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Lesson 4: Shake, Rattle and Fall Experiment
Natural Disasters Unit Plan | Lesson 4 | 60 minutes
A 60 minute lesson in which students will investigate how building techniques can reduce the impact of earthquakes.
Preparation
Prior to conducting the lesson, review the procedure and equipment required for the experiment.Equipment
- Wooden blocks
- Lego
- Wooden or plastic boards
Lesson Plan
Tuning In
- Revise the causes and effects of earthquakes, discussed in the previous lesson. Ask the students:
- How do earthquakes effect human settlements?
- How do earthquakes effect buildings and property?
- How might the damage caused by earthquakes be reduced?
Teacher Instruction
- Explain to the students that they will be working in small groups to investigate whether or not building techniques can reduce the impact of earthquakes.
- Provide the students with a copy of the Shake, Rattle and Fall Experiment. Read through the experiment step-by-step and answer any questions the students may have.
- Support the students to complete the introduction, hypothesis, materials, variables and method sections of the experiment.
- Assist the students in collecting and preparing the equipment required for the experiment.
Guided/Independent Learning
- Allow the students to conduct the experiment in small groups. Monitor and support the students as required.
- If time and/or resources are limited, the students could watch the teacher perform a demonstration of the experiment.
- Support the students to complete the results, discussion and conclusion sections of the experiment.
Wrapping Up
- Encourage the students to share their results from the experiment. Ask the students:
- What did you discover?
- What can you learn from your results?
- How might this information be useful for scientists?
Differentiation
Extending Students
- Encourage more capable students to design a follow-up experiment which explores another topic related to earthquakes.
Supporting Students
- Allow less confident students to work on the experiment at their own pace, providing additional time where necessary.
Assessment Strategies
Suggested Assessment Strategies
- used strategic whole class or individual questioning
- observed student participation during learning activities
- recorded student progress on a checklist
- annotated student work samples
- collected and reviewed student work samples
- facilitated whole class or peer feedback sessions
- encouraged student self-reflection
- administered formal assessment tasks.
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