Science – 4th Grade
COURSE OVERVIEW
The fourth grade Science curriculum consists of the implementation of thematic units through the incorporation of instructional lessons, cooperative learning activities, scientific experiments, and individualized projects allowing students to build critical thinking skills through scientific concepts/skills and to learn about the world around them-past, present, and future- through life sciences, physical sciences, and earth sciences. The scientific areas of focus are biology, astronomy, ecology, physics, earth science, and chemistry.
- Identify growth and fixed mindset
- Identify growth and fixed mindset strategies
- Demonstrate understand an use of the science process skills
- Diagram phases of the moon
- Identify objects in the Solar System
- Explain the spatial relationships of objects in the Solar System
- Diagram the water cycle, its stages and the forms of water.
- Demonstrate the impact of water movement.
- Diagram the natural filtration of water.
- Diagram an example of a watershed in Pennsylvania.
- Diagram layers of the atmosphere
- Identify various cloud formations
- Describe the movement of fluids based on temperature and density
- Create and interpret weather maps
- identify types of soils
- Describe how water flows through different soils
- Explain how different types of fossils form
- Identify types of matter.
- Identify physical and chemical changes.
- Explain why an object is (or isn’t matter).
- Measure and calculate the speed of moving objects.
- Measure Temperature
- Compare heat transfer in various objects
- Describe effects of heat on matter
- Identify wavelengths on the Electromagnetic Spectrum
- Demonstrate reflection and refraction
- Demonstrate various sounds through vibration
- Change sound sources in order to change sound.
- Create an electrical circuit(s)
- Create an electromagnet
- Diagram a circuit
- Explain how electricity reaches a home
S4.D.3.1.1: Describe motions of the Sun - Earth - Moon system.
S4.D.3.1.2: Explain how the motion of the Sun - Earth - Moon system relates to time (e.g., days, months, years).
S4.D.3.1.3: Describe the causes of seasonal change as they relate to the revolution of Earth and the tilt of Earth’s axis.
S4.D.3.1: Describe Earth’s relationship to the Sun and the Moon.
S4.D.3.1.1: Describe motions of the Sun - Earth - Moon system.
S4.D.1.3.1: Describe types of freshwater and saltwater bodies (e.g., lakes, rivers, wetlands, oceans).
S4.D.1.3.2: Explain how water goes through phase changes (i.e., evaporation, condensation, freezing, and melting).
S4.D.1.3.3: Describe or compare lentic systems (i.e., ponds, lakes, and bays) and lotic systems (i.e., streams, creeks, and rivers).
S4.D.1.3.4: Explain the role and relationship of a watershed or a wetland on water sources (e.g., water storage, groundwater recharge, water filtration, water source, water cycle).
S4.D.1.3.1: Describe types of freshwater and saltwater bodies (e.g., lakes, rivers, wetlands, oceans).
S4.D.1.3.2: Explain how water goes through phase changes (i.e., evaporation, condensation, freezing, and melting).
S4.D.1.3.3: Describe or compare lentic systems (i.e., ponds, lakes, and bays) and lotic systems (i.e., streams, creeks, and rivers).
S4.D.1.3.4: Explain the role and relationship of a watershed or a wetland on water sources (e.g., water storage, groundwater recharge, water filtration, water source, water cycle).
S4.D.1.2.1: Identify products and by-products of plants and animals for human use (e.g., food, clothing, building materials, paper products).
S4.D.1.2.2: Identify the types and uses of Earth materials for renewable, nonrenewable, and reusable products (e.g., human-made products: concrete, paper, plastics, fabrics).
S4.D.1.2.3: Recognize ways that humans benefit from the use of water resources (e.g., agriculture, energy, recreation).
S4.D.1.1.1: Describe how prominent Earth features in Pennsylvania (e.g., mountains, valleys, caves, sinkholes, lakes, rivers) were formed.
S4.D.1.1.2: Identify various Earth structures (e.g., mountains, watersheds, peninsulas, lakes, rivers, valleys) through the use of models.
S4.D.1.1.3: Describe the composition of soil as weathered rock and decomposed organic remains.
S4.D.2.1.1: Identify basic cloud types (i.e., cirrus, cumulus, stratus, and cumulonimbus) and make connections to basic elements of weather (e.g., changes in temperature, precipitation).
S4.D.2.1.2: Identify weather patterns from data charts or graphs of the data (e.g., temperature, wind direction, wind speed, cloud types, precipitation).
S4.D.2.1.3: Identify appropriate instruments (i.e., thermometer, rain gauge, weather vane, anemometer, and barometer) to study weather and what they measure.
S4.C.1.1.1: Use physical properties [e.g., mass, shape, size, volume, color, texture, magnetism, state (i.e., solid, liquid, and gas), conductivity (i.e., electrical and heat)] to describe matter.
S4.C.1.1.2: Categorize/group objects using physical characteristics.
3.2.4.B1: Explain how an object’s change in motion can be observed and measured.
