Several years ago I shared a super easy critical thinking strategy. You can check it out HERE. I LOVE this strategy. You can use it in ANY subject and any grade. Seriously!
Today I’m going to share how I use it in science.
Basically you give your students 4 ideas, concepts, vocabulary words, people, etc, and they have to figure out which one does not belong out of the 4. Just like the old Sesame Street song “Which one of these is not the other?”
Here are some examples.
In Landforms ice, water, and wind are three main forces that cause erosion. Sand dunes are formed when the wind deposits sand.
In the Water Cycle rain, sleet, and snow are all precipitation and water vapor is condensation which is changed into liquid water
In Mixtures & Solutions lemonade doesn’t belong with the others because it is a solution and cannot easily be separated and trail mix, salad, and spaghetti and meatballs are all mixtures and can all be easily separated.
In Inherited Traits & Learned Behaviors tongue rolling, color blindness, and left-handed or right-handed are all inherited traits because you do not learn them and you are just born with them while riding a bicycle is a learned behavior and something you have to learn.
In Energy the telescope is the one that does not belong because it operate with electrical energy like the other three.
I would love to hear how you use this strategy in your classroom!
