curriculum guide: the science in discovery › sites › default › files › science in dis… ·...

Volume 1, I s sue 2

© 2001 The Washington Post Company

CURRICULUM GUIDE: THE SCIENCE IN DISCOVERY

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An Integrated CurriculumResource Program

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Frozen in Time

Iceman ResourceThe Scientific Method

Examining the basicsWord Study

A look at mummies

Snapshot of You

Items that we ownreflect who we are

Crossword

Lost and Found—in a puzzle

Academic Content Standards

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IN THIS ISSUE

Sept. 11, 2001

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An Integrated Curriculum For The Washington Post Newspaper In Education Program

Volume 1, I s sue 2 Sept. 11, 2001KLMNO


Lesson: An introduction to the scientific method

Level: Advanced

Subjects: Science, History

Related Activity: Reading

Procedure

Assess KnowledgeConduct a pre-reading activity or skip to Discusssection. Ask students to prepare an "anticipation guide."This type of activity can improve students’ comprehen-sion and retention, especially those of very youngstudents or lower skilled students.

Knows: Before reading, assess what the reader knowsabout the topic.

Wants: Before reading, determine what the reader wantsto know about the topic.

Learned: After reading, express what the reader haslearned about the topic.

Application of KWL – Step One.

K: Students list two or three things they know aboutIceman from prior experience. Allow time forstudents to read the headline and to study theillustration. List two or three pieces of informationthey know about Iceman before reading the article.

W: Students write two to four questions they hope willbe answered in the article about Iceman.

L: Students read the article, then record two to fourinteresting facts they learned about Iceman.

Application of KWL – Step Two: Evaluate what theygained through reading the article.

K: What information under K in Step One wasconfirmed in the article?

W: Which of the questions in Step One were answered inthe article?

L: Students share one new piece of information theylearned about Iceman. What new questions does eachhave?

ON THE WEBhttp://dsc.discovery.com/stories/history/iceman/iceman.htmlIceman: Mummy From the Stone AgeDefinitely take the online trip into Otzi’s world. Color photographs andReal Video available.

http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/nova/icemummies/iceman.htmlThe Iceman’s Last MealReview this and other material provided for the November 1998 NOVAspecial “Ice Mummies.” Educator video available: “Ice Mummies:Return of the Iceman.”

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A50879-2001Jul25.htmlCase Closed on the ‘Iceman’ Mystery. Keith Richburg reports on theJuly 2001 discovery of an arrowhead embedded in Otzi. Usingcomputerized tomography, scientists ended speculation on how theIceman died.

http://www.digonsite.com/

Dig: The Archaeology Magazine for KidsA lively introduction to archaeology through articles, fantastic factoids,ask Dr. Dig and quizzes.

http://museums.ncl.ac.uk/flint/menu.htmlFlints and Stones: Real Life in PrehistoryYou are taken on an exhibit of the world of the late stone age huntergatherers. This site was produced by The Museum of Antiquities ofthe University and Society of Antiquaries of Newcastle upon Tyne,UK.

http://americanhistory.si.edu/hohr/springer/You Be the HistorianStudents begin with the question, “In 2050, if historians visited yourhouse…?” Suggestions are provided for teachers using this activity.

IN PRINTMacCauley, David. Motel of Mysteries. What an archaeologist in 3000AD might learn from a 20th Century motel.

Iceman ResourcesOn the Web and in Print

IcemanKidsPost Article: “Frozen in Time: Uncovering the 5,300-Year-Old Mysteries of the European Iceman”

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FILE PHOTO—THE WASHINGTON POST

REUTERS

Scientists unpack the frozen remains of Icemanat a museum in Italy in 1998. He is housed insidea special refrigerator and kept at below freezing,viewable through a small window. Nicknamed“Oetzi,” for the Oetz valley where he was foundby tourists atop a glacier in 1991, scientistsbelieve he is more than 5,000 years old.

Extension of KWL.

All unanswered questions and new questions could becompiled. Delete the ones that are duplicates or are notpertinent to the Iceman story. Assign selectedunanswered questions as research topics for individualsor for groups.

Discuss

The following questions are to be answered after reading"Frozen in Time."

1. Where and by whom was Otzi found?

2. Whom did the hikers think they had found?

3. You are a hiker who has found skeletal remains and afew items that had been frozen in a glacier. You carefullymark the spot so you can return to it with authorities.How do you mark the location? What are some of thequestions racing through your mind as you descend tothe nearest town?

4. How do scientists know the Iceman lived 5,300 yearsago?

5. List six items found with the body. What do theseitems reveal about the Iceman? (If you can’t think of sixitems, read the article again or look at the illustration.)

