A mystery photo
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Overview
Using this Resource
Connecting to the Curriculum
Marking Student Responses
Working with Students
Further Resources
This task is about observation skills and finding clues to solve the mystery behind a photo.
Science clues:
- This sort of animal picks up food floating on the sea.
- The things in the photo were found inside the animal after it had died.
Task administration:
This task can be completed online or using pencil and paper.
Students can answer the questions independently or in groups. In the trial students who worked independently sometimes had difficulty typing their observations and explanations on the computer. When students worked as a group their responses tended to be richer and more varied.
Below are a range of ways this resource can be used as a group task:
Below are a range of ways this resource can be used as a group task:
- Show the resource on an interactive whiteboard and work with the whole class.
Students can share and defend their ideas, and critique others' use of evidence. It also can facilitate students to notice more things, and build up their vocabulary.
or
- Work in small groups, with one person writing the agreed explanation. Each group could then bring their responses together to look for similarities and differences.
Students negotiate what constitutes a sufficient or good answer, both within the group and more widely.
or
- Combine independent work and class discussion. Allow students to work on their own device or paper and get them to take their time to look carefully at the first question. Get them to share their ideas with the group, and then look again for more things. Ask students to practice describing the things they see, e.g., adding colour and size to the descriptions of the objects they see.
Students can write their own response, before sharing with the group. They can use the ideas of others to help develop their thinking.
Copyright:
All images copyright to the Royal Albatross Colony, Otago Peninsula are used with permission and can be freely used for educational purposes in New Zealand Aotearoa.
For re-use of images please ensure that the attribution license is retained with the images.
For re-use of images please ensure that the attribution license is retained with the images.
Royal Albatross Colony, Otago Peninsula
Levels:
1, 2
Curriculum info:
Key Competencies:
Keywords:
Description of task:
Students combine their observations with some information provided to complete a story about what might have happened in the photograph.
Curriculum Links:
Science Capabilities
The capabilities focus is brought about by the conversations with students and the questions they ask.
Capability: Gather and interpret data
Science knowledge is based on data derived from direct, or indirect, observations of the natural physical world. This resource provides the opportunity for students to use their observation skills and make inferences about the things they see in a photograph.
Science knowledge is based on data derived from direct, or indirect, observations of the natural physical world. This resource provides the opportunity for students to use their observation skills and make inferences about the things they see in a photograph.
Capability: Use evidence
In science, explanations need to be supported by evidence that is based on, or derived from, observations of the natural world. Students combine their observations with given and prior knowledge to complete a story about what might have happened in a photograph.
Capability: Engage with science
This capability requires students to use the other capabilities to engage with science in real life contexts. Mystery Photo provides an opportunity for students to take an interest in science issues, participate in discussions about science, and potentially leads to taking action.
Science capabilities:
Answers/responses:
| What to look for | |
| a) |
Objects accurately and clearly described, e.g., blue bottle cap, 6 bottle caps, orange marker top, white feathers, plastic fork, toy wheel, grass, bones, dry leaf, fine green netting, orange sponge, pieces of coloured material (plastics) Don't accept vague descriptions or incorrect inferences such as: cookies, glass, meat, paint, pencil sharpener, shells |
| b)i) | Accept bird, sea bird, albatross, sea gull, or other similar birds |
| b)ii) | Evidence that the animal is a bird., e.g., feathers, bones or wing bones |
| c) |
This is the story behind the photograph: The bird is an albatross chick. It was found dead in its nest and the objects were found on examination of the stomach contents. Parent birds gather their food by scooping it off the surface of the sea. They pick up floating bits of plastic – presumably because they mistake them for food. They then fly back to their nests and feed their chicks by regurgitating the food they have collected. The young chick will have been fed the bits of plastic. It most likely died of starvation. It is not anticipated that students work out the full story, but look for evidence that they link pieces of information to form part of the picture. Students express two connected ideas, from their observations and/or the information given, e.g.,
Accept responses that connect ideas towards solving the mystery.
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Patterns of responses from the trial of Year 2 and 3 students.
Teaching and learning:
This activity is about the key ideas: observing closely, describing accurately, and making inferences from observations.
Diagnostic and formative information:
| Questions | Student explanations |
| a) Look carefully at this photo. List all of the things you can see. |
About a third of students showed they were observing carefully by listing multiple observations and adding specific descriptions about each listed item, e.g.,
plastic bottle top, blue bottle top, black and white feathers, plastic pen top, broken fork.
Most commonly, however, objects were listed without any extra descriptive detail, e.g.,
bottle top, plastic, feathers, fork.
Some students made inferences about what the object was rather than just describing what they could see, e.g.,
a small, round, flat, orange, object was described as a dried apricot.
