Differentiation You may want students to first complete the front side of the Explanations Tool with the Plants Matter Tracing Tool and check it together as a class to confirm that the arrows and responses to the prompts are correct. Then, students can use the corrected matter tracing tool as a tool to construct their written explanation. Encourage students to explain verbally as well as writing on the Plants Matter Tracing Tool As the Plants Matter Tracing Tool is completed, post in the classroom so students can refer to it. Have students highlight challenging vocabulary in the 5.3 How do Plans Use Food to Grow Reading to support the word wall Refer to the word wall for questions on biosynthesis related vocabulary. Modifications The Three Questions Explanation Checklist on the back of the Three Questions Handout can be used to scaffold students’ explanations in many ways. Students refer to the checklist as they are constructing their explanations. Students use the checklist as they are sharing and revising their explanations with a partner. Students use the checklist to critique and revise their final explanations. Students use the checklist to critique the example explanations for each unit. Students use the checklist to create and/or evaluate a whole-class consensus explanation. We recommend using this checklist with a gradual release. As students improve in their ability to write their own explanations, they may rely on the checklist less. Extending the Learning
