PRIMALS 4-6

Pedagogical Retooling in Mathematics, Languages,

and Science for Grades 4-6 Teachers

Session 4.1
The IBL and 5Es
teaching model

Learning Action Cell Session Guide

Science 4-6

Prepared by:

JULIEVEN R. ABREA
Senior Education Program Specialist
Bureau of Learning Delivery
Department of Education Central Office
Objectives of the Session
At the end of the session, teachers should be able to:
1. State the key features of inquiry-based learning;
2. Discuss the nature and coverage of each phase of the 5Es
teaching/instructional model;
3. Design an inquiry-based learning lesson plan using the 5Es
teaching/instructional model; and
4. Critique designed inquiry-based learning lesson plan using the 5Es teaching
instructional model

Key Understanding or Learning Points

1. The Implementing Rules and Regulations of the K12 Curriculum program
explicitly states in Section II 10.2 e “The curriculum shall use pedagogical
approaches that are constructivist, inquiry-based, reflective, collaborative, and
integrative”. The 5Es instructional model by Karplus & Thier (1967) is a
teaching-learning process which promotes these approaches.
2. The 5Es stand for Engage, Explore, Explain, Elaborate and Evaluate. All 5Es
aim to answer a problem question that may be posed by the teacher or by the
students. There is no inquiry if there is no problem question.
3. When the problem question is posed by the teacher and students research on
the answers, the teaching-learning process becomes a structured inquiry
endeavor. When the problem question is posed by the students and answered
by the students, the teaching-learning process is an open-inquiry type.
Teachers in the intermediate levels may conduct more structured inquiry
whereas teachers in the junior and more so in the senior high school levels
may opt for guided or open inquiry learning experiences.
4. Whether structured or open inquiry, all the different phases of the model need
to be aligned with the curriculum standards and competencies and learning
targets.
Materials Needed Approximate Duration

 Activity sheets 2 hours / 120 minutes

 Powerpoint presentation
 Projector and computer

References
Implementing Rules and Regulations (IRR) of the Philippine Kto12 Basic Education
Program

Barrow, L. (2006). A brief history of inquiry-From Dewey to Standards. Journal of

Science Teacher Education, 17, 265-78.

Friesen, S. (2009). Inquiry-based learning: Three Alberta schools that know what it
takes. Education Canada, 49(5), 8-14.
st
Friesen, S. & Jardine, D. (2009). 21 century learning and learners. Calgary, AB:
Galileo Educational Network.

2
Jardine, D., Clifford, P., & Friesen, S. (2008). Back to the Basics of Teaching

Learning: Thinking the World Together, 2nd Edition. New York: Routledge.

National Research Council. (2000). Inquiry and the national science education
standards. Washington, DC: National Academy Press.

Ostland, K. (1996). Rising to the challenges of the National Science Education

Standards. Fresno: CA

http://portal.ou.nl/documents/7288585/0

http://www.khanacademy.org/

http://www.galileo.org/research/publications/rubric.pdf

Discussion of Topic (5 minutes)

Greet the participants, ask them to share to the whole group what they can recall
from the previous LAC session. Elicit from them how were they able to apply those
what they learned to their own classes.

Show the participants the objectives of the session which will give them idea on what
to expect from them after the session.

Introduce the session (5 minutes)

Say: The Implementing Rules and Regulations of the K12 Curriculum program
explicitly state in Section II 10.2 e ‘The curriculum shall use pedagogical approaches
that are constructivist, inquiry-based, reflective, collaborative, and integrative’. In this
session we will examine the 5Es instructional model as an approach that is inquiry-
based, constructivist, reflective, collaborative and integrative.

Note to the LAC Facilitator:

Emphasize the use of Inquiry-based Learning (IBL) as a significant approach in
teaching especially in science. Ask the participants who among them is familiar with
IBL and who among them have used IBL to their science classes. Participants may
share what they know about IBL.

ACTIVITY (10 minutes)

Distribute Activity Sheet 1 where participants are asked to determine which of the
approaches are inquiry-based. Provide time for participants to discuss with each
other and answer.