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| b)i) Look carefully… What sort of animal…? | Nearly all students correctly identified the animal in the photo as a bird. |
| b)ii) What makes you think that? |
Almost all students used feathers as evidence for a bird. Few students recognised or used the bird bones as evidence. |
| c) What do you think happened? |
Students who were able to write a science explanation using evidence linked their observations to the science clues given or prior knowledge about the birds’ feeding habits, e.g.,
Maybe, when someone put some rubbish in the sea and then the bird came and thought that was his food and the bird ate it. He had a tummy ache and was sick. …..he died.
Some students used everyday knowledge, rather than the science clues given, and came up with a different, but feasible inference, e.g.,
When the people had a picnic on the beach, they had some food scraps so they threw it away and when they left, a bird came and ate it
Some student responses were simple and true but didn’t create a link between what they observed in the photograph and clues given to establish an inference, e.g.,
People drop rubbish
Most students linked the bird’s death to rubbish, e.g.,
it suffocated in rubbish
the bird choked on a piece of rubbish it ate rubbish |
Next steps:
This activity focuses mainly on the Science Capabilities ‘Gather and interpret data’ and ‘Use evidence’. However in a group situation it could also be used as a stimulus for discussion and debate on the issue of plastics in the environment, Capability: ‘Engage with science’.
Capability: Gather and interpret data
- Make specific accurate observations using appropriate vocabulary
- Understand the difference between making an observation and making an inference
An important component of this assessment is observation. Close observation is an important skill to develop in science and is an aspect of Capability: Gather and interpret data. Noticing what is there is an important first step towards students questioning what they see and engaging with the science all around them.
To help students focus on looking closely and carefully, give them opportunities to describe what they see. A good strategy is to share observations, so they build on others' ideas.
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Encourage students to be careful with their observations.
- Are their observations backed up by specific details, e.g., colour, size.
- Ask students to point out the details
- Can they make more than one observation?
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Are they able to distinguish between what is an observation and what can be inferred from their observation? Try the ARB resource; What can you really see?
- Promote the idea that in science we need to be really sure about what we see, and details we can't see shouldn't be used as evidence.
- Encourage students to think of observation as more than just looking. They also need to be thinking about what they are looking at.
Capability: Use evidence
- Use science ideas to support explanations
- Select and use evidence to support an argument
- Formulating a science explanation involves using evidence.
To help students focus on using evidence to develop a theory or explanation, give them opportunities to share and discuss their ideas. Try the ARB resource; Whose nest is this?
- Are they able to identify evidence that backs up their idea? Can they provide more than one reason?
- Do they link things they see with what they know using cause and effect language (e.g, because, so, therefore, because of this)?
- Do they suspend judgement if the evidence is not clear (it might be, maybe, it could be, etc.)?
Capability: Engage with science
Using this resource as a group activity provides an opportunity for students to engage with science in a real life context.
To help students whose explanations are yet to link what they observe with given information (or the science they know) ask them “What might happen if" and "Why do you think that" questions. This encourages students to think beyond what they simply see, e.g.,
To help students whose explanations are yet to link what they observe with given information (or the science they know) ask them “What might happen if" and "Why do you think that" questions. This encourages students to think beyond what they simply see, e.g.,
- What might happen if a seabird thinks floating plastic is food?
- What might happen if an adult seabird feeds its chick after eating a bottle top?
- What might happen to plastic in water?
Science Knowledge
If students are to make accurate predictions of likely consequences they need knowledge about the particular context. In this context, finding out how plastic rubbish ‘behaves’ on land and sea environments (floats, doesn’t decay etc), and how animals are affected by and interact with plastics and rubbish, will help students to better assess consequences. Exploring the likely consequences of plastic rubbish in sea environments also provides an opportunity for students to think at a ‘systems’ level. Discussing the individual parts of the system, both living and non-living, e.g., plants, stones, various rubbish types, birds, fish, sea water, etc., can help students make cause and effect links.
Other Level 1 and 2 ARBs that support knowledge acquisition and are related to this context are: Dogs at the beach, Rubbish on the beach.
If students are to make accurate predictions of likely consequences they need knowledge about the particular context. In this context, finding out how plastic rubbish ‘behaves’ on land and sea environments (floats, doesn’t decay etc), and how animals are affected by and interact with plastics and rubbish, will help students to better assess consequences. Exploring the likely consequences of plastic rubbish in sea environments also provides an opportunity for students to think at a ‘systems’ level. Discussing the individual parts of the system, both living and non-living, e.g., plants, stones, various rubbish types, birds, fish, sea water, etc., can help students make cause and effect links.
Other Level 1 and 2 ARBs that support knowledge acquisition and are related to this context are: Dogs at the beach, Rubbish on the beach.
Level 1 resources that look at observation and evidence
What makes you think that?
Whose nest is this?
What makes you think that?
Whose nest is this?
Complementary level 2 resources
Science online: Giving the Ocean a Voice In this Level 2 resource, students read about the evidence of environmental issues noticed by waka voyagers in our oceans.