Connecteds and Squids

From the Te Papa website

Whilst I was waiting for the class to finish their music practice –a drumming rhythm on big plastic bins which was quite interesting but then I noticed the Connected and read that too!

It was the Connected 1, 2009, all about the colossal squid that was dissected and then put on display at Te Papa Museum in Wellington. We often talk about how to integrate science into our reading programme and as I read through the article I thought there were a few good instances to develop that science lens with students…

Basically the key is to think about how I can develop the science capabilities with students whilst they read the article. It might be a good article to show how scientists investigate or how they notice carefully. It could be that you might focus on a chart or a diagram for students to critique: what do you think of this diagram? Does it have enough information? Does it need more? Who do you think the audience is for this representation?

There’s a good diagram on the front page that seems to break all the rules (that I like anyway!) for diagrams –does this matter? How do scientists know all the facts about squid? Make a list and try to figure out how they might have figured out all this information…

The squid's beak; Te Papa website

I was also curious about the whole ‘defrosting the squid’ episode. Scientists first froze a block of ice to check how long it would take to thaw. Mind you, I’m not sure you can freeze a block of ice… perhaps they mean water… In terms of investigating, what might have happened if the scientists hadn’t tested first? What else might they have had to investigate before carrying something out? One that springs to mind is the preserving liquid for the squid at Te Papa.

Finally there’s the vocab –what verbs are there that are more likely to be used in science and what do they mean? And the processes happening as well!

The squid's eye; Te Papa website

So just a quick blog today –I was just excited after I had read the Connected seeing all the lovely science. Yes, teachers do need to do a bit of the heavy work to be deliberate about the science (children understanding how science itself works) but from this kind of work, children will have a greater understanding.

Keep on sciencing!