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Is It Alive?
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Are these dried peas alive?
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As a companion to the Essential Science for Teachers course,
the TerrAqua Column is meant to help you apply what you learn during
Session 1: What Is
Life? To do this, a good TerrAqua Column design will
include living, dead, and nonliving components — those that you’ve
introduced as well as those that are “included” as part of
the bottle system (i.e., the bottles and the air). “Is It Alive?” provides
you with an opportunity to classify these items as living, dead, and
nonliving using what you’ve learned about the characteristics of
life.
Materials Required
Instructions
- Assemble the objects to be introduced
into your TerrAqua Column.
- Observe each object.
- Using your Is
It Alive? Data Sheet (PDF),
classify each object as living, dead, or nonliving.
- After you’ve stocked
your TerrAqua Column, make regular observations of each object
and document any changes that occur.
Activity Questions
Before you stock your TerrAqua Column
- What are five
characteristics that can be used to define “living”?
- Which can be observed in a
living object as it sits in front of you?
- Which can be observed
in a living object over time?
- Which items do you currently classify
as living?
- What characteristics define “dead”?
- Which can be observed
in a dead object sitting in front of you?
- Which can be observed in
a dead object over time?
- Which objects do you currently classify
as dead?
- What characteristics define “nonliving”?
- Which can
be observed in a nonliving object sitting in front of you?
- Which can
be observed in a nonliving object over time?
- Which objects do you
currently classify as nonliving?
- Which objects are you unsure of?
- What evidence will help you reach
conclusions for these objects?
At the End of Your Study Period
- For which objects would you change your classification?
- What
happened to change your ideas?
SHARE YOUR RESULTS: Is It Alive?
TRACK OUR PROGRESS: Is It Alive?
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