Publications

Scientific sensemaking is described in the context of studying a three-week, sixth-grade unit on the ecology and restoration of puffins living off the coast of Maine. Students engaged with a scientific adventure story, observed local bird species, used AI and webcam-facilitated tools, designed puffin burrows, and explored data sets about puffins. Students’ ideas were elicited through discussion of the challenges faced by scientists who restored the puffins; sharing observations of chick-rearing behaviors from a webcam; critiquing and revising classmates’ burrow designs; writing about bird behavior in response to prompts; poring over data to detect patterns in the long-term success of bird restoration; and training/testing AI for identification of puffins. This multiplicity of strategies effectively engaged students from a range of backgrounds, including those who were multilingual learners. This educational approach to scientific sensemaking through bird restoration is relevant and generalizable to students throughout the country, given the dwindling population sizes of many bird species nationwide.

Suggested citation: 

Mokros, J., Harrigan, C., Sagrans, J., & Noyce, P. (2025). Scientific Sensemaking: Designing Solutions for Puffin Restoration. Science Scope, 48(1), 45–51. https://doi.org/10.1080/08872376.2024.2433781