Inquiry Lesson Plan Template

Title & Topic:

Solar Smores

Teachers:
Grade Level:
Lauren Mosher
Fourth Grade
Standard:
NGSS Standard
Make observations to provide evidence that energy can be transferred from
place to place by sound, light, heat, and electric currents (4-PS3-2).

SOA-Arizona Science Standard(s)

Concept 1: Observations, Questions, and Hypotheses
PO2. Formulate a relevant quesiton through observations that can be
tested by an investigation.
PO3. Formulate predictions in the realm of science based on observed
cause and effect relationships.
Concept 2: Scientific Testing (Investigating and Modeling)
PO2. Conduct controlled investigations (e.g., related to erosion, plant life
cycles, weather, magnetism) in life, physical, and Earth and space
sciences.
PO5. Record data in an organized and appropriate format (e.g., t-chart,
table, list, written log).

Common Core State Standard(s)

ELA/LiteracyEngage effectively in a range of collaborative discussions (one-on-one, in
groups, and teacher-led) with diverse partners on grade 4 topics and texts,
building on each others ideas and expressing their own clearly (SL.4.1)
Objective (Explicit & Measurable):
Students will be able to explain what types of energy are produced by the sun.
Students will be able to build a solar oven that harnesses energy from the sun to
cook a smore.
Evidence of Mastery (Measurable Assessment: formative and summative):
Formative Assessment
o Students will answer the teachers inquiry questions pertaining to solar
energy throughout the lesson.
o Students will be able to explain how solar energy is created.
Summative Assessment
o Students will be build a solar oven that is able to cook a smore.
o Studens will be able to explain how solar energy enabled their solar oven
to cook their smore.
o Students will be able to reflect on why their solar oven was successful in
being able to cook their smore or not.
Sub-objectives, SWBAT (steps that lead to completion of objective; sequence from
simple to more complex):
Identify and explain renewable energy resources.
Explain solar energy and how it works.

Work collaboratively with their classmates in a group setting.

Reflect on their prior knowledge of nonrenewable and renewable energy
resources.
Reflect on their prior knowledge of the sun.
Build a smore.
Lesson Summary and Justification: (summary gives detailed information about what

students are doing. Justification why is this lesson being taught)

The purpose of this lesson is to teach students about how solar energy is
created, and how the sun is capable of producing enough energy to cook a
smore. The students will be able to conduct an investigation that explores how a
self-created solar oven can cook a smore with energy that is produced by the
sun. It is important that students understand how solar energy is created
because the sun is a natural and renewable resource that society can utilize in
place of nonrenewable resources including oil, for example. Solar energy is
sustainable and is an energy resource that is capable of being utilized more in
the future; so younger generations need to be educated on all concepts
connected to solar energy.
Background Knowledge: (What do students need to know to complete this lesson)
Renewable Energy
Nonrenewable Energy
Solar Energy
The Sun
Misconception: (what possible misleading thoughts might students have?)
Students may think that the sun produces electric energy that will cook their
smore.
Students may think that energy produced from the sun is incapable of cooking a
smore.
Process Skills: (what skills are you introducing or reinforcing: ex: observation
reinforcing; prediction - introducing.)

Observation- students will observe what is happenening during the Solar

Smores investigation.
Prediction- students will predict whether they think their solar oven will indeed
cook a smore or not.
Communicating- students wil commnicate their ideas and questions with their
table group members and their teacher.
Four Ways of Thinking connection: (Provide a complete explaination of how your
lesson plan connects to futures, system, strategic, or values thinking. Define the way of
thinking you selected and used in this lesson plan. Remember, this shoud be included
meaningfully in the lesson plan.)

Students will be able to connect this lesson to Systems Thinking and Strategic
Thinking. Students will be able to understand that their smore was only able to
cook through a process of the sun generating enough energy in order to do so.
Students will also be able to identify the different systems that are involved in
solar energy production. Students will use Strategic Thinking in order to
determine whether their solar oven is capable of accomplishing the task at hand.
At the end of the investigation, students will be able to put the investigation to
the test in order to determine reflect on why they think their smore cooked or
not.
Safety: (what safety rules and items need to be addressed?)
Handle the iPads with two hands.
Students will clean up their areas when asked to do so.
Only the teacher will be in charge of utilizing the Xacto knife.
Inquiry Questions: (testable in the here and now.)
1. Why is solar energy important, and what does the energy produced by the sun
effect? (to explore)
2. How is it possible for the sun to cook a smore? (to elaborate)
Key vocabulary: (list and define)
Materials: (list item and possible
quantity)
Renewable Energy: energy that can

be restored.
Nonrenewable Energy: energy that
cannot be restored.
Solar Energy: energy that is produced
by the sun.
Generated: cause to rise or come
about.
Produced: to make or manufacture
from components.

