September 2014
ISSN 1010-144x
SEPT
OCT
NOV/DEC
JAN
Teachers,
FEB
MAR
APR
MAY
Feature Video: Koala Time
Don’t miss out on the wealth of online resources that come free
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games, and more—all designed for your interactive whiteboard
or digital projector. Visit www.scholastic.com/superscience to
access these materials.
For this issue, you’ll find background videos for all four feature
stories, a slide show demonstrating this month’s hands-on
activity, a sequencing game, and bonus hands-on and Common
Core literacy skills sheets.
If you have any questions or comments, you can e-mail us
anytime at [email protected]. We’re looking forward
to a great year!
SuperScience meets NSES, cCSS & Ngss Standards
articles
Life (Habitats):
Koala Caretakers
Lexile Level 870
Guided Reading Level S
Scientific Inquiry:
Deadly Glow
Lexile Level 760
Guided Reading Level N
Earth (Volcanoes):
Volcano Alert!
Lexile Level 850
Guided Reading Level R
Physical (Flight):
The Sky’s the Limit
Lexile Level 820
Guided Reading Level Q
A SUPPLEMENT TO SUPERSCIENCE
National Science
Education
Standards
Common Core
State Standards
Next generation
SKILLS SHEETS
science
www.scholastic.com
/superscience
standards
Organisms and
their environment;
populations and
ecosystems
Reading Informational
Text: 1. Refer to details
and examples in a text
when explaining what
the text says.
LS2C: Ecosystem
dynamics,
functioning, and
resilience
Abilities necessary
to do scientific
inquiry
Reading Informational
Text: 7. Draw on
information from
multiple print or digital
sources.
• T6: Scientific
PS4A: Wave
inquiry activity
properties
Practices: Planning • Web/Common
Core: Integration
and carrying out
• Bonus hands-on
investigations
Changes in the
Earth and sky;
structure of the
Earth system
Reading Informational
Text: 4. Determine the
meaning of domainspecific words or
phrases in a text.
4-ESS3-2: Compare • T7: Research skill
solutions to reduce • T
8: Chart skill
the impacts of
• Web/Common
natural processes
Core: Vocabulary
on humans.
in context
Science as a human
endeavor; science
and technology in
society
Writing: 3. Write
narratives to develop
real or imagined
experiences or events.
ETS2B: Influence
of engineering,
technology, and
science on society
• T10: No-Sweat
Bubble Test
• Web/Common
Core: Text
evidence
• T9: Map skill
• Web/Common
Core: Narrative
writing
SuperScience Teacher’s Guide • September 2014 T
1
PAGE 4
life science
PAGE 8
scientific inquiry
Koala Caretakers
Deadly Glow
Lexile Level 870; Guided Reading Level S
Lexile Level 760; Guided Reading Level N
OBJECTIVE
Learn how and why Australians are trying to save koalas.
SET UP
Use the Internet to obtain and print photos of various
traffic signs. Obtain blank paper.
BEFORE READING
1. Hold up one of the traffic signs or display it on a
projector. Ask:
•What do you observe here? (traffic sign)
•What is the purpose of a traffic sign? (to warn drivers
about conditions specific to their location)
•What does this sign mean? (Answers will vary.)
2. Display the other signs one at a time, and ask
students to identify each one’s meaning.
3. Ask students to observe the photo of the koala on
page 4. Ask: What is unusual about this koala? (Both
arms are in casts.)
4. Tell students the koala was hit by a car because
people are moving into its habitat and building roads.
On blank paper, have students design their own traffic
signs to warn drivers of koalas. Share the designs.
OBJECTIVE
Understand how scientists used scientific inquiry to
learn about pitcher plants. Then apply inquiry methods
to another question.
SET UP
Purchase a set of UV beads online.
BEFORE READING
1. Bring in various bottles of sunscreen.
2. Pass around sunscreen. Ask:
•What does SPF stand for? (sun protection factor)
•What does SPF protect us from? (ultraviolet radiation)
•What does a higher SPF number mean? (A higher
number means protection for a longer period of time.)
AFTER-READING INQUIRY
•Name three reasons why the koala population is
declining. (People are cutting down eucalyptus trees.
Disease is preventing some koalas from reproducing.
Heat waves are making koalas sick.)
•How are people in Koala Beach helping koalas?
(People do not cut down eucalyptus trees to build
homes. Residents agree to drive slowly and not keep
dogs as pets.)
1. Show UV beads. Tell students they contain a
chemical that changes color when exposed to UV light.
2. In pairs, students will select one of the following
questions to investigate:
•How does time of day affect the color of the beads?
