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 03 learning pathway.
The student demonstrates the following:
Five science criteria plus separately reported integration (Page 3).
Key an approved image; compare supplied movement records. No animal procedure.
The student names the body plan that places the animal (Page 4).
Observations, sketches, and the keyed identity kept distinct.
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 analyze the approved evidence and justify the classification and rate denominators. 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 |
|---|---|---|
| The mollusc body plan | ||
| Foot | muscular foot | The organ of movement; a snail glides on it |
| Mantle | tissue covering the visceral mass | Secretes shell material in many mollusks; an external shell is not universal |
| Visceral mass | the internal organs | The soft body the foot and mantle support |
| Arthropods | ||
| Exoskeleton | external skeleton; cuticle | A hard outer shell; does not grow with the animal |
| Molting | shedding the old exoskeleton | A new cuticle forms beneath the old one before shedding and expansion |
| Jointed limbs | segmented appendages | The trait that names the arthropods (“jointed foot”) |
| Insect vs. arachnid | six legs/three parts vs. eight legs/two parts | A spider is an arachnid, not an insect |
| Crustacean | crab, crayfish, shrimp group | Gilled arthropods with two pairs of antennae |
| Body lengths per second | speed divided by body length | Not mm/s; state duration, size and context |
| Criterion | Developing | Proficient | Mastery |
|---|---|---|---|
| Mollusc body plan | Cannot name a shared trait behind snails, clams, and squid. | Names the parts but cannot say what the foot or mantle does. | Identifies the foot, mantle, and visceral mass and explains the job of each across the mollusc classes. |
| Gastropods, bivalves & cephalopods | Treats every mollusc as one kind of animal. | Names the classes but places examples in the wrong one. | Sorts a snail, a clam, and an octopus into the right class from observable traits. |
| Exoskeleton & molting | Thinks an exoskeleton grows with the animal like skin. | Knows arthropods have a hard shell but not why they molt. | Explains that the exoskeleton must be shed and regrown to allow growth, and what that costs the animal. |
| Arthropod groups & jointed limbs | Calls every small animal a bug or an insect. | Names the groups but confuses a spider with an insect. | Uses body segments, leg count, and antennae to tell insects, arachnids, crustaceans, and myriapods apart. |
| Lab technique (image key & quantitative comparison) | Guesses an identity or compares distances without time. | Uses a key and calculates speed but needs help with body-length normalization. | Independently keys an approved image and compares mm per second with body lengths per second, states context and explains a fresh reversed-order comparison. |
| 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. |
The split between Proficient and Mastery is body plan over label: not just naming “arthropod,” but using leg count, body segments, and antennae to place it. Ask the student “how many legs and body parts, and are there antennae?”
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 | Mollusc body plan | Dev / Prof / Mast | |
| 2 | Gastropods, bivalves & cephalopods | Dev / Prof / Mast | |
| 3 | Exoskeleton & molting | Dev / Prof / Mast | |
| 4 | Arthropod groups & jointed limbs | Dev / Prof / Mast | |
| 5 | Lab technique (image key & quantitative comparison) | 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.