Curriculum / ELA / 5th Grade / Alternate Unit 4: Exploring Mars: Spirit and Opportunity / Lesson 14
ELA
Alternate Unit 4
5th Grade
Lesson 14 of 33
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Explain what evidence the author includes to support the idea that math is a critical component of space exploration and engineering.
Book: The Mighty Mars Rovers: The Incredible Adventures of Spirit and Opportunity by Elizabeth Rusch pp. 40 – 44
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Tasks that represents the peak thinking of the lesson - mastery will indicate whether or not objective was achieved
What evidence does the author include to support the idea that math is a critical component of space exploration and engineering?
An example response to the Target Task at the level of detail expected of the students.
Questions about the text that will help guide the students understanding
Why does the author include the map on page 40? What information does it highlight?
Describe Endurance Crater. What challenge did Opportunity face when it reached Endurance Crater?
In order to make a decision, scientists and engineers debated the worth of science compared to the risk to the rover. What arguments did they have for each side? What decision did they ultimately make? Why?
The team created a replica of both the rover and the Martian slope. What were the limitations of their investigation? How did scientists and engineers use what they learned from the investigation to inform what they did with Opportunity?
Explain how the team used the engineering design process to guide their work.
What did Opportunity find when he entered the crater? Why did it feel like the mission had "started all over?"
Assess student understanding and monitor progress toward this lesson's objective with an Exit Ticket.
Literary terms, text-based vocabulary, idioms and word parts to be taught with the text
slope
n.
(p. 41)
the steep side of something
enormity
(p. 42)
big size or importance
replica
an exact copy of something
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RI.5.3 — Explain the relationships or interactions between two or more individuals, events, ideas, or concepts in a historical, scientific, or technical text based on specific information in the text.
RI.5.8 — Explain how an author uses reasons and evidence to support particular points in a text, identifying which reasons and evidence support which point(s).
Standards that are practiced daily but are not priority standards of the unit
L.5.1 — Demonstrate command of the conventions of standard English grammar and usage when writing or speaking.
L.5.4 — Determine or clarify the meaning of unknown and multiple-meaning words and phrases based on grade 5 reading and content, choosing flexibly from a range of strategies.
L.5.4.b — Use common, grade-appropriate Greek and Latin affixes and roots as clues to the meaning of a word (e.g., photograph, photosynthesis).
L.5.5 — Demonstrate understanding of figurative language, word relationships, and nuances in word meanings.
L.5.6 — Acquire and use accurately grade-appropriate general academic and domain-specific words and phrases, including those that signal contrast, addition, and other logical relationships (e.g., however, although, nevertheless, similarly, moreover, in addition).
RF.5.3 — Know and apply grade-level phonics and word analysis skills in decoding words.
RF.5.4 — Read with sufficient accuracy and fluency to support comprehension.
RI.5.1 — Quote accurately from a text when explaining what the text says explicitly and when drawing inferences from the text.
RI.5.4 — Determine the meaning of general academic and domain-specific words and phrases in a text relevant to a grade 5 topic or subject area.
RI.5.10 — By the end of the year, read and comprehend informational texts, including history/social studies, science, and technical texts, at the high end of the grades 4—5 text complexity band independently and proficiently.
SL.5.1 — Engage effectively in a range of collaborative discussions (one-on-one, in groups, and teacher-led) with diverse partners on grade 5 topics and texts, building on others' ideas and expressing their own clearly.
W.5.10 — Write routinely over extended time frames (time for research, reflection, and revision) and shorter time frames (a single sitting or a day or two) for a range of discipline-specific tasks, purposes, and audiences.
Lesson 13
Lesson 15
Identify and explain the goal of the Mars Exploration Rover Mission and why it was important.
RI.5.3 RI.5.8
Explain how Steve’s proposals for missions were different from previous missions to Mars and what problem he was trying to solve.
RI.5.3
Explain why it took three years for Steve’s team to create the rovers and describe the steps the team took to ensure the rover was ready for a trip to Mars.
Explain the importance of each stage of the engineering design process and how NASA engineers used the process to prepare for Mars.
Explain what the team did to prepare Spirit for the trip and why they were worried.
Explain the steps necessary for Spirit’s landing and why each step was important.
Use details from the video and sidebars to revise and add additional information about the steps necessary for Spirit’s landing and operation.
RI.5.3 SL.5.2 W.5.9
Project – 2 days
Develop and design an Entry, Descent, & Landing system for a rover using the engineering and design process.
3-5-ETS1-1 3-5-ETS1-2 3-5-ETS1-3
Describe where Opportunity landed, what Opportunity found, and how the team responded to Opportunity’s findings.
Analyze the strategies Elizabeth Rusch uses to make science feel like an adventure.
RI.5.8 SL.5.1 SL.5.4 SL.5.5 W.5.9
Describe the different accomplishments made by Spirit and Opportunity and what made the accomplishments possible.
Use details from the articles and sidebars to revise and add additional information about the different accomplishments made by Spirit and Opportunity and what made the accomplishments possible.
RI.5.3 RI.5.9
Develop and design a communication protocol for rovers using the engineering and design process.
Explain what initial discovery Opportunity makes inside Endurance Crater and the tools and techniques scientists used.
Discussion
Debate and analyze unit essential questions.
RI.5.9 SL.5.1 SL.5.3
Writing – 2 days
Write a multiple-paragraph essay to answer a unit Essential Question.
W.5.2.b W.5.2.c W.5.2.d W.5.2.e W.5.9
Narrative Writing – 4 days
Write a narrative from the perspective of one of the Mars rovers about what it was like to land on Mars using descriptive details from the unit.
L.5.1.c L.5.1.d L.5.2 W.5.3 W.5.3.a W.5.3.b W.5.3.d W.5.5 W.5.8
Analyze the importance of the sun for Spirit’s survival and the steps scientists take to ensure Spirit has access to the sun.
Summarize “Mars Rovers Advance Understanding of the Red Planet”.
RI.5.2 RI.5.3
Summarize what happened with Opportunity on his way to Victoria Crater and the steps the team at Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) took to remedy the situation, by explaining the relationship between two or more scientific and technical ideas.
Use details from the articles to revise and add additional information about the challenges Opportunity faced when approaching Victoria Crater.
Compare and contrast the points of view from which the Mighty Mars Rovers and the press releases are written, by analyzing multiple accounts of the same topic.
Analyze the strategies Elizabeth Rusch uses to make science feel like an adventure, by explaining how authors use word choice, language, and point of view to support particular points in a text.
RI.5.5 RI.5.8
Summarize what Spirit found and how the team responded, by integrating information from several texts on the same topic.
Summarize what happened to Opportunity and how the team responded by integrating information from several texts on the same topic.
Compare and contrast how text structure and point of view influence the mood of a text.
RI.5.5 RI.5.9
Analyze and explain the reasons and evidence the author includes to show that the rovers' missions were “more than accomplished.”
RI.5.8
Debate and analyze unit Essential Questions.
SL.5.1 SL.5.3 W.5.9
W.5.2 W.5.2.b W.5.2.c W.5.2.d W.5.2.e W.5.9
Assessment
Informative Writing – 4 days
Write an afterword for The Mighty Mars Rovers by writing an informative text to examine a topic and convey ideas and information clearly.
RI.5.9 W.5.2 W.5.2.b W.5.2.c W.5.2.d W.5.2.e W.5.7 W.5.8
Project
Using the engineering and design process, develop and design a rover that can travel on Mars and can pick up samples.
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