Do you ever find that your students aren’t making connections between concepts, or that they are simply memorizing vocabulary for upcoming tests and then forgetting everything a week later? Well, if you are a science teacher and haven’t used the CER model in your classroom yet, you are in for a treat! The CER model is a teaching tool that will revolutionize the way your students engage with the scientific method and develop critical thinking skills. Whether you are teaching middle school or high school science, using the CER model in the science classroom can help your students connect the dots between the things they observe and how they explain them.
The CER model stands for Claim, Evidence, and Reasoning. It provides students with a clear structure for writing scientifically instead of encouraging one-word responses. Students will follow the following systematic approach:
1) Make a claim: What do you believe to be true?
2) Provide evidence: What data or observations support your claim?
3) Explain reasoning: Which scientific principles tie together your claim and your evidence? How?
Incorporating the CER model into your science classroom is not simply about helping your students write better lab reports – though it certainly does do that! It is about fostering a deeper understanding of the scientific method and promoting the formation of connections between prior knowledge and new information.
Maybe you always feel like your students are just spitting back information and definitions from their textbooks or notes. When students practice the CER model, they are learning to think like scientists instead of memorize facts. The CER model helps them construct evidence-based arguments, a skill that important not just in the science classroom but in many aspects of life. This process aligns nicely with the Next Generation Science Standards (NGSS), which emphasize the importance of students’ engagement in real scientific practices throughout their learning journey.
Perhaps you are thinking, “Well that’s great, but how do I incorporate this in my lessons?” Here are some options once you have established and practiced using the CER model with your students:
Imagine you are teaching a science lesson and you want to make your lesson more effective and engaging. CER is the perfect device for you! Let’s take a look at how the CER framework might connect to some example topics:
If you are using the CER model with students for the first time, select something fun and low-stakes to explain the process. One great way to do this is by using video clips. There is a great commercial called “My Dad is an Alien” on YouTube that you can use for students’ initial exposure to CER. Have students watch the video, then identify how the girl in the video presented her claim, evidence, and reasoning. This will help students become more comfortable with the CER model before using it on a test or assignment. It’s a learning process!
When students are beginning to use the CER model in their own writing, ask that they use notebook paper and assign different highlighter colors to identify their claims, evidence, and reasoning. This simple technique will help students ensure that they are including all of the necessary components of the model, as well as help you as their teacher quickly assess whether they are on the right track.
Provide sentence starters on posters or anchor charts around your classroom or wherever students look frequently (perhaps within interactive notebooks or in a document on your learning management system). This will prevent students from getting discouraged by one of the most common challenges with using CER: getting started.
Here are some examples:
The CER model allows students loads of opportunities to make connections to real-world phenomena. For example, if you are teaching a lesson on water conservation, have students research modern water-saving technologies used in households such as low-flow showerheads or dual-flush toilets. They can form a claim about the technology, find studies that show water consumption rates, then provide their reasoning about how reducing water consumption in homes conserves a vital natural resource. The CER format not only helps students understand the concepts they are or will be exposed to in the lesson at hand, but also reinforces the importance of making evidence-based decisions in their daily lives.
Do you have a group of students who are struggling with scientific reasoning? While the rest of your class works independently, pull a small group to reteach or review a concept using the CER model. Doing so can enhance students’ understanding as they bounce ideas off of one another and help each other refine claims, evidence, and reasoning. Working through the CER process with small groups also gives you the opportunity to use model teaching by showing appropriate usage of the method. Then, students can begin to practice it more independently in the future.
Pro-tip: Implement “whiteboard sessions” with these small groups by writing down everyone’s thoughts on a large whiteboard. This way, students can visually see how the CER model comes together.
To make implementing the CER model in the science classroom even easier, I have put together a collection of resources that can be found in my shop! These resources are designed to help science teachers at all levels, whether you are teaching middle or high school, and they cover a wide range of topics.
Each product in the collection provides a comprehensive toolkit to introduce and practice the CER model with your students. They include:
#1: Mixtures and Solutions CER Prompts: Perfect for a chemistry unit, this resource includes topics like mixtures (homogeneous and heterogeneous), solutions, and compounds for students in grades 6-9. It’s a great way to introduce the CER framework while reinforcing important scientific concepts.
#2: Forces and Motion CER Prompts: Ideal for a force and motion unit, this resource covers topics like solving for force, mass, and acceleration (F=ma), Newton’s laws, and interpreting speed graphs. It’s a fantastic way to help students apply the CER method to physics.
So, no need to create resources from scratch, especially if you are new to using CER! Whether you need materials for formative assessments, classroom discussions, group work, or independent work, these resources have you covered. Students will develop powerful analytical skills while also deepening their understanding of your content. Plus, these are great tools to use for review before a unit assessment or semester/final exam! Visit my shop for additional resources!
Using the CER model in the science classroom is a game-changer for both students and teachers. It provides a clear, structured way for all students to engage with the scientific method, develop critical thinking skills, and use complete sentences to articulate their understanding – skills that are helpful for all subject areas and future careers. Your English Language Arts teacher friends will be thanking you this school year!
Remember, as science teachers, our job is more than just helping students understand various concepts within our lesson plans. It’s about teaching students to reason and communicate like scientists. The CER model is the best way to do just that!
