1. Water Formative Assessment

Lesson at a glance: Students will identify their prior knowledge and understanding of water in Earth systems.

Goal: The teacher will better understand his/her students’ prior knowledge about the water cycle and seasonal weather patterns.

Oregon Content Standards:

Science

  • 3.1 Structure and Function: Living and non-living things vary in their characteristics and properties.
    • 3.1P.1 Compare and contrast the properties of states of matter.
  • 3.2 Interactions and Change: Living and non-living things interact with energy and forces.
    • 3.2E.1 Identify Earth as a planet and describe its seasonal weather patterns of precipitation and temperature.

Ocean Literacy: Essential Principles and Fundamental Concepts

  • 1. The Earth has one big ocean with many features.
    • 1.f. The ocean is an integral part of the water cycle and is connected to all of the earth’s water reservoirs via evaporation and precipitation processes.
    • 1.g. The ocean is connected o major lakes, watersheds and waterways because all major watersheds on Earth drain to the ocean. Rivers and streams transport nutrients, salts, sediments and pollutants from watersheds to estuaries and to the ocean.
  • 3. the ocean is a major influence on weather and climate.
    • 3.b. The ocean absorbs much of the solar radiation reaching Earth. The ocean loses heat by evaporation. This heat loss drives atmospheric circulation when, after it is released into the atmosphere as water vapor, it condenses and forms rain. Condensation of water evaporated from warm seas provides energy for hurricanes and cyclones.

Materials:

  • Formative Assessment Prompt
  • Popsicle sticks with students names on them
  • Bucket/bin/baskets with prompt choices written on it

Time: 40 minutes

Activity:

1. Read the formative assessment prompt to your students.

2. Have students place their Popsicle stick in the container that corresponds to the answer they totally agree.

3. Have the students gather in groups based on their responses.

a. Variation: Have the student group write down why they agree with the person they chose.

4. Have them discuss their thinking and report out to the rest of the class.

Formative Assessment Prompt:

The Flooded Trail

A group of Lincoln County students were taking a hike last spring. They came to a place in the trail where the river had flooded the path. The water was too high to wade through and they were forced to turn back. On their way back, the students tried to decide why the water was so high. Which student do you most agree?

Suzie: “It rains a lot on the coast. I bet this trail is flooded all year long.”

Dale: “The water in the river is high during the spring when the snow in the mountains melts and it rains a lot. This would be a better hike in the summer.”

Jose: “There must be a new spring from the ground that is filling the river with more water.”

Emma: “They must have built this trail in the summer when it was hot and the sun evaporated all the water so it was lower.”

Warren: “We just came at the wrong time, when the water flows the other direction the water is lower.”

Which student do you most agree? Explain your thinking.

Conclusions:

Dale has the most correct answer. Seasonal precipitation patterns and melting snow cause rivers to rise in the spring. Students that agree most with Suzie understand that the river height is associated with precipitation but do not recognize seasonal weather patterns. Students who agree with Jose recognize that rivers can be fed by groundwater but it is a less likely cause then seasonal weather patterns. Students who most agree with Emma understand that heat evaporates water but again it is a less likely cause then seasonal weather patterns. Students who agree with Warren may not understand how water flows through the land from higher to lower elevations. These students will need the most guidance on the source of water in rivers.

Use the students’ responses to identify common misconceptions so you can address them directly throughout the activities. Come back to this prompt and allow students to change their responses.

Extension:

Read the students the prompt once more. Ask the students to create their own response as to why the water in the river was so high during their spring hike.