The Nature of Science strand

The Living World strand

Students observe closely and make inferences based on their observations.

This article provides an opportunity for students to differentiate between observation and inference. It draws on both traditional Māori knowledge and modern technologies to find out more about kōura.

Adapting the resource

1. Show the students the picture of the kōura on pages 18 & 19 but hide the text. (You might like to enlarge the photo or print copies so students can look closely at the photo). Ask the students to look closely at the kōura and describe what they can see. You may need to prompt them. For example:
   • How many legs can you see? What do they look like?
   • Look very carefully at the big front legs. Do they look smooth or rough? Are they straight or bendy?
   • What colour is the kōura?
   • Look at the tail. How many bits (segments) can you see?
   • What do its eyes look like? What do the long feelers look like?
   • Look carefully at the face and head. What do you see?
   • What is the body covered with?

In this initial activity discourage students from making inferences – just get them to describe what they can see.

1. Now ask the students the question in the first paragraph of the article, “How do you think a kōura might move around?

In answering these questions, students are making meaning based on their observations, i.e., they are thinking about what they see (interpreting data).

1. Now ask students to look carefully at the pincers and ask:
   • What do you think these are for? Prompt the students to elaborate on their answers, backing up their ideas with evidence (this could be what they can see in the photo or prior knowledge).
2. On page 21 there is a photo of a kōura being measured. Get the students to look closely at the photo and ask:
   • What can you see?
   • Why might it be important to measure the kōura?
3. Page 22 describes a variety of ways scientists tried to count kōura. Ask:
   • Why do you think the scientists wanted to know how many kōura there were?

This article contains the answers to these questions but focus on how the students justify their ideas, rather than on what the text says.

What counts as evidence in science are observations (direct and indirect) of the natural physical world. Scientists put effort into ensuring they have robust data (i.e., that their observations are accurate). This often involves measuring something.

Developing an appreciation of what counts as evidence in science supports students to become scientifically literate, i.e., to participate as critical, informed, and responsible citizens in a society in which science plays a significant role. (This is the purpose of science in NZC.)

When you ask, “What do you see?”

• Do students limit their answers to things that are observable?
• How much detail do they include?

When you ask, “What do you think?”

• Do students support their ideas with their observations?
• Do they draw on a number of observations to support their ideas?

For suggestions about adapting tasks in ways that allow students to show progress in gathering and interpreting data see Progressions .

If you want to include this activity as part of a larger unit of work, consider providing video footage of kōura. Students would then have opportunities for different sorts of observations, e.g., how kōura move, how they feed, etc.

Connected 1, 2007 contains several other articles with detailed photos that would be good for encouraging close observation and inference. Generally the information in the text will give teachers the necessary background information to be able to support students as they think about what they observe (i.e., make inferences).

The Science Learning Hub has a student activity called  Observation: Learning to see  about the Maud Island frog. This could easily be adapted for Level 1 and 2 students.

The Building Science Concepts series includes several booklets that all contain activities that could be used to foreground observation for Level 1 & 2 students, e.g.:

• Slugs and Snails: Investigating Small Animals (Booklet 45)
• Birds: Structure, Function, and Adaptation (Booklet 3)
• Is This an Animal?: Introducing the Animal Kingdom (Booklet 39)
• Life Between the Tides: Sandy Shore, Mudflats, and Rocky Shores (Booklet 21)
• Fur, Feathers and Bark: Animal and Plant Coverings (Booklet 5)
• Animal Life Histories: Reproduction, Growth, and Change (Booklet 4)

The last 2 booklets are also accompanied by picture packs that could be useful.

Slimes and Oozes (L1 & 2) Making Better Sense of the Material World

Making Puddles(L1 & 2) Connected 1, 2000

The Land Changes: Keeping Earth’s Systems in Balance to Sustain Life (L1 & 2) Building Science Concepts, Booklet 52

“Eureka!”: Accidental Breakthroughs in Science (L3 & 4) Connected 3, 1999

Soil Animals: Diversity beneath Our Feet (L3 & 4) Building Science Concepts, Booklet 6

Weather (L3 & 4) Making Better Sense of Planet Earth and Beyond

Rolling marbles II (L3 & 4) Assessment Resource Banks

The Noisy Reef: Studying sound under water (L5) Science Learning Hub

Watch This Space (L5) Applications, 2007

Biowaste (L5) QTV archives, Digistore on TKI

Food Webs (L5) University of Canterbury: Science Outreach Resources