6. Why is Otzi back in the news ten years after hisdiscovery?

7. What do scientists now believe is the cause of theIceman’s death?

"Frozen in Time" can be found athttp://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/education/kidspost/archive/A6987-2001Sep1

Examine the Scientific Method Hikers found prehistoric remains entombed in a glacierin 1991. During the next ten years, scientists speculatedabout the mummy, forming hypotheses andusing the latest technology to learn more about thebrown leathery corpse. Give students the "Basics of theScientific Method" reproducible. Discuss thesteps of and reasons for having a scientific method. Afterstudents have completed the activity, divide them intogroups to share the examples they have found. Ask themto classify their examples into three groups: hypothesesthat were supported, hypotheses that were modified, andhypotheses that were rejected.

4 © 2001 The Washington Post Company

Enrichment

1. Careers in Science andTechnology: What scien-tists were involved instudying Iceman?Research what scientistswho study ancient civiliza-tions do. How do they dif-fer from one another? Inwhat way did each type ofscientist contribute to amore accurate under-standing of Iceman?

■ Archaeologist ■ Conservationist ■ Forensic scientist ■ Isotope chemist ■ Paleontologist ■ Pathologist ■ Radiologist

2. Technology and Science:According to glaciologists,dust was blown fromNorth Africa into theAlps during a great stormin 1991. The dustdarkened the snow cover,causing it to absorb moresolar heat, resulting inmore than usual amountsof snow to melt. Thiscould be an answer to whythe corpse was revealedafter so many years. Inwhat ways have advancesin technology assistedscientists in understandingIceman and his discovery?

3. Cause and Effect: Askstudents to write aparagraph or create avisual (for example, aposter or an illustratedflow chart) to demonstratethe potential effect ofwhat at first might haveappeared to be an eventwith little or no immediatesignificance to the localcommunity or thescientific community.Consider that the hikerswho found the bodyinitially thought, as didthe police department,that it was the body of amodern person who mighthave died from exposureor had been murdered.



FILE PHOTO—THE WASHINGTON POST

ILLUSTRATION BY JOHNSTON QUINAN—THE WASHINGTON POST

This photo shows the shoulders of 5,300-year-old Iceman, the Bronze Age hunter whose frozen body was discovered a decade ago in the Alps.Scientists said they solved the mistery of what killed the Iceman: He was shot by an arrow, which was found under the iceman's left shoulder.

This drawing shows howIceman, wearing a deerskintunic, or coat, might haveappeared when he was alive.


NAME ______________________________________________________________________

A Snapshot of You

"It’s like a snapshot of a man in reallife," one scientist said of the itemsfound with Iceman.

The items that we own reflect howwe live our lives and who we are.What tools did the Iceman appearto own? Why are scientistsconfident that Otzi was a hunter?

You are a student. What itemsclassify you as a student? Pencils, abackpack and notebook? In oursociety, most students are assignedtextbooks to read and lockers tostore them. What do you keep inyour locker at school that mostother students also have in theirlockers? What items make yourlocker special?

Prepare a Snapshot Box of yourself.

STEP ONEIn a shoe box or other small boxplace items that represent you. Theywill let people know about you.They are a physical "snapshot inreal life" of who you are. Listen asyour teacher gives you specialinstructions about the box and theday it is due.

Inside of the box you will placethree types of items:

Type 1. Two to three small itemsthat reveal your interests, hobbies orspecial events. These can be theactual items or pictures of items toolarge to fit in the box.

Type 2. Items that reveal something

about your life in the D.C.metropolitan area and whatinterests you. Put these on one sheetof paper.a. List three items found in yourbedroom that an archaeologistmight unearth 200 years from now.Be descriptive so we can picturethem.b. List your three favorite foods.c. List your favorite beverages.d. Draw a picture of an item ofclothing or accessory that bestreflects who you are.e. Write a paragraph about yourfavorite place to be in the D.C.metropolitan area. Tell us why youlike to be there.

Fold the paper in half. Don’t writeyour name on the paper.

Type 3. Inside an envelope put apicture that includes you. Thispicture can be a baby picture, arecent school picture, a family orgroup picture.

Give your teacher the Snapshot Boxyou have prepared. Your teacherwill give each student anotherstudent’s Snapshot Box.

STEP TWOThink like an archaeologist. Youhave just dug up this small box.Open it carefully. Just as scientistslooked at items found near Otzi tolearn about Otzi, you are toexamine these items to determinesomething about the person whoprepared this Snapshot Box.

1. You are not allowed to open theenvelope.

2. Examine each item carefully.What do the two or three itemsreveal about the individual? Write aparagraph in which you speculateabout the interests and hobbies ofthe person and activities in whichthe person may have been involved.

