Developing Assessments Based on NJ Standards
Science: Animal Adaptations
Grades: Elementary and Middle
NJ ASK- Cumulative Progress Indicators for Science
| Overview |
Student | Teacher|
Assessment Steps |
|
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.
|
Standard 5.5:
(CHARACTERISTICS OF LIFE) ALL STUDENTS WILL GAIN AN
UNDERSTANDING OF THE STRUCTURE, CHARACTERISTICS,
AND BASIC NEEDS OF ORGANISMS AND
WILL INVESTIGATE THE DIVERSITY OF LIFE.
|
|
Descriptive Statement: Students best learn science by
doing science. Science is not merely a collection of facts and
theories but a process, a way of thinking about and investigating
the world in which we live. This standard addresses those skills
that are used by scientists as they discover and explain the physical
universe - skills that are an essential and ongoing part of learning
science.
| 1. |
Raise questions about the world
around them and be willing to seek answers through making
careful observations and experimentation. |
| 2. |
Keep records that describe observations,
carefully distinguish actual observations from ideas and speculations,
and are understandable weeks and months later. |
| 3. |
Recognize that when a science investigation
is replicated, very similar results are expected. |
| 4. |
Know that when solving a problem
it is important to plan and get ideas and help from other
people. |
| B. Inquiry and Problem Solving |
| 1. |
Develop strategies and skills for information-gathering
and problem-solving, using appropriate tools and technologies. |
| 2. |
Identify the evidence used in an explanation. |
| 1. |
Recognize that conducting science activities
requires an awareness of potential hazards and the need for
safe practices. |
| 2. |
Understand and practice safety procedures for
conducting science investigations. |
|
Descriptive Statement: The study of science must include
the diversity, complexity, and interdependence of life on earth.
Students should know how organisms evolve, reproduce, and adapt
to their environments.
| A. Matter, Energy and Organization in
Living Systems |
| 1. |
Identify the roles that organisms
may serve in a food chain. |
| 2. |
Differentiate between
the needs of plants and those of animals. |
| 3. |
Recognize that plants
and animals are composed of different parts performing different
functions and working together for the well being of the
organism. |
| 4. |
Describe the basic functions
of the major systems of the human body including, but not
limited to:
• digestive system
• circulatory system
• respiratory system
• nervous system
• skeletal system
• muscular system
• reproductive system |
| B. Diversity and Biological Evolution |
| 1. |
Develop
a simple classification scheme for grouping organisms. |
| 2. |
Recognize that individuals
vary within every species, including humans. |
| C. Reproduction and Heredity |
| 1. |
Identify different stages in
the lives of various organisms. |
|