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Say: Let us check first your schema or prior knowledge about the inquiry-leased
learning. I have given you Activity Sheet 1 with contains sets of classroom situations
and students’ activity. Try to analyze the given situation and decide which one shows
IBL approach in teaching science.

Ask participants to share their answers and reasons.

ANALYSIS (10 Minutes)

Process the answers by asking the following questions:

1. How do the different situations compare with each other?
2. What similarities do you see? What differences do you see?
3. In terms of differences, which procedure stands out as present in one but not
in the other two? (In 1 out of 3 situations, students have a problem question
to research on).
4. What significant part of the given situations that leads you to decide that it is
an IBL approach in teaching?
5. What is your idea about the IBL approach and what student activities can be
used to show an IBL approach?

ABSTRACTION (35 minutes)

“Let us further be clarified about the IBL approach and how to apply this
approach to our science classes. I will be showing you video of MR. JULIEVEN
ABREA, a senior education program specialist from the DepEd Central Office, as he
discusses about the IBL approach during the PRIMALS National Training of Trainers.
However, to ensure that you will attentively listen to the video, I want you to read the
following question that you may seek the answer in the video:
1. Why use Inquiry-based Learning approach in teaching science?
2. What is the importance of IBL?
3. What is the 5Es teaching model and what teacher and students activities
involve in each of its phase?
4. How would the 5Es teaching model differ from the 7Es teaching model?

Viewing #1. IBL and 5Es Teaching Model

Resource Person: Julieven Abrea, PRIMALS 4-6 National Training of
Trainers

Discussions: (Key points in the video)

1. Inquiry-based learning involves students answering a research or problem
question, gathering data and analyzing it. Through this process, students are
active in learning and do not rely on the teacher to spoon-feed the answer to
them. With the research question, students re-examine their prior knowledge
and construct new knowledge based on evidence and findings.
2. Inquiry-based learning may be done in 4 ways, namely confirmation,
structured inquiry, guided inquiry and open inquiry. In confirmation, the
teacher poses the question and answers the question for the students. In
structured inquiry, the teacher presents the problem question and has
students answer the question with established procedures. In guided inquiry,
the teacher also presents the problem question but allows the students to

4
 determine their procedures in answering the question. And, in open inquiry,
the students pose the question and figure out their own procedures to answer
the question.
3. Of these four, teachers in the elementary level often use the confirmation or
structured inquiry types to help students acquire mastery in the basics of
inquiry-based learning.
4. The 5Es stand for Engage, Explore, Explain, Elaborate and Evaluate. In each
phase, there are suggested students and teachers’ roles to ensure. It must
be emphasized that the different stages focus on student actions and not on
teacher explanations.

Note to the facilitator: After viewing the video, ask the participants to answer the four
questions presented before watching. You may call one or two participants to answer
one question.

Reflection questions:

1. What are your realizations about the IBL and the 5Es? What new things did
you learn?
2. Which of the 5Es was the most confusing to understand?
3. Which of the 5Es was the easiest and most difficult to for you to plan and do
in class? Why?

APPLICATION 1 (20 Minutes)

Distribute Activity Sheet 5Es Exercise. Have participants in group indicate on the
copy where the 5E stages are in a given lesson. Have participants share their
answers by citing supporting items in each of the phase of 5E. After discussing their
answers, share the original lesson showing the correct labels for the 5Es.

Process the answers by asking the following questions:

1. Which phase is easiest to identify? most confusing to identify? For the phases
that we are confused about, what can we do so that our design of each phase
is clear and that all phases are connected to each other?
2. In terms of actual teaching, can all the 5Es be done in one meeting? How can
the 5Es be distributed and scheduled? Will there be equal time for all? Or will
some phases have more time than others? (Engage needs to be brief whereas
Explore, Explain and Elaborate will relatively require more extended meetings.
Evaluate may be done at the end in one separate meeting)
3. Do all 5Es have to follow the set sequence? Can there be alternative
sequences? (Yes. Inquiry can begin with Explore followed by Engage and
then Explain and back to Explore and at a later time, Explain, Elaborate and
Evaluate. Or Evaluate may happen after Explain and again after Elaborate.
There is flexibility then in the model. What matters is the presence of a
problem question involving hands-on activities and data analysis).