•How do differences in weather at the same time of day
affect the color of the beads?
•How does applying sunscreen with different SPFs
affect the color of the beads?
•How do different brands of sunglasses affect the color
of the beads?
•How do indoor and outdoor light affect the color of
the beads?
3. Have students write out a plan of how they will
test for and answer their question. Then they can
investigate it!
RESOURCE
RESOURCE
Reading and literacy connection
Reading and literacy connection
AFTER READING
Learn about koalas and how you can help them at:
www.savethekoala.com
Go to www.scholastic.com/superscience
to download the skills sheet “Collecting
Evidence.” Students use text evidence to
support statements about the article.
Common Core State Standard
Reading Informational Text: 1
Download a bonus hands-on activity about carnivorous
plants at: www.scholastic.com/superscience
Go to www.scholastic.com/superscience
to download the skills sheet “Watch and
Learn.” Students integrate information
from a video and text on the same subject.
Common Core State Standard
Reading Informational Text: 7
SuperScience Vol. 26, No. 1 • September 2014 Editor: Mara Grunbaum • Associate Editor: Margaret Mead • Education Editor: Matt Friedman • Art Director: Sarah Irick • Senior Designer: Nicole Hocutt • Senior Production Editor:
Kathy Fallon • Senior Copy Editors: Ingrid Accardi, Suzanne Bilyeu • Copy Editor: Troy Reynolds • Photo Editor: Jose Pouso • MAGAZINE GROUP: Executive VP, Scholastic: Hugh Roome • Editorial Director: Patricia Janes • Executive
Editor: Elizabeth Carney • VP, Creative Director: Judith Christ-Lafond • Executive Director of Production and Operations: Barbara Schwartz • Executive Editorial Director, Copy Desk: Craig Moskowitz • Publishing System Director: David
Hendrickson • Executive Director of Photography: Steven Diamond • Senior Administrative Coordinator: Mirtha Williams • CIRCULATION & MARKETING: VP, Marketing: Danielle Mirsky • Marketing Manager: Leslie Tevlin • Director,
Manufacturing & Distribution: Mimi Esguerra • CORPORATE: President, Chief Executive Officer, and Chairman of the Board of Scholastic Inc.: Richard Robinson
T2 SuperScience Teacher’s Guide • September 2014
PAGE 10
earth science
PAGE 14
physical science
Volcano Alert!
The Sky’s the Limit
Lexile Level 850; Guided Reading Level R
Lexile Level 820; Guided Reading Level Q
OBJECTIVE
OBJECTIVE
Learn how and why scientists are studying volcanoes
in Iceland.
Understand how a record-breaking pilot is inspiring
kids to study science.
SET UP
SET UP
1. Obtain a short-stemmed Pyrex funnel and a glass
beaker large enough to hold the inverted funnel. Also
obtain red food coloring, water, and a hot plate.
2. Place the inverted funnel into the beaker. Pour water
into the beaker until the water is level with the bottom
of the funnel’s stem. Then add a few drops of food
coloring to the water. Place the beaker on the hot plate.
BEFORE READING
1. Turn the hot plate on high heat. Tell students you are
demonstrating a volcano.
2. As the water boils, bubbles of steam expand and rise,
pushing water up and out of the funnel’s stem. Ask:
•What caused the water to spurt out through the
funnel? (Adding heat causes the water to expand,
increasing pressure. Pressure builds until it reaches a
point where it needs to escape. Water escapes through
the stem.)
•How is this similar to a volcano? (Pressure builds up
beneath a volcano. Once enough pressure builds up,
magma pushes up a central vent and out the top of
the volcano.)
AFTER READING
•Why does Iceland have so many volcanoes? (Iceland
sits on top of two tectonic plates that are pulling away
from each other. The opening allows magma to rise.)
•How are scientists monitoring volcanic activity
in Iceland? (Scientists placed high-tech sensors
near volcanoes to monitor vibrations and magma
movements.)
RESOURCE
1. Obtain a class set of pencils. Cut out pieces of paper
that are 5 cm by 15 cm.
2. Take each piece of paper and bring the short ends
together into the shape of an airplane wing (no
creases). Tape the ends together.
BEFORE READING
1. Give each student a pencil and a wing. Tell students
to put the pencil through the wing. Hold the pencil
horizontally and let the wing hang by the taped end.
2. Tell students to hold the pencil in front of their
mouth and blow at the front of the wing. Ask: What
happened to the wing? (The wing moved a little.)
3. Now have students move the pencil slightly below
their mouth and blow over the back of the wing. Ask:
•What happened to the wing? (The wing flew upward.)
