Infrared Zoo Lesson 2 Dinner in the Dark

GENERAL INFORMATION

Title: Dinner in the Dark

Brief Description: Learners will discover how certain snakes (pit-vipers) can find prey using a natural infrared sensor and will extend their understandings by exploring infrared technology applications.

Primary Goal: Use these activities to introduce learners to infrared imaging technology and the information that such images contain.

Activity Description: Learners think about small prey animals and how a pit viper snake will find them in the forest. They explore the physical characteristics of the animals as well as other survival skills. Learners are then presented with additional information on the pit viper and its infrared sensing organ. They receive a brief presentation on infrared light and explore everyday objects in the infrared. After this small exploration, they are ready to apply their knowledge of infrared "seeing" to how the pit-viper senses infrared light. This activity concludes with a more detailed investigation into human-infrared technologies and their impact on society.

Learning Goals: Provided here are general learning goals for this entire lesson. You may have additional learning goals for your particular classroom and curriculum as these activities can be easily tailored to your own needs.

At the conclusion of this lesson set, your learners will be able to:

• Explain the differences between an infrared image and visible image of the same object/scene.
  
• Explain that infrared light can be used to measure the temperature of an object. Furthermore, that this measurement is transferred to color codes when recorded by an infrared camera.
  
• Determine the warmer and cooler areas of an infrared image using a false-color map and a temperature scale.

Target Audience: Grades 5-9

Teacher Preparation Time: 2-3 hours the first time, ½ hour after initial use

Estimated Activity Time:

Day 1:
      - Engage Your Learners: 10-15 minutes
      - Exploring Small Prey Characteristics: 20-30 minutes

Day 2:
      - Exploring Infrared Image Technology: 25-45 minutes
      - Color Coding Small Animals: 30 minutes
      - Help Your Learners Explain: 30 minutes

Day 3:
      - Extend and Apply Understandings: time varies

Materials Needed:

• Ability to download large files off the internet
  
• Ability to open, view, and print PDF files
  
• Ability to print in color (Resolution is at 72 dpi. PDF files are print-ready for any professional printing establishment (e.g., Kinko's or OfficeMax)
  
• Ability to laminate or otherwise protect printed images
  
• Large learning space for groups of students to work comfortably and not disturb each other
  
• Ability to photocopy worksheets in B&W for students
  
• Sets of purple/blue, pink, and orange/yellow/red crayons (1 for each group)
  
• Optional: Internet ready classroom with projection unit
  
• Optional: PowerPoint presentation capabilities and projection unit
  
• Optional: Internet workstations for extension activities

Authors and Idea Makers

The ideas presented in this lesson are the collaborative effort of the teachers in the Invisible Universe Online course during the Spring 2003 semester. This particular lesson has been organized and written by Adrienne Gauthier (Instructional Technology Specialist, University of Arizona) with the help of Doris Daou (SSC/Caltech) and Linda Hermans-Killam (SSC/Caltech). This particular lesson has been redesigned and modified from an original lesson idea submitted by Mark Stephansky at Whitman-Hanson HS in Massachusetts. This lesson has been evaluated by the Origins Education Forum at the Space Telescope Science Institute.

National Science Education Standards (NSES):

Changing Emphases (...More Emphasis ...)

The NSES envision change through out the system. Below are descriptions of how this lesson supports the changing emphases:

• Understanding scientific concepts and developing abilities of inquiry.
  
• Learning subject matter disciplines in the context of inquiry, technology, science in personal and social perspectives, and history and nature of science.
  
• Implementing inquiry as instructional strategies, abilities, and ideas to be learned.

Changing emphases to promote inquiry:

• Investigations over extended periods of time.
  
• Communicating science explanations.
  
• Doing more investigations in order to develop understanding, ability, values of inquiry and knowledge of science content.
  
• Public communication of student ideas and work to classmates.

Content Standard A: Science as Inquiry

5-8 UNDERSTANDINGS ABOUT SCIENTIFIC INQUIRY :

• Different kinds of questions suggest different kinds of scientific investigations. Some investigations involve observing and describing objects, organisms, or events; some involve collecting specimens; some involve experiments; some involve seeking more information; some involve discovery of new objects and phenomena; and some involve making models.
• Technology used to gather data enhances accuracy and allows scientists to analyze and quantify results of investigations.