Handouts are available at the bottom of this post in the Resources section.

Big Idea

A REAL Science Challenge Question is a quick and fun way to have students practice problem solving and apply science and engineering practices (SEPs) and Crosscutting Concepts (CCCs). I like REAL Science Challenge Questions because they…

1. are not based on any discrete knowledge,
2. force students to think like a scientist and develop their own experiment
3. do not have googleable answers
4. are relevant, and
5. are open ended – thus, there isn’t just one answer out there

This activity is centered around helping an ice cream parlor increase their business. How can students help an ice cream parlor do better by thinking like a scientist?

Instructions

1. Post the REAL Sc Challenge Question prompt up for students (refer handouts)
2. Give students 5-10 minutes to discuss in pairs.
3. Have students share their responses.

NOTE: Stress the need for students to determine what their independent variable and dependent variable are. In other words, what condition are students testing (the independent variable) and how do they know it’s working (the dependent variable).

Resources

Handout(s): Handout – Science And The Ice Cream Biz

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