Pedagogy & Brainy Bits
Gregorc's Learning Styles
Gardner's Multiple Intelligences
Bloom's Taxonomy
The Role of Sense & Meaning in Retention
The Role of Rehearsal and Closure in a Lesson
 

Audience, Time Requirements & Materials

This unit is intended for a 3rd-5th grade audience.  It is an adaptation of Journey North's Mystery Class, an interdisciplinary project that explores the seasonal changes in daylight.  Journey North is a non-profit educational organization that provides curriculum materials for the study of seasons and migration. 

This unit is designed to be used in connection with Journey North's Mystery Class, typically in the months of February-April, and should span a ten to twelve week period.  The culminating activities include a mapping project and team presentations.

Before beginning this unit, students should be familiar with using a browser to view pages on the Internet, and should be capable of using a variety of online and written sources to research a given location.  The use of GIS, available through a user-friendly interface, will be taught during the unit.

To undertake this unit, you will need a computer with an Internet connection, as well as access to some type of GIS application.  If you do not have access to a GIS application, this unit can be completed using a standard paper map or a digital map edited using any productivity software package.

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Goals, Objectives & Defined Outcomes

Goals:

• To provide students with knowledge of the effects of the Earth's rotation on its axis, and revolution around the sun.

• To expand students' knowledge of how to read a map.

Objectives (Students will be able to):

• Calculate the photoperiod for a given location using sunrise and sunset data.

• Identify patterns in the changes in photoperiod for a given location over time.

• Explain why the photoperiod for different locations on Earth can vary.

• Explain why the photoperiod for a given location on Earth changes.

• Analyze the changes in photoperiod for a given location to identify that location on a global map.

• Utilize lines of latitude and longitude to accurately identify a given location on a map.

• Create a line graph given a set of data.

• Research a location to gather specific information.

• Correctly plot a location on an interactive map.

Defined Outcomes:

• Students will create a graph using photoperiod data for a given location.

• Students will identify a given location on a map using photoperiod data along with select clues.

• Students will plot the location identified on an interactive map.

• Students will enter a specific set of information for each plotted location.

• Students will present their research  to inform an audience about the location identified.

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New Jersey Core Curriculum Content Standards

This unit aligns with the following NJCCCS: 

Language Arts Literacy

Standard 3.1 (Reading)
All students will understand and apply the knowledge of sounds, letters, and words in written English to become independent and fluent readers, and will read a variety of materials and texts with fluency and comprehension.

Students will read to complete research on a given location.

Standard 3.3 (Speaking)
All students will speak in clear, concise, organized language that varies in content and form for different audiences and purposes.

Students will present information they have obtained from doing research about a given location.

Standard 3.4 (Listening)
All students will listen actively to information from a variety of sources in a variety of situations.

Students will process information from online videos, class lessons, and group discussions.

Standard 3.5 (Viewing and Media Literacy)
All students will access, view, evaluate, and respond to print, non-print, and electronic texts and resources.

Students will utilize the Internet and print media to complete research on a given location.

Science

Standard 5.1 (Scientific Processes)
All students will develop problem-solving, decision-making and inquiry skills, reflected by formulating usable questions and hypotheses, planning experiments, conducting systematic observations, interpreting and analyzing data, drawing conclusions, and communicating results.

Students will make observations, analyze data sets, and develop hypotheses regarding the location of ten mystery classes.  They will then plot these locations on a map and present biographical information about each location.

Standard 5.3 (Mathematical Applications)
All students will integrate mathematics as a tool for problem-solving in science, and as a means of expressing and/or modeling scientific theories.

Students will use mathematics to calculate the photoperiod for a set of data.  They will apply these calculations as a tool for problem-solving as they endeavor to discover the location of ten mystery classes.

Standard 5.4 (Nature and Process of Technology)
All students will understand the interrelationships between science and technology and develop a conceptual understanding of the nature and process of technology.

Students will utilize technology to obtain data from the Internet and to plot coordinates on a map via a GIS interface.

Standard 5.9 (Astronomy & Space Science)
All students will gain an understanding of the origin, evolution and structure of the universe.

Students will observe patterns that result from the Earth's position relative to the sun and rotation of the Earth on its axis.

Social Studies

Standard 6.6 (Geography)
All students will apply knowledge of spatial relationships and other geographic skills to understand human behavior in relation to the physical and cultural environment.

