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elementary science core curriculum grades k-4 the university of the state of new york the state education department http www.emsc.nysed.gov/ciai/

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the university o f the state o f new york regents of the university carl t hayden chancellor a.b j.d diane o neill mcgivern vice chancellor b.s.n m.a ph.d adelaide l sanford b.a m.a p.d saul b cohen b.a m.a ph.d james c dawson a.a b.a m.s ph.d robert m bennett b.a m.s robert m johnson b.s j.d anthony s bottar b.a j.d merryl h tisch b.a m.a ena l farley b.a m.a ph.d geraldine d chapey b.a m.a ed.d ricardo e oquendo b.a j.d arnold b gardner b.a ll.b charlotte k frank b.b.a m.s.ed ph.d harry phillips 3rd b.a m.s.f.s president of the university and commissioner of education richard p mills chief operating officer richard h cate deputy commissioner for elementary middle secondary and continuing education james a kadamus assistant commissioner for curriculum instruction and assessment roseanne defabio elmira staten island hollis new rochelle peru tonawanda lloyd harbor syracuse new york brockport belle harbor bronx buffalo new york hartsdale the state education department does not discriminate on the basis of age color religion creed disability marital status veteran status national origin race gender genetic predisposition or carrier status or sexual orientation in its educational programs services and activities portions of this publication can be made available in a variety of formats including braille large print or audio tape upon request inquiries concerning this policy of nondiscrimination should be directed to the department s office for diversity ethics and access room 152 education building albany ny 12234.

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contents acknowledgments .iv core curriculum .1 preface .3 standard 1 analysis inquiry and design .5 standard 4 the physical setting .12 standard 4 the living environment .17 appendix .24 elementary science iii

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acknowledgments the state education department acknowledges the assistance of teachers school administrators and science specialists at boards of cooperative educational services from across new york state in particular the state education department would like to thank fred arnold ron benson julie kane brinkmann denise m brown sue cerrito michael doyle ronnie feder rita fico michael s flood janet hawkes frances scelsi hess michael jabot sandra jenoure sandra latourelle laura lehtonen gin gee moy v dolly narain kranz susan rivers elizabeth royston doug schmid andrea shea michael simons carolyn smith mary jean syrek rose villani monroe 2 orleans boces spencerport mill middle school williamsville state university college new paltz community school district #27 new york city glen-worden elementary school scotia cattaraugus-allegany boces olean community school district #25 new york city queens multidisciplinary resource center new york city onondaga-cortland-madison boces syracuse new york agriculture in the classroom cornell university cooperstown high school cooperstown oneida high school oneida community school district #4 new york city state university college plattsburgh albany-schoharie-schenectady-saratoga boces albany community school district #2 new york city k­12 science consultant new york state lincoln elementary school scotia nassau boces westbury western suffolk boces smithtown ogden elementary school valley stream ithaca city school district ithaca enlarged city school district troy dr charles r drew science magnet buffalo community school district #11 new york city the project manager for the development of the elementary science core curriculum was elise russo associate in science education with content and assessment support provided by judy pinsonnault associate in education testing and diana k harding associate in science education special thanks go to jan christman for technical expertise and to mike simons ithaca city school district for preliminary drafts of the document additional thanks go to jeff arnold instructor and carla borelli monica mihalacs mary ann scime kristin wukovite and melissa krawcyyk students at daemen college for matrix assistance and concept maps iv elementary science

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elementary science core curriculum

