell, T. (1987). The natural approach: Language acquisition in the classroom. Oxford: Pergamon Press.
National Geographic World. Washington, DC: National Geographic Society.
Nichols, W., & Nichols, K. (1990). Wonderscience: A developmentally appropriate guide to hands-on science for young children. Palo Alto, CA: Learning Expo.
Olsen, R., & Kagan, S. (1992). About cooperative learning. In C. Kessler (Ed.), Cooperative language learning. Englewood Cliffs, NJ: Prentice Hall Regents.
Pierce, L.V., & O'Malley, J.M. (1992). Performance and portfolio assessment for language minority students. Washington, DC: National Clearinghouse for Bilingual Education.
Richard-Amato, P.A. (1988). Making it happen: Interaction in the second language classroom. White Plains, NY: Longman.
Richard-Amato, P.A., & Snow, M.A. (Eds.). (1992). The multicultural classroom: Readings for content-area teachers. White Plains, NY: Longman.
Rupp, J.H. (1992). Discovery science and language development. In P.A. Richard-Amato & M.A. Snow (Eds.), The multicultural classroom: Readings for content-area teachers. White Plains, NY: Longman.
Science Weekly. Silver Spring, MD: Science Weekly Publications.
Strongin, H. (1976). Science on a shoestring. Menlo Park, CA: Addison Wesley.
The Science Teacher. Washington, DC: National Science Teachers Association.
Mary Ellen Quinn is Professor of Mathematics at Our Lady of the Lake University in San Antonio, Texas. She has taught science and mathematics at the elementary, secondary, and college levels. She is co-author of Science for Language Learners and ''Science and Cooperative Learning'' in Cooperative Language Learning.
Carolyn Kessler is Professor of English as a Second Language/Applied Linguistics at the University of Texas at San Antonio. She has published widely in journals and texts dealing with bilingualism, second language learning/teaching, and literacy for ESL learners. She recently co-authored Literacy con Carino: A Story of Migrant Children's Success and edited Cooperative Language Learning: A Teacher's Resource Book.
| The National Clearinghouse for Bilingual Education (NCBE) is funded by the U.S. Department of Education's Office of Bilingual Education and Minority Languages Affairs (OBEMLA) and is operated under contract No. T292008001 by The George Washington University, School of Education and Human Development, Center for Policy Studies. The contents of this publication do not necessarily reflect the views or policies of the Department of Education, nor does the mention of trade names, commercial products, or organizations imply endorsement by the U.S. Government. This material is located in the public domain and is freely reproducible. NCBE requests that proper credit be given in the event of reproduction. |
NCELA Home Page
http://www.ncela.gwu.edu