Students will use lines of latitude and longitude to identify locations on a map.  Students will also identify the country and continent, or body of water in which a given location can be found.

Technological Literacy

Standard 8.1 (Computer and Information Literacy)
All students will use computer applications to gather and organize information and to solve problems.

Students will use the Internet to obtain data and research a topic, and a mapping interface to plot data on a map.

Career Education and Consumer, Family and Life Skills

Standard 9.2 (Consumer, Family, and Life Skills)
All students will demonstrate critical life skills in order to be functional members of society.

Students will work in pairs, and will present information to an audience of their peers.

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Gregorc's Learning Styles

The following is a list of the activities and/or characteristics of this activity that will appeal to each of Gregorc's four learning styles.

Concrete Sequential:

• Process used to to collect and analyze data is structured and sequential

• Individual/pair accountability for the identification of one mystery class

Abstract Sequential:

• Use of a variety of educational tools and reference sources

• Ample time provided to analyze data and identify the location of a mystery class

• Logical process employed to collect, record and analyze data

Concrete Random:

• Using intuition to identify the location of a given mystery class

• Can create friendly competition to correctly identify the location of assigned mystery class

• Individual/pair accountability for the identification of one mystery class

Abstract Random:

• Pair/group discussions and consensus building activities

• Clear, but flexible criteria provided for analyzing data

• Analysis of data and other clues to identify the location of a given mystery class

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Gardner's Multiple Intelligences

The following is a list of the activities and/or characteristics of this project that will appeal to the Multiple Intelligences indicated.

Verbal-Linguistic:

• Use of written reference sources for research

• Pair/group discussions and consensus building activities

• Presentation of final project (proposal)

Visual-Spatial:

• Use of interactive models to visualize the seasonal effects of the Earth's rotation on its axis and revolution around the sun

• Use of charts and graphs as visual representations of data

• Use of political map to assist in identifying the location of mystery classes

Bodily-Kinesthetic:

• Fine-motor skills required to utilize technology for research and plotting purposes

• Ability to command a physical presence during presentation of final project

Interpersonal:

• Working in pairs to analyze data and reach a consensus as to the location of a mystery class

• Presentation of final project

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Bloom's Taxonomy

The following is a list delineating the incorporation of Bloom's Taxonomy of cognitive levels into the activities of this project.

Remembering:

• Research and list facts for a given location.

• Label a data point on a map.

Understanding:

• Graph photoperiod data to visualize relationships between the locations.

• Predict if and how the photoperiod for a given location will change from week to week.

• Restate information by presenting research findings.

Applying:

• Calculate the photoperiod for a given location on specific dates.

Analyzing:

• Analyze sunrise/sunset data along with other geographical clues to identify the location of a mystery class.

Evaluating:

• Draw conclusions regarding the geographic location of ten mystery classes.

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The Role of Sense & Meaning in Retention

Sense and meaning are essential to long term storage.  Retention is built from ample rehearsal, appropriate visual cues, downtime, and closure in lessons.

Students will record sunrise/sunset data for ten mystery locations, calculate the photoperiod for each, and graph the results weekly for twelve weeks.  These actions provide sufficient rehearsal for students to master the process involved in tracking the data and creating a visual representation of that data.  They also make the exploration of that data more meaningful.  The students' curiosity has been piqued, and they have been given a context in which to process information regarding the use of a given set of data to find a geographical point.

This activity is rich in visual cues.  The lessons that explore the data being tracked and graphed utilize images of the Earth from space that are taken at different times to reveal the effect of the Earth's rotation on its axis.  The graph itself provides a visual cue to help students make sense of and analyze the patterns that emerge in the data. 

Meaning is also found in the use of the students' hometown as a reference point against which to compare/contrast the collected data.  Students use personal observations to better understand the data collected. 

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The Role of Rehearsal and Closure in a Lesson

Rehearsal is essential to creating sense, which is, in turn, essential to moving learning into long-term storage.  This activity utilizes several elaborate rehearsal strategies, including individual note taking, summarizing/paraphrasing, and good questioning.  Repeated rehearsal is provided through the collection and analysis of data over a twelve week period.  Students are guided as they employ knowledge gained through lessons presented in class to analyze the data collected.

This activity requires the students to work collaboratively to determine the location of a given mystery class.  Closure will ensue as the students identify and plot the location of their class, and then research and present basic facts about that location.

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Last update: 03/21/2008