Task: students, in small groups, discuss a concept cartoon about rolling cans, before making a prediction about which will roll further. Assessment focus: making predictions about friction.
Task: Students play a tag game that simulates the relationships between elements within a waterway, and discuss how different scenarios impact on the populations living there. Assessment focus: changes within a habitat affect everything living there.
Task: Complete a drawing of things found in or near a waterway, and describe relationships between them. Assessment focus: interdependence in a waterways environment.
Students categorise statements according to whether they are evidence or inferences. They make inferences about moa, supporting them with evidence. Assessment focus: thinking in scientific ways.
Students are provided with a picture of a New Zealand native bird. Students select a word from a given list to name each of these bird parts. Students are then required to explain why the bird needs each of these named parts.
Task: Complete a drawing of things found in and near a flax bush, and describe relationships between them. Assessment focus: interdependence in a flax bush environment.
Task: Complete a drawing of things found in an area of native bush and describe relationships between them. Assessment focus: interdependence in a native bush environment.
Task: Complete a drawing of things found in or near an ocean, and describe relationships between them. Assessment focus: interdependence in an ocean environment.
Task: Complete a drawing of things found on a dairy farm, and describe relationships between them. Assessment focus: interdependence in a dairy farm environment.
Make observations from a photograph, identify potential environmental problems giving reasons, decide which problem is the most important and give reasons for the choice.
Task: Make observations from a photograph, identify potential environmental problems giving reasons, decide which problem is the most important, and give reasons for the choice. Assessment
focus: (1) observation, and (2) identifying and prioritising cause and effect relationships.