iPads

Solar Smores Invetigation

directions-(20 copies)

Cardboard box with an attached

lid
Aluminum foil

Clear plastic wrap

Glue sticks

Tape
Rulers
Xacto knife
2 boxes of graham crackers
6 chocolate Hershey bars
1 bag of Jiffy jumbo marshmallows
Paper plates
Napkins
Engage - In this section you should activate prior knowledge, hook student
attention, pose a question (IQ#1) based on your lesson objective that students
will seek to answer in Explore.
Teacher Will: 10 minutes (hook)
Students Will:
State the lesson objective.
o Say: Okay students, for the last
few days we have been learning
about nonrenewable and
renewable energy resources.
From our knowledge, we know
that the sun is helpful in
producing a renewable energy
resource that we refer to as
solar energy. Today we are
going to be investgating how
solar energy is capable of
cooking a smore but before we
do, we must first learn about
how the suns energy is
capapble of producing enough
energy to cook the smore, and
Think about how solar energy is
what type of energy the sun
created.
produces in order to do so.
Ask students to independently think
about how, and what kind(s) of
Watch Solar Energy-related video.
energy are generated from the sun.

Show Solar Energy-related video

o Say: Okay boys and girls, now
that you have had time to think
about how, and what kind(s) of
energy are generated from the
sun, I am am now going to show
you a video that will answer
those questions for us!
o Show:
https://www.youtube.com/w

atch?
v=6FB0rDsR_rc&nohtml5=Fa
lse
Best Teaching Practice Strategy/Differentiation and Teacher Notes
The teacher will ensure that the video is visible and loud enough for every
student to see and hear.
After the video, the teacher will summarize the key points mentioned in the
video.
Teacher will answer any questions that the students may have about any of the
information presented in the video.
Explore - In this section students should take the lead and actively use materials
to discover information that will help them answer the question posed in
Engage. Teachers may choose to give steps to follow, especially for younger students,
but the goal is for students to discover some or all of the sub-objectives of the lesson.
Teacher Will: 10 minutes (pose IQ #1)
Students Will: (list all steps)
Ask students why they think solar
energy is important and what they
think the energy produced by the sun
effects.
Volunteer to share their ideas and
Allow students to share their ideas
thoughts to the questions the
and thoughts to the questions aloud.
teacher posed aloud.
Strategically assign students into
groups of four to research legitimate
answers to these questions using the
iPads according to behavior and
academic levels.
Assign each student in each group a
role (roles: researcher, recorder,
presenter(s))
Explain the roles to students.
o Say: Okay students, I have
assigned each of you a role in
your groups. If you are the
researcher, you will be in
charge of holding the iPad and
researching answers to the
questions I asked you. If you are
the recorder, you will be in
charge of writing down the
information and answers to the
questions that the researcher
finds. If you are a presesentor,
there should be two of you in
Conduct their research within their
each group, you will be in
assigned groups.
charge of presenting the

Prepare themselves to present the

information the researcher
information they found to the
found and that the recorder
class.
wrote to the rest of the class.
Remind students to handle the iPad
with two hands during their research.
Allow students 10 minutes to conduct

their research.
Ask students to stop their research
and ask the presentors to prepare
themselves to present the information
they found to the class.

Best Teaching Practice Strategy/Differentiation and Teacher Notes

Teacher will strategically assign students into groups according to their behavior
and academic levels.
Teacher will walk around the room during students research time and observe
students to ensure they are remaining on task and are participating.
Explain In this section students share what they discovered, teacher connects
student discoveries to correct content terms/explanations, students
articulate/demonstrate a clear and correct understanding of the lesson sub-objectives
by answering the question from Engage before moving on.
Teacher Will: 10 minutes
Students Will:
Instruct each team of presentors from
Head to the front of the classroom
each group to head to the front of the
if they are a presentor.
classroom.
Present the information they found
Ask one group at a time to present
during their groups research.
the information they found during
their groups research.
Thank students for sharing.
Return to their desks.
Ask students to return to their desks.
Further explain the legitimate
answers to the questions after
listening to and building on the
information the presentors previously
shared.
o Say: Okay students, from the
video we watched and from the
infromation that we researched,
we have learned that although
the sun is millions of miles away
from the earth, the energy that
it emits produces light and heat.
We also learned that solar
energy is important because the
light and heat that the sun
generates serves important for
humans, animals, and plants in
order for them to sustain life on
earth.
Inform students that they will be
conducting an investigation related to
solar energy.
Best Teaching Practice Strategy/Differentiation and Teacher Notes
Teacher will question students knowledge about the type(s) of energy that the
sun generates.
Teacher will question students knowledge about why solar energy is important.
Teacher will review the answers to the inquiry questions as a whole group.

