Transcript text: his initial stage captures students' interest and helps them connect new learning to their prior knowledge. Activities at this stage include posing a thought-provoking question or demonstrating an unexpected event. The goal is to stimulate curiosity and encourage students to ask their questions about the topic. Teachers play a crucial role in facilitating discussions and helping students make connections between what they already know, and the new concepts being introduced.
EXPLORE
Students collaborate to problem-solve to gain a conceptual understanding of the concept. The teacher asks probing questions and provides prompts to groups and individuals as they work to help them move toward mastery of the objective. (20 minutes)
Provide students with materials to create a simple model of the water cycle. For example, they could use a plastic container, water, a heat source such as a lamp, and ice to simulate evaporation, condensation, and precipitation. Students should observe and record the changes they see. This stage involves direct activities where students engage directly with the materials, allowing them to explore and discuss their ideas with peers. The teacher will model the activity to ensure students understand the task and can work effectively towards mastering the lesson's objectives.
Students explain/share findings from the EXPLORE activity and the teacher facilitates class discussion. The teacher models and asks questions using student input to help connect student responses with the big idea of the lesson. Vocabulary and big-idea concepts are formally introduced (20 minutes)
Discussion
Facilitate a class discussion where students share their observations from the water cycle model. The teacher can ask guiding questions such as 'What did you notice about the water in the container?' and 'How does this model represent the different stages of the water cycle?'
Direct Instruction
Gather the class together and discuss what they observed during the water cycle activity, having each group share their findings and observations. Asking guiding questions like 'What did you notice the water in the container when we applied heat?' or 'Can someone explain what happened to the water?'