S4.C.2.1.1: Identify energy forms, energy transfer, and energy examples (e.g., light, heat, electrical).
S4.C.2.1.2: Describe the flow of energy through an object or system (e.g., feeling radiant heat from a light bulb, eating food to get energy, using a battery to light a bulb or run a fan).
S4.C.2.1.3: Recognize or illustrate simple direct current series and parallel circuits composed of batteries, light bulbs (or other common loads), wire, and on/off switches.
S4.C.2.1.4: Identify characteristics of sound (e.g., pitch, loudness, reflection).
S4.C.3.1.1: Describe changes in motion caused by forces (e.g., magnetic, pushes or pulls, gravity, friction).
S4.C.3.1.2: Compare the relative movement of objects or describe types of motion that are evident (e.g., bouncing ball, moving in a straight line, back and forth, merry-go-round).
S4.C.3.1.3: Describe the position of an object by locating it relative to another object or a stationary background (e.g., geographic direction, left, up).
Standard - 3.2.4.B3: Understand that objects that emit light often emit heat.
S4.A.1.3.1: Observe and record change by using time and measurement.
S4.A.1.3.2: Describe relative size, distance, or motion.
S4.A.1.3.3: Observe and describe the change to objects caused by temperature change or light.
S4.A.1.3.4: Explain what happens to a living organism when its food supply, access to water, shelter, or space is changed (e.g., it might die, migrate, change behavior, eat something else).
S4.A.1.3.5: Provide examples, predict, or describe how everyday human activities (e.g., solid waste production, food production and consumption, transportation, water consumption, energy production and use) may change the environment.
S4.C.2.1.1: Identify energy forms, energy transfer, and energy examples (e.g., light, heat, electrical).
S4.C.2.1.2: Describe the flow of energy through an object or system (e.g., feeling radiant heat from a light bulb, eating food to get energy, using a battery to light a bulb or run a fan).
S4.C.2.1.3: Recognize or illustrate simple direct current series and parallel circuits composed of batteries, light bulbs (or other common loads), wire, and on/off switches.
S4.C.2.1.4: Identify characteristics of sound (e.g., pitch, loudness, reflection).
S4.C.3.1.1: Describe changes in motion caused by forces (e.g., magnetic, pushes or pulls, gravity, friction).
S4.C.3.1.2: Compare the relative movement of objects or describe types of motion that are evident (e.g., bouncing ball, moving in a straight line, back and forth, merry-go-round).
S4.C.3.1.3: Describe the position of an object by locating it relative to another object or a stationary background (e.g., geographic direction, left, up).
S5.C.3.2.1: Recognize that moving electric charges produce magnetic forces and moving magnets produce electric forces (electromagnetism).
S5.C.3.2.2: Identify the variables within an electric current (i.e., voltage, current, and resistance).
Mini Unit: Growth Mindset
Lessons:
- Growth and Fixed Mindset
- Identifying Mindset
- Strategies to modify mindset
Unit: Science Process Skills
Lessons:
- 6 Famous Scientists
- Learning the process skills
- Practicing the process skills
- Process Skill Lab
Unit: Solar System and Phases of the Moon
Lessons:
- Phases of the Moon
- Objects of the Solar System
- Distance relationships within the Solar System
- Movement of stellar bodies in relationship to each other
Unit: Earth’s Water and Pennsylvania Watersheds
Lessons:
- Different forms of water (states of matter)
- Water exists in the atmosphere as vapor, on the surface as ice caps, in oceans as salt water and fresh bodies of water as well as waste water, as liquid groundwater and in living things.
- The stages and impact of the Water Cycle.
- Movement and impact of the ocean.
- Importance and availability of groundwater and freshwater.
- Working Watershed
- Human impact on water supply
- Water conservation
Unit: Earth’s Weather
Lessons:
- Layers of the atmosphere
- Weather instruments
- Elements that affect weather
- Clouds and cloud formations
- Symbols on a weather map
- U.S. Climate zones
Mini Unit 2: Soil and Fossils
Lessons:
- Soil types
- How water flows through soil
- Various ways fossils form
Unit: Matter
Lessons:
- Identifying characteristics of matter.
- Methods of measuring matter.
- Examples of compounds, mixtures and solutions.
- Identifying characteristics of physical and chemical changes.
- Examples of physical and chemical changes in everyday life.
Unit: Energy
Lessons:
- 4 main types of energy
- Gravity and friction cause acceleration.
- Inertia and its effect on movement
- Examples of acceleration, friction, gravity and inertia.
- Heat transfer properties of various types of matter
- The electromagnetic spectrum
- Reflection and refraction
- Vibration causes sound and changes in the source can change the sound.
- Sound travels differently through different materials
Unit: Electricity
Lessons:
- Components of static electricity
- Components of electric energy
- Electrical safety
- Parts and types of electrical circuit(s)
- Why a lightbulb lights (as compared to energy and signs of energy presence)