Elaborate In this section students take the basic learning gained from Explore and
clarified in Explain and apply it to a new circumstance or explore a particular aspect of
this learning at a deeper level. Students should be using higher order thinking in this
stage. A common practice in this section is to ask a What If? question. IQ #2
Teacher Will: 30 minutes (pose IQ #2)
Students Will:
Ask students to independently think
Independently think about the
about how they think it might be
inquiry question the teacher
possible for the sun to help cook a
posed.
smore.
Ask students to share their ideas and
Share their ideas and thoughts
thoughts with their shoulder partner.
with their shoulder partner.
Inform students that they will be
exploring the answer to this question
during their participation in an
investigation titled Solar Smores.
Inform students that they will be
working in the same groups that she
originally assigned for the research
activity.
Carefully listen to directions.
Explain the investigation instructions
and expections.
o Say: During this investigation,
you and your group members
will be able to determine
whether the energy from the
sun is capapble of cooking a
smore. At the front of the
classroom there will be a piece
of paper for each group that
lists directions that will guide
you in being able to properly
assemble your solar ovens in
order to cook your solar
smores. Also set up at the front
of the classroom will be enough
materials for each group to use
in order to do so. I will be
constantly walking around the
classroom during your
exploration in order to cut the
cardboard, to answer any
questions you may have, to
make sure that each of you is
participating in the activity, and
to make sure each of you is
properly following directions.
Once I have okay-ed your
groups solar oven, and once
each group is ready, I will give
you permission to each
construct your own smore to
place inside your oven. As a
class, we will then head outside

with the ovens and set them on

the concrete in direct sunlight.
We will then oberve what
happens for 10 minutes and
record our observations in our
science notebooks. During your
observation, you will be
expected to take notes of what
you may see and/or smell. Then
you will wait for further
instruction.
Allow students ample time to
construct their solar ovens.

Work with their groups members

to construct a solar oven using the
directions and materials available
to them.
Make their own smore and place
it inside their groups solar oven.
Follow the teacher outside with
their ovens.
Place their solar oven on the
concrete in direct sunlight.
Record their observations in their
science notebooks.

Allow each student to make a smore

and to place it inside their groups
solar oven.
Lead students outside.

Ask students to place their solar

ovens on the concrete in direct
sunlight.
Remind students to record their
observations in their science
notebooks.
Best Teaching Practice Strategy/Differentiation and Teacher Notes
Teacher will walk around during the investigation to monitor students progress.
Teacher will assits groups solar oven construction (if needed).
Evaluate In this section every student demonstrates mastery of the lesson
objective (though perhaps not mastery of the elaborate content). Because this also
serves as a closing, students should also have a chance to summarize the big
concepts they learned outside of the assessment.
Teacher Will:
Students Will:
Ask students from each group to
Share their observations.
share their observations.
Explain why the smores cooked in
the solar ovens.
o Say: Okay students, after
hearing each of your
observations, I think it is safe
to say that each of our
smores fully cooked! We
know this because we
observed that the chocolate
melted and that the
marshmallow flattened. So
after all that we have learned
about the sun and the energy
that it produces, we can infer
that the energy that the sun
Eat and enjoy their Solar Smores!
generates allowed our
smores to cook, right?
Follow the teacher back to the

classroom.
Hand each student a paper plate
Reflect about what they have
and a napkin.
learned during the investigation and
Allow students to eat their Solar
about solar energy in their science
Smores.
notebooks.
Guide the students back to the
classroom.
Ask the students to reflect about
what they have learned during the
investigation and about solar energy
in their science notebooks.
Closure: (revisit objective, IQs and make real world connections)
The teacher will facilitate a whole-class discussion focused on what the students
have learned about the sun and the energy that it produces while reflecting on
the video and the Solar Smores investigation. The teacher will explain to the
students that they were able to witness first hand how the heat and light that is
generated from solar energy was able to cook their smores. The teacher will
also be sure to mention how these activities relate to what they have learned
earlier in the week about renewable resources. Lastly, the teacher will explain
the importance of solar energy as a renewable resource and how it can serve
beneficial to the well-being of our earth.
SOA Make suggested edits to build a better lesson.
Evidence that feedback was used to edit and improve the lesson.
Best Practices List the Best Teaching Practices you will use. List the
section, how the practices will be used and the purpose.
Best Practices Listed along with section (engage, explore etc.)
How the practice will be used and the purpose of.

Assessment Rubric:
Does not meet
standards
0

Progressing
towards standards
3

Meets standards
5

Student does not

reflect on how their
smore was able to
cook.

Student reflects with

little detail on how
their smore was able
to cook.

Student thoroughly,
and with great detail,
relfects on how their
smore was able to
cook.

Student does not

explain what types of
energy are generated
by the sun.

Student explains only

one type of energy
that is generated by
the sun.

Student is able to
explain the different
types of energy that
are generated by the
sun.