JoinUncovering Student Ideas Probes
Physical Science
Latest Physical Science Probes
Physical Science Probes
Lesson Plan
The purpose of this assessment probe is to elicit students’ ideas about properties of matter. The probe is designed to find out which properties students think will change if the size of an object made from the same material changes. ...
By Page Keeley
Lesson Plan
The purpose of this assessment probe is to elicit students’ ideas about conservation of matter. The probe is designed to reveal whether students think weight is conserved when a whole object is broken up into small pieces. ...
By Page Keeley
Lesson Plan
The purpose of this assessment probe is to elicit beginning ideas about types of forces. The probe is designed to reveal whether students recognize that forces can act both in direct contact with an object and at a distance. ...
By Page Keeley and Rand Harrington
Lesson Plan
The purpose of this assessment probe is to elicit students’ ideas about falling objects. The probe is designed to find out if students think the weight or mass of an object affects how fast it falls. ...
By Page Keeley
Lesson Plan
The purpose of this assessment probe is to elicit students’ ideas about pairs of forces that fit Newton’s third law. The probe is specifically designed to reveal whether students can identify third law force pairs as involving different objects. ...
By Page Keeley and Rand Harrington
Lesson Plan
The purpose of this assessment probe is to elicit students’ ideas about the mass of a gas. The probe is designed to reveal whether students recognize that an uninflated balloon will increase in mass when inflated with a gas, even though the balloon...
By Page Keeley
Lesson Plan
The purpose of this assessment probe is to elicit students’ ideas about density and buoyancy. The probe is designed to find out how students think an object can be changed to make it float differently. ...
By Page Keeley
Lesson Plan
The purpose of this assessment probe is to elicit students’ ideas about floating and sinking. The probe is designed to find out if students think changing the size of an object affects how it floats. ...
By Page Keeley
Lesson Plan
The purpose of this assessment probe is to comprehensively elicit students’ ideas about the relationship between force and motion. The list of possible answers includes several distracters that are based on learning research; thus the probe will te...
By Page Keeley and Rand Harrington
Lesson Plan
The purpose of this assessment probe is to elicit students’ ideas about freezing point. The probe is designed to find out if students recognize that the temperature at which water freezes is independent of the volume. ...
By Page Keeley