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a problem of scale

a problem of scale. peter a’hearn. “i can see the molecules”. -5 th grader peering into a test tube of water. “well you can’t because you’re old. I have really good eyes”. -5 th grader when told he couldn’t possibly see molecules.

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a problem of scale

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  1. a problem of scale

  2. peter a’hearn

  3. “i can see the molecules” -5th grader peering into a test tube of water

  4. “well you can’t because you’re old. I have really good eyes” -5th grader when told he couldn’t possibly see molecules

  5. “the test results shows the kids think the solar system and the universe are the same thing”“you mean they’re not?” -district level administrator

  6. “there are positive and negative cells” -science teacher

  7. “i am one cell” -high school biology student at the end of a unit on cells half the class agreed

  8. “when i was a kid i didn’t believe in the solar system because when i looked in the sky i didn’t see anything that looked like the pictures in the books” -elementary school teacher

  9. “that is one atom of iron” -high school physical science Student looking at a beaker containing 55.85g of iron –one mole

  10. just because they can give the right answer, doesn’t mean they get it

  11. A Commonly Held Inaccurate Model of Teaching and Learning

  12. as scales become bigger and smaller than those normally experienced, there is a tendency to lump objects into catergories of very big or very small -tretter, jones, and minogue 2006

  13. experts and advanced students understand scale by unitizing- using new units when thinking in extreme scales- light years, nanometers, millions of years -tretter, jones, and minogue 2006

  14. at your grade level, where do kids encounter extreme scales? big? small? in Space? in Time?

  15. teaching kids about scale find out what they are thinking teach them to be critical of models put them in the picture help them figure it out for themselves use microscopes and telescopes

  16. put the strips in order from the event that takes the shortest time to the event that takes the longest time

  17. sun and earth 2

  18. what is accurate about the model? what is inaccurate about the model? evaluate the model

  19. Can you see a molecule with a magnifying glass?

  20. 100 1 meter- you

  21. 10-1 1/10 meter

  22. 10-2 1/100 meter

  23. 10-3 1/1000 meter

  24. 10-4 1/10,000m cell

  25. 10-5 1/100,000 m

  26. 10-6 1/1,000,000 morganelles and bacteria

  27. 10-7 1/10,000,000 m- virus

  28. 10-8 1/100,000,000 m macromolecule

  29. 10-9 1/1,000,000,000 mmolecule

  30. 10-10 1/10,000,000,000 m- atom

  31. how big is the giant? • who thinks you are a cell? • who thinks you are a molecule?

  32. 100 1 meter- you

  33. 101 10 meters

  34. 102 100 meters-soccer field

  35. 103 1000 m- kilometer

  36. 104 10,000 m –citythe giant who thinks you are cell

  37. 105 100,000 m

  38. 106 1,000,000 m- state

  39. 107 10,000,000 m-hemisphere

  40. 108 100,000,000m

  41. 109 1,000,000,000 metersMoon’s orbitThe giant who thinks you’re an atom

  42. at what scales do we teach kids about photosynthesis and respiration?

  43. moon diameter 4000 km • earth Diameter 13000 km • earth to moon 400000 km • step 1- change the units • step 2- divide by 10s • if that doesn’t nail it, try to divide or multiply by two.

  44. try to add the sun! • moon diameter 4000 km • earth Diameter 13000 km • earth to Moon 400000 km • sun diameter 1400000 km • sun distance 150000000 km

  45. thank you peter a’hearn k-12 science specialist palm springs usd pahearn@psusd.us

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