3. Unfold the sheet of paper. Doyou learn something more aboutthis person and his or her society?What do these items tell you aboutthe individual? Do they supportyour first hypothesis about theperson? Do you modify your viewof the individual? Write aparagraph in which you tell aboutthe person revealed through theitems listed, the picture drawn andthe paragraph written. Also includespeculation about the society inwhich the person lived.

4. Share with the class yourconclusions about the person andhis or her society. Can you guesswhich classmate prepared the box?

5. After everyone in the class hastold about the person and societyrevealed in a box, you may openthe envelope to see if you werecorrect. Did you guess the rightclassmate? If the picture is of yourclassmate when he or she was veryyoung, do you need someadditional help? Use yourobservation skills.

1. OBSERVEOn that warm September day in1991, authorities did not thinkthe corpse that the hikers haddiscovered was very old. Who didthey think he was?

Then scientists observed morecarefully the items collected nearthe corpse. For example, acopper-headed ax was found nearthe Iceman. Why is this asignificant item?

Those who discovered Otzi hadobserved the awkward position ofhis left arm. It was draped acrossthe front of his neck. Write aquestion about this observation.

2. FORM A HYPOTHESISScientists began to formhypotheses or workingassumptions about this man.State one hypothesis that mightbe true based upon items foundnear the corpse.

3. PERFORM TESTSNext scientists performed tests onthe corpse and items. What iscarbon-14? Why has carbon-14been important in dating animalsand people?

4. COLLECT DATA FROM OBSERVATIONS AND TESTS. COMPAREDATA TO HYPOTHESIS. INFER WHAT MIGHT BE TRUE.Scientists made conclusions based upon those tests. What did thescientists conclude based upon observations and tests? Select three itemsand fill in the chart.

ObservationItem and/or Test Conclusion

1.

2.

3.

6 © 2001 The Washington Post Company

In 1991 hikers discovered a body entombed in a glacier. During the next ten years, scientists speculated about themummy, forming hypotheses and using the latest technology to learn more about the brown leathery corpse.Hypotheses were changed or discarded, and conclusions were corrected based on better evidence. This is how thescientific method works:

Basics of Scientific Method

5. BE PREPARED FOR BETTER EVIDENCE AND MOREACCURATE TESTSTechnology improved. Scientists ran more tests using computerizedtomography, a new kind of x-ray, and made a discovery. What didscientists discover in Italy in July 2001?

NAME ______________________________________________________________________


N S B T W E P O R S S

I N A T N N L F Y U N

K T C A N I S T E R O

S U K X E N L W W X W

R N P P W D S N O W Q

E I A S F O A S N O U

E C C T H O N G S N I

D B K S B O W S G S V

P O U C H I R O F E E

O S N O W C O P P E R

N S N O N E E D L E S

NAME ______________________________________________________________________

Ax

Backpack

Bow

Canister

Cape

Copper

Dagger

Deerskin

Flint

Ice

Needle

Pouch

Quiver

Rope

Thongs

Tunic

Yew

Lost and Found in a GlacierTwo hikers found Otzi and items near him in the snow. Can you find the following items? Find andcircle the items listed. Words run left to right, right to left, top to bottom, bottom to top and diagonally.

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When the hikers discovered Otzi, they found more thana corpse. They found a mummy.

Usually you would think of a mummy being a deadbody that had been embalmed and prepared for burialby ancient Egyptians. This didn’t happen to Otzi. Helived long before the first pyramids were built.

Otzi was mummified by nature. The snow and ice thatcovered him also preserved him. Iceman was freeze-dried so well his pores and eyeballs can be seen.

Mummies are mummies because their bodies did notdecompose or rot. A body can mummify by embalmingor drying. Natural elements cause the body to shriveland dry up. Very well preserved mummies have beenfound in the peat bogs of northern Europe.

A mummy can be produced in a very hot climate.Sylvester, the desert mummy, is exhibited in Seattle. Heis an example of natural dehydration preventing decom-position.

"Mummy" is derived from the Arabic mumiya whichmeans body preserved by wax.We get our spelling fromMiddle English, mummie, the word for medicinal mate-rial from embalmed corpses.

Remember, the Iceman is no ordinary corpse.