APPLICATION 2 (20 Minutes)

Have participants reflect and go back to their previous LAC session about Unpacking
of Competencies and Learning progression. Provide the following instructions:

5
 1. Given the different standards, competencies and learning competencies and
the unpacked competencies, design an inquiry-based learning lesson using
the 5Es. Complete the 5Es Worksheet as a group.
2. When done, be ready to present your work.

Have some group representatives report their group work to the rest. Critique and
encourage the groups to work on the revisions.

Closure (10 Minutes)

After the critiquing, ask the following questions: What realizations do you have about
inquiry-based learning? How can the use of the 5Es affect our Science teaching?
What benefits can result? What challenges can teachers face?

End by asking participants to reflect on the following by Abhijit Naskar:

“Memorizing and regurgitating are not science. Real science is a constant investigation
of the unknown.”

6

DIRECTIONS:
Read the following sets of situations. Determine in each set which situation illustrates
inquiry-based learning, Write below the selected situation your reasons.
SET A:
1.
Students are given
different liquids. They
make different mixtures
and tabulate the effects of
each mixture. Students
then determine which
mixture is toxic or non-
toxic.
SET B:
1.
Students read from a book
definitions of igneous,
metamorphic and
sedimentary rocks. They
look at pictures of each
type. They take a walk in
the school garden and in
pairs, look for examples of
rocks that match the
pictures of the different
rocks they saw.
ACTIVITY SHEET 1
2.
Students make mixtures of
different liquids. Students
record the proportion of
one liquid with another.
2.
Students take a walk in a
community garden and
collect different rocks.
Students record the
characteristics of each rock
sample. Students figure out
a system for differentiating
and classifying the various
rocks.
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3.
Students are given different
liquids. They describe the
properties and
characteristics of the
different liquids.
3.
Students collect different
rocks from the school
garden. Students make a
rock garden.
 Activity Sheet 5Es Exercise: The 5E Model Science Lesson Exercise

Directions:
Read the following lesson plan. Determine where the stages of the 5E Model
are. Indicate where one stage begins and ends. Be ready to report your
answer.

Objective: Students will observe and describe the processes of erosion,

transportation, and
deposition by creating a physical model.

Materials
• paint tray (the kind used for a paint roller)
• pieces of sod (enough for each group)
• potting soil
• heavy clay like soil
• rainmaker (paper cup with about ten tiny holes poked in the bottom)
• water

Lesson Plan:
Take students on a walk outside the school building and ask them to note where the
soil is worn away or seems to have collected. Before going on the walk you may
want the children to explain what they will look for or what are the signs that soil has
worn away or built up?
(Suggested answers may include: erosion - puddles, hollowed out areas, areas that
dip or are lower that the surrounding area; deposition - mounds of dirt, collection of
soil or other materials in a certain spot, etc.)

Upon returning to the classroom make a list of the sites where soil was worn away or
collected.

Examples:
• bottom of slide under swing
• end of splash guard by rain spout at entrance to door
• path leading to the playground at the bottom of hill/slope
Do you notice anything different about these areas? (They are just dirt; no grass is
growing here.)

What do you think caused these changes? (Students walking over them; water
running through it)

Construct a model to investigate how these changes may have occurred. Provide
materials so the students can construct their own model of a landscape. It should
include a piece of sod, fine potting soil, and a heavy clay like soil. Have them use a
paint roller tray as the base of the landscape? Do not put any landscape materials in
the bottom well; it should remain empty.

Once students have constructed their models have them diagram and label their
models and make a prediction as to what will happen if it "rains" on their landscape.
One student pours a cup of water all at once into the rainmaker.

8
Hold the rainmaker about 4 inches above the upper end of the landscape and slowly
move it back and forth so the water "rains" down on the model landscape.

