LSC Reference Materials

K-5 Inquiry-Based Science Program, Seattle School District, Seattle, Washington: Conceptual Stories

Conceptual Stories

Betsy Rupp Fulwiler brfulwiler@seattleschools.org		Cathy Stokes cstokes@seattleschools.org
Wanda Lofton Wlofton@seattleschools.org		Joseph Thompson jathompson@seattleschools.org
Kathryn Show Kshow@seattleschools.org		Awnie Turrell aturrell@seattleschools.org
Laura Tyler Tyler@engr.washington.edu
	Elaine Woo ewoo@seattleschools.org

A conceptual story is a graphic representation of the major concepts that are developed through the lessons of an inquiry-based science unit. When presented with two other documents - a page of applicable State Science Standards and another of focus questions that lead to conceptual development in each lesson - the conceptual story gives teachers an overview of the lesson flow and building of concepts throughout the unit.

The conceptual story begins with a listing from the Washington State Essential Academic Learning Requirements (the State Science Standards) of the unifying concepts and benchmarks that students should learn in the science unit. A flow chart then shows each lesson, the investigation experienced in it, and the sub-concept that each lesson helps build. Lessons are grouped in these "conceptual chunks," at the end of which are natural places to assess formatively the students' developing understanding. This is done by analyzing the outcome of an investigation and/or an entry in a science notebook.

A Science Resource Teacher introduces a unit's conceptual story, the pertinent State Science Standards, and focus questions early on in an Initial Use class. Teachers then have an overview of the unit's conceptual flow and understand the importance of teaching all the lessons in the unit. The Science Standards sheet presents not only the science concepts but also the skills and processes and the nature and contexts of science. From this page, teachers can begin to realize that science education includes the learning of scientific skills and thinking as well as science concepts.

Early in each lesson during the Initial Use class, the Science Resource Teacher models the posting of the focus question for that lesson, just as teachers would do with their students. This question frames the investigation of the "big idea" for that activity. In the reflecting stage of the lesson, the Science Resource Teacher models the use of this question and/or carefully chosen reflection questions to help move teachers (and students) through their construction of understanding at that point in the unit. At the end of each lesson in the Initial Use class, the Science Resource Teacher refers the teachers back to the big idea the lesson has addressed and how it fits in the unit's conceptual storyline.

In the course of the six- to nine-hour Initial Use class, the Science Resource Teacher continually refocuses the teachers on the conceptual story, science standards, and focus and reflection questions. This process emphasizes the integral part each investigation plays in developing their students' conceptual understanding and scientific skills and thinking in a unit of study. The intention is that this process will help teachers make connections from one lesson to the big idea of the unit and from one lesson to the next rather than teaching lessons in the unit as isolated activities.

To read the conceptual stories, standards, and focus question documents for these elementary science units, click on the links below:

NOTE: All of these files are PDF files and require Adobe Acrobat Reader. If you do not have this, you can download it for free at the Adobe site by clicking on this ADOBE link.