Definitions are from The American Heritage Dictionary

Word Study: A look at mummy MORE MUMMIEShttp://www.akhet.co.uk/clikmumm.htm

Akhet EgyptologyA clickable mummy reveals the mummification process.

http://www.nationalgeographic.com/tv/mummy/

How to Make a MummyLearn how to embalm from National Geographic.

http://www.uke.uni-hamburg.de/institute/imdm/idv/forschung/mumie/index.en.html

The Virtual Mummy: Unwrapping a Mummy by MouseClick The Institute of Mathematics and ComputerScience in Medicine at the University of Hamburg,Germany, uses the computer to create virtual mummiesin order to explain the non-destructive examination ofmummies. Quick Time will allow you to unwrap themummy’s head. It will help you to explain to studentshow scientists discovered the arrowhead that killed Otzi.

http://www.cmi.k12.il.us/Urbana/projects/cyber-mummy/mummyhome.html

Cyber Mummy The University of Illinois in Urbana uses a supercomput-er, medical imagery and an archeologist to examine amummy in their World Heritage Museum.

http://www.umich.edu/~kelseydb/Exhibits/Karanis83/KaranisExcavation/temple2.html

The Temples and the GodsThe Kelsey Museum, University of Michigan, onlineexhibit reveals that crocodiles were mummies too.

http://www.roadsideamerica.com/attract/WVPHImum.html

Mummies of the InsaneA less academic site that tells the tale of two WestVirginians that were mummified. Just another ofAmerica’s roadside attractions.

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Academic Content StandardsThis lesson addresses academic content standards of Maryland, Virginia and the District ofColumbia. Among those that apply are:The main lesson addresses these academic content standards of:

MarylandScienceSkills and Processes (1.0): Studentswill demonstrate the thinking andacting inherent in the practice ofscience. Scientific Inquiry, 1.5.1: Bythe end of grade 5, students knowand are able to access and processinformation from readings,investigations, and/or oralcommunictions. 1.5.2: ask questionsthat can be answered through ascientific investigation. 1.5.3: useobservations and select appropriatescientific information to formpredictions and hypotheses. By theend of grade 8, students know andare able to 1.8.4: recognize/developwell-designed procedures thatidentify the independent anddependent variables, the need forcontrol when testing a factor, theimportance of multiple trials, theselection of appropriatematerials/equipment, and thedevelopment of clear, logicaldirections within an investigation.1.8.9: interpret and communicatefindings (i.e., speaking, writing, anddrawing) in a form suited to thepurpose and audience, usingdevelopmentally appropriatemethods including technology toolsand telecommunications.

Social StudiesSocial Studies, World History (3.0):3.2.8.1 In the context of worldhistory through the Middle Ages,and in contemporary worldgeography, at the end of grade 8,students know and are able toanalyze the criteria anthropologistsand archeologists use to definecivilizations, such as socialhierarchy, government, writingsystems, and long distance trade.A complete list of State Content Standards ofMaryland can be found athttp://www.mdk12.org/mspp/standards/.

VirginiaScienceScientific Investigation, Reasoning,and Logic, Grade 3, VirginiaStudies 3.1: The student will planand conduct investigations inwhich

■ questions are developed toformulate hypotheses;

■ predictions and observations aremade;

■ data are gathered, charted, andgraphed;

■ objects with similar characteristicsare classified into at least twosets and two subsets;

■ inferences are made andconclusions are drawn;

■ natural events are sequencedchronologically;

History/Social StudiesHistory, Grade 3, Virginia Studies3.1: The student will explain theterm "civilization" and describe theancient civilizations of Greece andRome, in terms of geographicfeatures, government, agriculture,architecture, music, art, religion,sports, and roles of men, women,and children.World History to 1000AD, Grade 8, Virginia Studies 8.1:The student will describe earlyphysical and cultural developmentof mankind from the PaleolithicEra to the revolution ofagriculture, with emphasis on

■ the impact of geography onhunter-gatherer societies;

■ characteristics of hunter-gatherersocieties;

■ toolmaking and use of fire;■ technological and social

advancements that gave rise tostable communities; and

■ how archeological discoveries arechanging our knowledge of earlypeoples.

A complete list of Standards of Learning ofVirginia can be found on the Webat http://www.pen.k12.va.us/.

Washington, D.C.ScienceScientific Inquiry, ContentStandard 1: Understand anddevelop abilities to do scientificinquiry by asking questions basedon current knowledge, performinginvestigations and devising logicalexplanations. By the end of grade3, the student will state thatscientific investigations may takemany different forms, includingobserving what things are like orwhat is happening somewhere,collecting specimens for analysis,and doing experiments. By the endof grade 5, the student willcompare results of scientificinvestigations with others to knowresults are seldom exactly the same,but if the differences are large, it isimportant to try to figure out why;know that scientists’ explanationsabout what happens in the worldcome partly from what theyobserve, partly from what theythink; evaluate claims, andarguments based on data just asscientists — claims are backed upwith evidence that can beconfirmed and with a logicalargument.

HistoryChronology and Space in HumanHistory, Content Standard 2:Students understand howeconomic, political, and socialprocesses interact to shape patternsof human population,interdependence, cooperation,competition, compromise andconflict in controlling the Earth’ssurface. Grade 6: The studentexamines human-land adaptationin difficult environments.A complete list of Standards for Teaching andLearning of the District of Columbia PublicSchools can be found athttp://www.k12.dc.us/dcps/.

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