Observe what happens to the landscape. When it is finished raining have the
students observe the final effects of the rain on their landscape. Have students go
back to their predictions and record what actually happened.

Tell me what some of your prediction were before it rained on your landscape.
(Record on board.) What actually happened to your landscape when it rained on it?
(record so you can make comparisons.)
How is your landscape different after the rain than before it rained on it?
What happened to the soil? Where did it go? Why did this happen?

As students share their ideas and understandings, record key phrases on the board.
Some phases that may be valuable to your later discussion may include:
• dirt and soil washed away
• the soil collected at the bottom of the slope
• the water hollowed out the soil
• the rain carried the soil down the hill
• when the water washed away the soil it formed a hole

Relate their observations to the processes scientists observe over an extended

period of time. Use student models to identify and label erosion and deposition. Have
students work to create definitions for these terms. When you are sure students have
a real understanding of the terms, formulate a final definition and post on board or
chart in the classroom for future reference.

Demonstrate the process of transportation and lead students to understand that it is

the movement of soil particles from one place to another. Refer to the list generated
during the engagement and have students make connections; they should use the
new terms to discuss and explain what they saw. Help them to understand that they
just used water to simulate erosion, transportation, and deposition, but it can also be
caused by wind, people, animals, etc.

Using the same paint roller tray as the base for their landscape, have the groups of
students plan a method to decrease or eliminate erosion. Students should draw a
diagram of the model planned and label the materials used in their landscape. They
should write a short explanation explaining why they think this will work to curb
erosion. (Tell students that you will provide the same materials that they used today
and they are responsible for supplying the rest of the materials to build their new
landscape tomorrow.)

Have students use a variety of resources and references to research various

landmarks that are the result of these processes (e.g. Grand Canyon, Mississippi
River Banks, etc.). You can then lead a class discussion on the topic: Erosion and
Deposition - Help or Hindrance?

Have photographs representing each process and have students identify and explain
why they identified it as such.

9
Have students take a walk in their own neighborhood tonight to find examples of
each process. They should draw and write one sentence telling what they observed.

Have students write their own definition and list an example for each process in their
science journals.

10
 5E WORKSHEET

DIRECTIONS:

Design an inquiry-based learning lesson using the 5Es for the topics or unpacked
competencies that you were able to make last LAC session. Please note first the
Content Standard and Performance Standard that your lesson was aligned with
based in the Curriculum Guide. Write your answers in the space provided.

CONTENT STANDARD:

PERFORMANCE STANDARD:

COMPETENCIES:

UNPACKED COMPETENCY/LESSON OBJECTIVE:

Refer to the first column where each phase of the 5Es model is described. Provide
activities that correspond to the given descriptions of each phase.

5Es INQUIRY-BASED LEARNING CORRESPONDING STUDENT

MODEL ACTIVITIES

ENGAGE:

Present the research or problem question

in an interesting or motivating way.

Elicit students’ prior knowledge and

answer to the question.

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EXPLORE:

Provide hands-on activities, resources

and process questions that enable
students to find and test answers to the
problem question. Encourage
collaborative work.

Ask students to record their observations

and organize the data, Have students
analyze the data to determine patterns
and relationships.

EXPLAIN:

Based on the patterns and relationships,

have students construct their
understanding and answers to the
problem question. Ask students to justify
their answer with supporting data.

Introduce and incorporate scientific terms

in the discussion.

Have students compare and revise their

initial answer with the new knowledge
stated in scientific language.

ELABORATE:

Pose new questions or events or

alternative situations and have students
use their new knowledge to answer the
questions or analyze new situations.
Have students predict and support their
answers with the new knowledge.

Ask students to detect misconceptions

and correct these in the light of the new
scientific knowledge.

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EVALUATE:

Assess students’ knowledge and

understanding of the unit’s concepts.

Have students accomplish a performance

task in line with the performance standard
as evidence of their application of the
different concepts.

13
14
 ANSWER KEY
Activity Sheet 5Es Exercise: The 5E Model Science Lesson Exercise

Directions:
Read the following lesson plan. Determine where the stages of the 5E Model
are. Indicate where one stage begins and ends. Be ready to report your
answer.

