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Thinking in Scientific Ways
Developing and Communicating Scientific Understanding

How Do We See? 2

Teachers' notes
Progress indicators
What the work shows Curriculum links The learning context Where to next

What the work shows

Samuel's text in the "before" view shows his current ideas about "how we see". The text in the "after" view shows how he has clarified and changed his ideas. He is close to constructing a scientific view of "how we see" but has not used the idea of sources of light in his explanation.

Samuel's “before” view Samuel's “after” view

Samuel's "before" view

Samuel's "after" view


Progress Indicators

Thinking in Scientific Ways

Suggesting explanations
Samuel's experiences such as reflecting light around the classroom, seeing light travelling, looking at signs, and the class discussions, lead Samuel to adopt a new explanation for "how we see" (see Samuel's "after" view). He suggests cause-effect links for observations or events.

Comparing and evaluating explanations
Samuel also clearly accepts that his ideas may change if someone suggests a better one.

Developing and Communicating Scientific Understanding

Using scientific ideas in constructing explanations
In Samuel's "after" view he constructs a plausible explanation for an experience, using some scientific ideas. He now thinks of the eye as a receiver of the "picture", but has yet to link sources of light to his explanation (L3).


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