•This is called lift. How does lift work? (Flowing air is
under less pressure than stationary air. When you blow
air over the wing, it creates an area of lower pressure.
The higher air pressure below the wing pushes the
wing upward.)
AFTER READING
•What two records did Barrington Irving break?
(Irving was the youngest person and the first AfricanAmerican to fly solo around the world.)
•How is Irving helping kids study science and
engineering? (Irving runs a program called
Experience Aviation that teaches kids to build planes,
robots, race cars, and hovercrafts.)
RESOURCE
Watch a volcano animation at: http://news.bbc
.co.uk/2/hi/science/nature/7533964.stm
Learn about other African-American aviators at:
http://airandspace.si.edu/explore-and-learn/topics
/blackwings/
Reading and literacy connection
Reading and literacy connection
Go to www.scholastic.com/superscience
to download the skills sheet “Word
Detective.” Students use context clues to
define unfamiliar vocabulary.
Common Core State Standard
Reading Informational Text: 4
Go to www.scholastic.com/superscience
to download the skills sheet “Taking Off.”
Students write about a trip they would
like to take.
Common Core State Standard
Writing: 3
SuperScience Teacher’s Guide • September 2014 T
3
scientific inquiry
Name: ________________________________ Date: ____________________
Investigate It!
Scientific inquiry is a logical approach to studying problems and discovering new things. The steps
below are one way scientists can investigate something that interests them. After reading “Deadly
Glow” (pp. 8-9), use evidence from the article to explain how scientists used scientific inquiry to
study carnivorous plants.
Scientific Inquiry
1. Make an observation about something interesting.
2. Propose a research question.
3. Form a hypothesis—an educated guess that may answer the research question.
4. D
esign an experiment to test the hypothesis. Experiments have a variable (a
characteristic that changes) and a control (a characteristic that doesn’t change).
5. Gather and interpret data.
6. Make a conclusion, or a summary of the results.
7. Come up with further questions to investigate. Start again!
1.What question did the scientists want to answer?
________________________________________
________________________________________
________________________________________
________________________________________
________________________________________
3.
2.Identify the variable and the control in the
4.How would you take this experiment further?
________________________________________
________________________________________
________________________________________
________________________________________
________________________________________
________________________________________
experiment.
________________________________________
________________________________________
________________________________________
________________________________________
________________________________________
T4 SuperScience Teacher’s Guide • September 2014
What was the scientists’ conclusion?
________________________________________
________________________________________
________________________________________
________________________________________
________________________________________
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NGss: comparing solutions
Name: ________________________________ Date: ____________________
What’s the Solution?
In “Volcano Alert!” (pp. 10-13), you read that volcanic eruptions happen often in Iceland. Scientists
and officials have come up with different ways to reduce the negative effects of volcanic eruptions
on people. Use the Internet to research the solutions below. Decide which solution you think would
be the most helpful. Then explain your findings in the space provided.
• Educate the community so everyone has a survival kit
and an evacuation plan.
• Dig deep trenches around the volcano to contain lava.
• Don’t build homes and businesses near a volcano.
• Spray lava with seawater.
• Build barriers to redirect lava flow.
• Create firebreaks to reduce the spread of fires.
Write a brief paragraph describing the solution you picked.
__________________________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________________________
Write a brief paragraph explaining why you think this solution is the most helpful one from the list.
__________________________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________________________
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©2014 BY SCHOLASTIC INC.
SuperScience Teacher’s Guide • September 2014 T
5
chart skill
Name: ________________________________ Date: ____________________
Comparing Volcanoes
In “Volcano Alert!” (pp. 10-13), you read about Iceland, one of the most volcanically active places
in the world. The chart below shows characteristics and examples of three common volcano types:
shield, composite, and cinder cone. Study the chart, then answer the questions that follow.
Common Volcano Types
shield
composite
cinder cone
Description
broad and dome-shaped;
up to 200 km (125 mi) wide
very tall with steep sides;
about 1-10 km (0.6-6 mi) wide
short with steep sides; often
less than 1 km (0.6 mi) wide
Lava
thin and watery
thick and sticky
thick and sticky
Typical
Eruption
relatively quiet and gentle;
lava travels far from the
opening before cooling
explosive and violent; lava
flows slowly down the sides as
ash shoots high in the air
explosive but small; lava is
thrown high in the air, breaks
into fragments and falls
Examples
Mauna Loa (Hawaii)
Olympus Mons (Mars)
La Cumbre (Galápagos Islands)
Mount Fuji (Japan)
Mount Hood (Oregon)
Mount Etna (Italy)
Parícutin (Mexico)
Crater Lake (Oregon)
Sunset Crater (Arizona)
Shape
Source: LiveScience.com
1. Which type of volcano has the smallest width?
________________________________________
2.What is the difference between the eruptions of
composite and cinder cone volcanoes?
