TPS - Teachers Page

This book is designed to give your students practice in answering questions and building their literacy skills in science. You can use them in a number of ways including, but certainly not limited to, review for national exams, as formative assessments during a unit, as homework, or as a “Do Now” to

begin class. They are designed to help you assess your students progress on an on-going basis.

The examples in this book begin with a few paragraphs describing a scenario. The scenario includes several scientific concepts with which the

student should be familiar. The paragraphs are followed by questions that

ask the student to apply what he or she knows about the topic. Sometimes

the student will be asked to complete a graph, draw or label a diagram,

analyse some data that is graphically represented, or some other skill

common to science learning.

They require the student to read and understand the situation described but

also to apply the science concepts studies in order to answer the questions.

Usually there are several questions asked about each situation presented.

Students are required to draw on the science they have learned over time

to make sense of this new context and accurately answer the questions.

Questions are often “scaffolded” to help the student come to the final

answer in a step by step way. They are often given hints in the question itself,

such as “be sure to include…in your answer”.

These examples have been designed specifically to test a wide range of

science and literacy skills. They deal with science content but also assess

science skills such as working with models, making predictions, drawing

and labelling diagrams, and reading charts and graphs. The requirement to

gather their information from a number of sources, present their thoughts by

writing in a clear way, and then self-assess by reflecting on how their answers

compare to those in the book help students practice process thinking and

communicating their ideas.

Reviewing your students’ use of science content and their success in

communicating their ideas in writing will help you plan further lessons and

differentiate your instruction where necessary to ensure higher student

achievement in science class.