GRADE: 5th
TECHNOLOGY:
Database
BY: Beth
Mertens
Target
Grade/Subject: This lesson is for a fifth grade curriculum. It will combine
a science experiment about plants with the use of a database. This is relevant
to the fifth grade population of Williamsburg James City County, the county I
have been working in, because it incorporate three elements of the WJCC
Standards with the focus on
plants, the use of an experiment and the database.
Purpose:
The purpose of this lesson is to use knowledge of plants to form predictions
and conclusions about an experiment as well as to expose the students to how
they can use technology for science.
The students have prior knowledge about the elements of experiments as
well as how to write a lab report. This lesson will be done over two weeks,
with the experiment on the first day. For the following weeks, the students
will record the growth on their data tables and then after the two weeks, the
students will use the data base to record all their data and create graphs.
Objectives:
· students will plant and maintain lima bean plants for two weeks.
· students will make predictions about the growth of their plants
· students will create and fill in data tables the growth of their plants
· students will use the data base to compute total growth and create
graphs
· students will describe and interpret the data from the graphs to make
conclusions about their experiments.
Materials:
lima beans, soil, cups, water,
Miracle Grow plant food,
Miracid
plant food
Constants:
the type of soil, the amount of water, the placement of the cups in the room, amount of plant food
Control:
the plants with no plant food
Procedure:
Show the
overhead of the materials and discuss with the students the Independent and
Dependent variables, the constants and the control. Dicuss with the students
the question we will be answering with this experiment. Allow the students to
phrase the question. Place the students in groups of three and hand out the
materials. Each group will receive three cups, three lima beans and a teaspoon
of Miracle Plant Food and Miracid plant food, and half a cup of soil.
One person will be responsible for the control plant, another for the Miracle
plant food and the third person for the Miracid plant food. After the students have planted
the seeds, place the plants on the table near a window and have the students
return to whole class. Hand out the data tables. Have the students make predictions about which plants will
grow the most. Students will use their prior knowledge about what plants need
to grow to make, as well as their new knowledge about the plant food to make
these predictions. Every three days the students will record their data, and
after a week they will make drawings of the growth. After the end of two weeks,
they will make final drawings and use their data to work on the data base. For
homework after they have collected the final data, have the class write up a
lab report including Title, Procedure, Materials, Predictions, and Data. (They
will write their conclusions after they have done their graphs on the
database).
Technology
Lesson
Begin the
computer time with practice using that database. Hand out the data table
"Which Gum Blows the Biggest Bubbles?" Have the students title the
columns "Trial 1, Trial 2, Trial 3" This is the size of the bubble
for each trial. Then have the students title the Rows with the brands of bubble
gum: Bubble Yum, Bubblicious, Bazooka. Once they are familiar with navigating
around the data base, have them enter the data from the table. Then explain
that they can use the data base to sum the data. Show them the necessary
formula to calculate the total for Row A. Then have the students create the
formula for Rows B and C. After
the class has become familiar with this function, have them select a row
and create a graph. After the students have learned how to create bar and line
graphs (which they will be using for the plant project), give them some extra
time to become more familiar with the data base on their own. They can use this
time to make more graphs, or change formulas, just as they become comfortable
with the database. Now, as an independent activity, have the students enter
their own data (as a group) total the data and create a bar graph for the
growth of their plants. Each child should also create a line graph for their
plant's growth. The copies of the graphs should be printed for assessment. When the class has returned to the
classroom, have them analyze their data and individually write a conclusion to
be added their lab reports.
Evaluation:
· Collect the lab reports.
· Collect the data tables.
· Collect the graphs.
Which Brand of Bubble Gum Produces the
Largest Bubble?
|
Brand |
Size of Bubble (in.) 1 2 3 |
Average |
||
|
Bubble
Yum |
1 |
1.2. |
0.9 |
1.03 |
|
Bubblicious |
2 |
1.5 |
2.2 |
1.9 |
|
Bazooka |
.5 |
.45 |
.8 |
.58 |
Which Type
of Plant Food Affects Growth the Most?
|
Type of Food |
Amount of Growth Every Three Days (in.) 1 2 3 |
Total Growth |
||
|
No Food |
|
|
|
|
|
Miracle Grow Plant Food |
|
|
|
|
|
Miracid Plant Food |
|
|
|
|