Unit Preface
Introduction
When we read this excellent North Carolina State study published in Nature Climate Change we were inspired to bring the approach they used to Illinois schools. Why? Because it demonstrated that a rigorous NGSS unit, in this case on climate change - combined with parent engagement pieces like outdoor service projects and student/parent interviews - could not only teach the students to care more about climate and environment but could inspire their parents too - even those traditionally hardest to convince. That is a huge win for our community.
Our goals for the unit were to leverage the impact of the intergenerational learning provided by the interviews, engage students in meaningful service learning, and connect students to the ecosystems and environmental issues in their own backyards. In our search for a phenomena that could meet these ambitious goals, we stumbled across the story of the Rusty Patched Bumblebee. This native pollinator has suffered such a dramatic decline in both its population and range that it was the first bumblebee placed on the Endangered Species List. Illinois is one of the last remaining places in the country where the Rusty Patched Bumblebee is found.
In this unit, students emulate the work of scientists as they seek to understand the Rusty Patched Bumblebee and its plight. They figure out what this species needs to survive, what may be causing the dramatic decline in population, why it is important to preserve this species, and what they can do to help this keystone species.
We hope that this unit, and the story of the Rusty Patched Bumblebee, will motivate students to explore the functionality of ecosystems, understand the human impacts on the environment, and engage in practices to benefit the delicate balance of these natural systems. We hope that these instructional materials will give students the tools necessary to make sense of their world, make them aware of local environmental challenges, and empower them to take positive action based on the science they learn.
What’s in a name?
In creating our Rusty patched Bumblebee Unit unit we learned that different authors spell the terms “bumble bee” and “bumblebee” differently and some even seem to use the spellings interchangeably in the same publication. So, what to do? In the end we decided to take the advice of the Oxford English Dictionary and the Merriam-Webster Dictionary which (for once!) both agree. Each list ‘Bumblebee’ and ‘Honeybee’ as the correct spellings. For us this has the added benefit of reducing our shorthand from RPBB (commonly used) to RPB.
Making Sense of Phenomena and Designing Solutions
The Next Generation Science Standards (NGSS) focus on helping students use science to make sense of phenomena in the natural and designed world, and use engineering to solve problems. NGSS designed lessons develop students' ability to use the Science and Engineering Practices, and understanding of Disciplinary Core ideas and Crosscutting Concepts to make sense of phenomena and design solutions to problems. In this unit students make sense of the dramatic decline of the Rusty Patched Bumblebee and design solutions to this problem. All of the learning that takes place in the unit aids students in understanding this species, the problem that it faces, and solutions to those problems. Read more about phenomena and the role they play in science education here.
Place-Based Learning
This unit is specifically designed for Illinois students. By using the locally relevant problem of the decline of the Rusty Patched Bumblebee, students are introduced to issues in their backyard and hopefully build a connection to their state and an understanding that by making sense of the problems around them they can design successful solutions. Read more about Place-Based Science Education here.
Parent Interview
In lesson 3 of this unit students conduct an interview. This interview serves two purposes, to get first hand evidence of how the environment has changed in the lifetime of the interviewee, and to begin an on-going conversation about human impacts on the environment and actions they can take as individuals and as families to mitigate those impacts.
This important piece of the unit is included because research shows that parental engagement through interviews has an impact on adult outlook on topics such as climate change. Read more about this research here.
Action Projects
Another essential part of this unit is the action project. The action project is a way to show students that they can have a direct, positive impact on the environmental problem that they learn about throughout the unit. Learn more about Action Projects here.
What is a Lesson?
Different resources and teachers have different definitions of what a lesson is. For the purposes of this unit, a lesson is the series of student activities that take place in order to answer a driving question. Most of the lessons in this unit will take longer than one class period. Teachers should review the materials beforehand, and using their knowledge of their students and teaching styles, decide the best places to break between class periods in each lesson.
Driving Questions Board
The unit uses a Driving Question Board (DQB) for the class to formulate and organize questions and track learning. A DQB is a prominent, visible place in the classroom where the questions that students formulate about the phenomena are posted. It can be chart paper, or a space on a blank wall. Students will write their questions on post-it notes or notecards and attach them to the DBQ. The DQB is revisited at the beginning and end of most lessons in the unit for students to add questions and decide what questions have been answered because of new learning. Watch this video to learn more about Driving Question Boards.
Summary Chart Protocol
This unit uses a Summary Chart tool to help students summarize and organize what they learn in each lesson and make the connection to the anchoring phenomenon explicit. Find a place in your classroom to display a class Summary Chart. Students will also keep an individual Summary Chart. Many lessons refer to the Summary Chart Protocol at the beginning and end of each lesson. During the Summary Chart Protocol at the beginning of a lesson teachers should:
Review what was learned in previous lessons using the class and individual Summary Charts.
Review the Driving Question Board to review what questions have been answered and what questions remain. Indicate the questions that have been answered by moving to a different location on the DBQ or using highlighter. Do not remove the questions as they are important to keep track of what has already been learned.
During the Summary Chart Protocol at the end of a lesson teachers should:
Discuss with the class the best way to complete the Summary Chart for the lesson
Review the Driving Question Board to determine what questions have been answered and what questions remain.
Add any new questions that arose as a result of the lesson. Label questions with Crosscutting Concepts?