Georgia Science Standards

IN SCIENCE, the Georgia Performance Science Standards created two categories of standards: Characteristics of Science (which apply to all grades), and Content (which differ from grade to grade). Many of the Characteristics of Science are can be found in DITC, including modeling, estimation, computation, inquiry, and curiosity. The Physical Science Content Standards are easier to relate to the design tasks than the Life Science or Earth Science Standards.

Science Standards:

Habits of Mind

• Students will know the importance of openness, skepticism, and keeping accurate records in Science. They will also understand the importance of investigating a hypothesis, even if it turns out to be false (SCSm1).
  The importance of developing a hypothesis and keeping accurate records to prove or disprove the hypothesis is trademark of all the design tasks. Students will find that in order to make real improvements to their design, fair testing is essential.
• Students will have the ability to utilize estimation and computation skills in analyzing data. These include using and interpreting fractions, decimals and percents, converting input units to proper output units, calculating mean and median, understand importance of appropriate precision and accuracy, and using ratios and proportions (SCSm2).
  As students record trials of their investigations they must utilize many estimation and computation skills: interpreting and comparing numbers as decimals, fractions, ratios and percents, converting input units into proper output units, and using a reasonable amount of precision and accuracy when conducting their tests.
• Student will be adept at using instruments for measuring and observing. Understand the affect of changing one part has on the system as a whole by disassembling, inspecting and reassembling simple devices (SCSm3).
  Examining the relationship between different parts of a system is important in many of the design tasks, including the Parachute Task (the chute's strings, weights, the canopy), Vehicles in Motion (the car's wheels, bearings, wheel tread, and method of propulsion), and many others. In many cases, the products that the students build are actually models (i.e. the Parachute Task, or the Cardboard Chair Task) of real-life objects - you may note the authenticity of each task in the Task Comparison Chart. The parachute task includes a Model vs. Real Parachutes page to help relate the models that students build to the real thing.
• Explore technological and scientific matters using ideas of model, change, scale and system, including: outputs of one system being the inputs of another, difference between unchanging and counter-balanced systems, system properties that depend on capacity change out of proportion to those dependent on area (SCSm4).
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• Students must communicate scientific ideas, activities, and procedure through charts, graphs, tables and symbols (SCSm5).
  Students may create charts and tables based on the data sets collected and identify the relationships between different properties that are revealed to guide them in making design decisions.
• Students will be able to effectively question scientific claims based on vague attributions, flawed reasoning, inadequate data samples, and different interpretations of a data sample (SCSm6).
  Effectively questioning arguments and interpretations is central to DITC, an example of a common dubious argument is that a bigger parachute is always better, DITC also has information on assessing student explanations when justifying their designs.

The Nature of Science

• Scientific knowledge can change as new information arises, and investigations often must be repeated many times before the results are accepted (SCSm7).
  Iterative trials are crucial to all the design tasks as students seek to prove or disprove their hypotheses. You can compare the speed of iteration of all the design tasks in the Activity Chooser Chart
• Understand the importance of exploring new phenomena using scientific inquiry: only change one variable during a trial, be aware of the affect of having expectations can have on the results, accurate record keeping, replication of results, and data sharing (SCSm8).
  Identifying key variables and changing only one per iterative trial is critical to Fair Testing in design.

Physical Science (8th grade)

• Students will classify changes in matter as chemicals or physical, and demonstrate an understanding of the Law of Conservation of Matter. They will distinguish between acids, bases and salts, and between inorganic and organic matter (S8P1).
  The Baking Soda tasks directly addresses this standard, and working with vinegar and baking soda is actually one of the "Related Tasks" cited in the Georgia Performance Standards for Science.
• Students will understand potential and kinetic energy and how they relate to the Law of Conservation of Matter. Student will know heat transfer through atoms and space and how currents facilitate the transfer of heat (S8P2).
  The relationship between force, mass, and motion is extensively explored in the Parachute Task, Cardboard Chair Task, Paper Bridge Task, Vehicles in Motion, and Machines that Help. You can learn how Newton's Laws of Motion specifically relate to the Parachute Tasks in the How Parachute's Work tutorial.
• Students will be familiar with motion and force; specifically Newton’s Laws of Motion and the relationship between acceleration and velocity. Students will also explore the affect of machines on work (S8P3).
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• Students will understand electromagnetic radiation and sound, and their wave nature (S8P4).
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