How to Build a Buddy Science Project

Science is a subject almost all students enjoy. It incorporates visual, auditory and kinesthetic (movement-based) learning. Teachers often wonder how to create a quality assignment in which students work in pairs. Group work can be a problem if students do not know the guidelines for creating quality work and for sharing work equally. In the following article, I will explain the steps to building an effective buddy science project.

Things You'll Need

• State standards
• Science unit
• Pencils
• Paper
• Markers
• Scissors
• Glue

Instructions

1. Decide the content objectives that students should master by the end of the project. Look at your state's science standards and find specific study unit to help choose objectives. There can be more than one objective for a science project. An example objective would be: students will be able to identify and label the parts of a plant.

2. Determine how students will be grouped. Decide if students will be able to choose their partner or be in teams chosen by the teacher. The teacher could pair students based on behavior, skill or learning style when planning a buddy science project. It depends on the objectives and results desired.

3. Give clear expectations and guidelines as to how to work in a cooperative group. Make sure the students understand they each will be responsible for the same amount of work. Also have the students keep in mind they will complete an evaluation of each group member's participation.

4. Choose and plan the activities students can complete in order to show mastery of content. Activities can apply to learning styles, using Howard Gardner's Theory of Multiple Intelligences to frame activities, or by ability levels. Gardner's theory allows students of all intelligences: musical, interpersonal, visual, linguistic, intrapersonal, naturalistic and mathematical, to tap into their strengths. Examples include creating a poster of the skill, designing a game, constructing a model and/or creating a song.

   Choose activities to meet the needs of a wide range of cognitive levels. According to Bloom's Taxonomy, an established system of classifying learning behavior, these should begin with the most basic and extend to abstract: remembering, understanding, applying, analyzing, evaluating and creating. Students can then choose an activity that is at their level of understanding, making sure all the activities meet the same content objectives.

5. Allow student pairs to choose an activity and give ample time to complete the activity. Provide the resources needed, for instance, scissors, glue, and construction paper. Make sure students can refer to the guidelines and expectations for their project.

6. Evaluate students based on a rubric (grading standard) that clearly states the content objectives and other requirements. Have students complete a rubric for self-evaluation and evaluation of the group. Rubistar is a free resource to create rubrics for all types of projects and activities.

Tips & Warnings

• Provide students with the evaluation rubric before they begin working. Go over it as a class and have examples of quality work. By knowing the expectations, students will better meet the objectives and produce higher quality products.

References

• "Differentiating Instruction in the Regular Classroom;" Diane Heacox; 2002
• Old Dominion University

Resources

• Rubistar