Scientific Argumentation

Scientific Argumentation Worksheet (Grade 6 Science, TEKS 6.3C)

Teach grade 6 students what scientific argumentation really means. It is not arguing with a partner. It is using evidence to support, challenge, or revise a claim. This one-page reading and activity sheet makes that idea concrete with a salt and ice claim.

What's Inside

• A short reading on support, challenge, counterclaim, revise, and empirical evidence
• A Respectful Science Talk box with four sentence starters students can use in class discussions
• Activity 1: Students read six statements about the claim and write S (supports), C (challenges), or N (not evidence)
• Activity 2: Three questions on choosing a respectful reply, revising a claim after new data, and spotting a counterclaim
• A visual answer key with answers marked in red

How Teachers Use It

Use it before a class discussion or debate about lab results, after students write CER explanations, or as practice for TEKS 6.3C. The sheet takes about 10 minutes and prints clearly in black and white.

This worksheet is part of the Reading in Science series for grade 6. It supports TEKS 6.3C: engage respectfully in scientific argumentation using applied scientific explanations and empirical evidence. Pair it with the other TEKS 6.3 sheets to build a short unit on evidence-based explanations and argumentation.

Why It Works

Each sheet teaches the key terms in plain words first, then asks students to use only what the page taught. Activities stay at the circle, sort, match, and write-a-letter level, so students build confidence while the answer key lets teachers check work fast. The clean layout is also easy to project for a whole-class review.