Use these targets, vocabulary, rubrics, examples, and score sheet with the instructor's approved lesson and procedure. This is an assessment companion, not a complete lesson or safety authorization.
Student lessons, data, and worked answers: Unit 02 learning pathway.
The student demonstrates the following:
Five science criteria plus separately reported integration (Page 3).
A planet's position logged over weeks under a red flashlight.
The student reconstructs the historical argument aloud (Page 4).
Dated sketches of a tracked planet kept across weeks.
You are making a decision, not adding up points. For each criterion, decide whether the work is Developing, Proficient, or Mastery — the column language tells you which. A criterion counts as mastered only when the student can both trace the historical reasoning and point to the observation that settled it. Each student has three tokens per term; each token retries one rubric criterion. Approved accommodations, equipment failures, and approved absences are handled separately and do not consume these tokens.
Accept listed synonyms; use the distinction column to resolve near-matches.
| Canonical answer | Accepted synonyms | Common confusion / discriminator |
|---|---|---|
| Models of the sky | ||
| Geocentric model | Earth-centered model | A reasonable fit: no felt motion, the sky wheels overhead nightly |
| Retrograde motion | apparent backward loop | The strain that broke the geocentric picture — apparent, not real |
| Heliocentric model | Sun-centered model | Explains retrograde more simply (Copernicus); acceptance came slowly |
| Ptolemaic system | epicycle geometry | Careful geometry that saved the geocentric appearances |
| Observation & the laws | ||
| Tycho Brahe's data | precise naked-eye records | The observations Kepler's laws rest on — no telescope |
| Kepler's laws | ellipses, equal areas, period–distance | Describe orbital motion, not perfect circles |
| Galileo's evidence | Jupiter's moons; phases of Venus | Rules out particular models, not every stationary-Earth alternative by itself |
| Ellipse | oval orbit | Kepler's first law; the Sun sits at one focus, not the center |
The split between Proficient and Mastery is reasoning over recall: not naming Copernicus, but showing why a Sun-centered model explains the retrograde loops more simply. Ask “why did the old model seem right for so long?”
| Criterion | Developing | Proficient | Mastery |
|---|---|---|---|
| The geocentric model & its logic | Dismisses the geocentric model as simply foolish or ignorant. | Says Earth was thought central but cannot say why that was reasonable. | Explains why an Earth-centered sky fit the evidence — no felt motion, the nightly wheeling overhead — and where it strained against the planets' retrograde loops. |
| The shift to a heliocentric model | Cannot contrast the geocentric and heliocentric pictures. | Names Copernicus but treats the switch as mere opinion. | Shows how a Sun-centered model explains retrograde motion more simply, and explains why acceptance came slowly. |
| Tycho's data & Kepler's laws | Does not connect observations to the laws of motion. | Recites one of Kepler's laws from memory without its basis. | Uses Tycho Brahe's precise naked-eye data to justify Kepler's three laws — ellipses, equal areas, and the period–distance relation. |
| Galileo's telescope evidence | Cannot identify an observation and its prediction. | Names observations but overstates what they ruled out. | Explains why Venus's phases challenge the original Ptolemaic model, why a Tychonic alternative also fits, and what Jupiter's moons establish. |
| Tracking the sky & the journal | Accepts claims on authority and leaves the observation journal blank. | Reads about the debate but keeps thin, undated notes. | Tracks a planet's position over weeks under a red flashlight, logging dated sketches, and argues from that evidence rather than authority. |
| Integration (cross-domain) | Makes no supported connection between the source and the science. | Uses the source but needs help connecting evidence, writing, or limitations to the science. | Independently connects History, Reading, and Writing using a cited source, appropriate evidence, a limitation, and a scientific explanation. |
Read these before you grade. They show what Mastery and Developing actually sound like, plus the edge cases where you should coach rather than decide on the spot.
Student: ______________________________________ Date: _______________ Guide: _________________________
| # | Criterion | Decision | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | The geocentric model & its logic | Dev / Prof / Mast | |
| 2 | The shift to a heliocentric model | Dev / Prof / Mast | |
| 3 | Tycho's data & Kepler's laws | Dev / Prof / Mast | |
| 4 | Galileo's telescope evidence | Dev / Prof / Mast | |
| 5 | Tracking the sky & the journal | Dev / Prof / Mast | |
| 6 | Integration (cross-domain) | Dev / Prof / Mast |
☐ No ☐ Yes — for criterion: __________
Tokens left this term after this session (choose one): ☐ 3 ☐ 2 ☐ 1 ☐ None left
Dev = Developing · Prof = Proficient · Mast = Mastery · Unsure between two levels? Circle the lower one and note what a re-do would need.