________________________________________
________________________________________
________________________________________
4.Viscosity is how resistant a liquid is to flowing.
Which type of volcano in the chart has the least
viscous lava? Which details in the chart gave
you your answer? ______________________________
5.Which volcano is more likely to put people at
risk of breathing in ash: Mount Fuji or Mauna
Loa? Why?___________________________________
3.Which volcano example in the chart is located
________________________________________
________________________________________
on a planet other than Earth?
________________________________________________
________________________________________
________________________________________________
T6 SuperScience Teacher’s Guide • September 2014
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©2014 BY SCHOLASTIC INC.
map sKILL
Name: ________________________________ Date: ____________________
World Traveler
In “The Sky’s the Limit” (pp. 14-15), you read about pilot Barrington Irving’s solo flight around
the globe. On his next adventure, Irving will pilot a plane from Washington, D.C., to 12 different
countries. At each of his 30 stops, he will embark on a science-related expedition. Study the map of
Irving’s planned trip below. Then answer the questions that follow.
ARCTIC
OCEAN
Alaska
RUSSIA
Bering
Sea
ASIA
UNITED
STATES
JAPAN
CHINA
CANADA
PACIFIC
OCEAN
NORTH
AMERICA
Washington, D.C.
ATLANTIC
OCEAN
PHILIPPINES
PALAU
EQUATOR
PAPUA
NEW GUINEA
INDONESIA
map: jim mcmahon
INDIAN
OCEAN
AUSTRALIA
AUSTRALIA
0
2,000 MI
0
3,000 KM
SOUTH
AMERICA
New Caledonia
(FRANCE)
NEW ZEALAND
1.In which of the following countries will
4.When Irving takes off to fly northeast
Barrington Irving stop only once?
A Australia
B Japan
C Papua New Guinea
DIndonesia
2.After New Zealand, where will he stop next?
A Australia
B Indonesia
C New Caledonia
DPalau
3.During which flight will he travel northeast?
A
B
C
D
from Japan to Russia
from China to the southern Philippines
from Australia to New Zealand
from the southern Philippines to Indonesia
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©2014 BY SCHOLASTIC INC.
across the Bering Sea, which country will
he depart from?
A Canada
B Russia
CJapan
DChina
5.Not including his takeoff and landing in
Washington, D.C., how many places will Irving
stop in North America?
A five B six
Cseven
Deight
6.True or false: Irving will visit four continents.
A true
Bfalse
SuperScience Teacher’s Guide • September 2014 T
7
READING COMPREHENSION
Name: ________________________________ Date: ____________________
No-Sweat Bubble Test
Directions: Read each question below, then use the article “Koala Caretakers” (pp. 4-7) to
determine the best answer. Completely fill in the bubble next to the best answer.
1.In which country is the Port Macquarie Koala
Hospital located?
A
B
C
D
United States
Portugal
South Africa
Australia
2. What is the primary food that koalas eat?
A
B
C
D
spinach
coconuts
eucalyptus leaves
all of the above
6. What is the purpose of koala traffic signs?
7. Which of the following is true about how
people are trying to help koalas?
3.Today, what is the main reason koalas are
A t o designate koala viewing areas along
the road
B to point out koala crosswalks
C to warn drivers to slow down for koalas
D to indicate that a koala hospital is ahead
A Volunteers are planting new eucalyptus trees.
B Scientists are developing medicines to
protect koalas from disease.
C People near koala habitats are agreeing not
to keep dogs as pets.
D all of the above
losing their habitat?
A L
and is being used to build businesses
and homes.
B People hunt koalas for their soft fur.
C Koalas are starting to eat different types
of food.
D Disease has left koalas unable to reproduce.
8. Why is Koala Beach such an unusual place?
4. Why is it dangerous for koalas to live close
A S
and dunes naturally separate people from
koalas.
B Koalas and people live side by side.
C The neighborhood contains five koala
hospitals.
D The population of koalas there has
increased in recent years.
to people?
A
B
C
D
They can be attacked by pet dogs.
They can be hit by cars.
They can get lost in new neighborhoods.
both A and B
5. What is a baby koala called?
A
B
C
D
joey
cub
kid
jane
T8 SuperScience Teacher’s Guide • September 2014
9. What does the term thrive mean?
A to grow successfully C to threaten
B to shrink in size
D to hibernate
10.Which events do scientists believe are
becoming more common in Australia because
of climate change?
A high tides
B volcanic eruptions
C heat waves
D solar eclipses
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