Objective: Students will observe and describe the processes of erosion,

transportation, and
deposition by creating a physical model.

Materials
• paint tray (the kind used for a paint roller)
• pieces of sod (enough for each group)
• potting soil
• heavy clay like soil
• rainmaker (paper cup with about ten tiny holes poked in the bottom)
• water

Lesson Plan:

(ENGAGE)
Take students on a walk outside the school building and ask them to note where the
soil is worn away or seems to have collected. Before going on the walk you may
want the children to explain what they will look for or what are the signs that soil has
worn away or built up?
(Suggested answers may include: erosion - puddles, hollowed out areas, areas that
dip or are lower that the surrounding area; deposition - mounds of dirt, collection of
soil or other materials in a certain spot, etc.)

Upon returning to the classroom make a list of the sites where soil was worn away or
collected.

Examples:
• bottom of slide under swing
• end of splash guard by rain spout at entrance to door
• path leading to the playground at the bottom of hill/slope
Do you notice anything different about these areas? (They are just dirt; no grass is
growing here.)

What do you think caused these changes? (Students walking over them; water
running through it)

(EXPLORE)
Construct a model to investigate how these changes may have occurred. Provide
materials so the students can construct their own model of a landscape. It should
include a piece of sod, fine potting soil, and a heavy clay like soil. Have them use a

15
paint roller tray as the base of the landscape? Do not put any landscape materials in
the bottom well; it should remain empty.

Once students have constructed their models have them diagram and label their
models and make a prediction as to what will happen if it "rains" on their landscape.
One student pours a cup of water all at once into the rainmaker.
Hold the rainmaker about 4 inches above the upper end of the landscape and slowly
move it back and forth so the water "rains" down on the model landscape.

Observe what happens to the landscape. When it is finished raining have the
students observe the final effects of the rain on their landscape. Have students go
back to their predictions and record what actually happened.

(EXPLAIN)
Tell me what some of your prediction were before it rained on your landscape.
(Record on board.) What actually happened to your landscape when it rained on it?
(record so you can make comparisons.)
How is your landscape different after the rain than before it rained on it?
What happened to the soil? Where did it go? Why did this happen?

As students share their ideas and understandings, record key phrases on the board.
Some phases that may be valuable to your later discussion may include:
• dirt and soil washed away
• the soil collected at the bottom of the slope
• the water hollowed out the soil
• the rain carried the soil down the hill
• when the water washed away the soil it formed a hole

Relate their observations to the processes scientists observe over an extended

period of time. Use student models to identify and label erosion and deposition. Have
students work to create definitions for these terms. When you are sure students have
a real understanding of the terms, formulate a final definition and post on board or
chart in the classroom for future reference.

Demonstrate the process of transportation and lead students to understand that it is

the movement of soil particles from one place to another. Refer to the list generated
during the engagement and have students make connections; they should use the
new terms to discuss and explain what they saw. Help them to understand that they
just used water to simulate erosion, transportation, and deposition, but it can also be
caused by wind, people, animals, etc.

(ELABORATE)
Using the same paint roller tray as the base for their landscape, have the groups of
students plan a method to decrease or eliminate erosion. Students should draw a
diagram of the model planned and label the materials used in their landscape. They
should write a short explanation explaining why they think this will work to curb
erosion. (Tell students that you will provide the same materials that they used today

16
and they are responsible for supplying the rest of the materials to build their new
landscape tomorrow.)

Have students use a variety of resources and references to research various

landmarks that are the result of these processes (e.g. Grand Canyon, Mississippi
River Banks, etc.). You can then lead a class discussion on the topic: Erosion and
Deposition - Help or Hindrance?

(EVALUATE)
Have photographs representing each process and have students identify and explain
why they identified it as such.

Have students take a walk in their own neighborhood tonight to find examples of
each process. They should draw and write one sentence telling what they observed.

Have students write their own definition and list an example for each process in their
science journals.

17