Testing the Waters 1 Testing the Waters 2 Testing the Waters 3
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Testing the Waters

School: Genesee Community Charter School

City/State: Rochester, NY

Grade(s): 5

Format(s): Report: Science

Subject(s): English Language Arts, Mathematics, Science and Technology

Type(s): Informative/Explanatory

Writing Assignment Description

Fifth grade students at the Genesee Community Charter School in Rochester, New York created this scientific report as part of a three-month learning expedition on water quality and the risks of pollution.

They read scientific papers and learned how to write in that format. The report included an abstract, introduction, methods, results and discussion.

How This Writing Can Be Useful

  • Shows a powerful means of engaging fifth graders in a scientific study with authentic research
  • Highlights an example of fifth graders writing in an adult-format with a specialized, scientific voice
  • Excellent example of an academic abstract written by grade school students

Relevant Resources

Project: Testing the Waters

Common Core State Standards

Standard Long Term Learning Target
W.5.4
  • I can produce clear and coherent writing that is appropriate to task, purpose, and audience.
W.5.7
  • I can use several sources to build my knowledge about a topic.
W.5.8
  • I can provide a list of sources I used to gather information.
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