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2 elementary science

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preface why is there a core curriculum the elementary science core curriculum has been written to assist teachers and supervisors as they prepare curricula daily instruction and assessment for the elementarylevel grades k 1 2 3 and 4 content and skills of standards 1 2 4 6 and 7 of the new york state learning standards for mathematics science and technology what is the core curriculum the learning standards for mathematics science and technology identifies key ideas and performance indicators key ideas are broad unifying general statements of what students need to know the performance indicators for each idea are statements of what students should be able to do to provide evidence that they understand the key ideas as part of this continuum this core curriculum guide presents major understandings that give more specific detail to the concepts underlying each performance indicator features · this core curriculum is not a syllabus · the focus is on conceptual understanding in the guide and is consistent with the approaches in the national science education standards and benchmarks for science literacy project 2061 · this is a guide for the preparation of elementarylevel curriculum daily instruction and assessment the beginning stage in a k­12 continuum of science education · this core curriculum specifically addresses only the content and skills to be tested by state examinations applications of the core curriculum this core curriculum reflects only a portion of the content to be covered in an elementary science program it is expected that additional content will be supplied locally this core curriculum reflects the content that must be addressed at the elementary level content in this document especially the major understandings can appear on state examinations a core curriculum allows teachers the flexibility and professional freedom to expand upon and develop instruction that addresses the new york state learning standards for mathematics science and technology at the appropriate level for their students since this core curriculum contains less than 100 of the content the time required to teach can vary with the needs of individual students especially in terms of remediation or acceleration elementary science the elementary science program should emphasize a hands-on and minds-on approach to learning students learn effectively when they are actively engaged in the discovery process often working in small groups experiences should provide students with opportunities to interact as directly as possible with the natural world in order to construct explanations about their world this approach will allow students to practice problem-solving skills develop positive science attitudes learn new science content and increase their scientific literacy children s natural curiosity leads them to explore the natural world they should be provided opportunities to have direct experience with common objects materials and living things in their environments less important is the memorization of specialized terminology and technical details good instruction focuses on understanding important relationships processes mechanisms and applications of concepts future assessments will test students ability to explain analyze and interpret scientific processes and phenomena more than their ability to recall specific facts it is hoped that the general nature of these statements will encourage the teaching of science for understanding instead of for memorization teachers are encouraged to help their students find concepts that interconnect many of the key ideas to each other it is hoped that the units designed using this core curriculum will prepare our students to explore the most important ideas about our physical setting and our living environment scientifically literate students understand the basic concepts and processes and can apply them in reallife situations the science educators throughout new york state who collaborated on the writing of this guide believe that curricula based on this guide will contribute to the scientific literacy of all students investigations critical to understanding science concepts is the use of scientific inquiry to develop explanations of natural phenomena therefore it is recommended that students have the opportunity to develop their skills of mathematical analysis scientific inquiry and engineering design through investigations on a regular basis in grades k 1 2 3 and 4 active investigations will nurture student curiosity and develop positive attitudes toward science which will last a lifetime 3

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inquiry and process skills based on all standards it should be a goal of the instructor to foster the development of science process skills the application of these skills allows students to investigate important issues in the world around them inquiry-based units will include many or most of the following process skills these process skills should be incorporated into students instruction as developmentally appropriate classifying ­ arranging or distributing objects events or information representing objects or events in classes according to some method or system communicating ­ giving oral and written explanations or graphic representations of observations comparing and contrasting ­ identifying similarities and differences between or among objects events data systems etc creating models ­ displaying information using multisensory representations gathering and organizing data ­ collecting information about objects and events which illustrate a specific situation generalizing ­ drawing general conclusions from particulars identifying variables ­ recognizing the characteristics of objects or factors in events that are constant or change under different conditions inferring ­ drawing a conclusion based on prior experiences interpreting data ­ analyzing data that have been obtained and organized by determining apparent patterns or relationships in the data making decisions ­ identifying alternatives and choosing a course of action from among the alternatives after basing the judgment for the selection on justifiable reasons manipulating materials ­ handling or treating materials and equipment safely skillfully and effectively measuring ­ making quantitative observations by comparing to a conventional or nonconventional standard observing ­ becoming aware of an object or event by using any of the senses or extensions of the senses to identify properties predicting ­ making a forecast of future events or conditions expected to exist note as an example these processes are applied in the three key ideas in standard 1 which outline scientific inquiry inquiry may proceed in a cyclical pattern with students moving from key idea 1 to key idea 3 and back to 1 again 4 elementary science

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process skills based on standards 1 2 6 and 7 science process skills should be based on a series of discoveries students learn most effectively when they have a central role in the discovery process to that end standards 1 2 6 and 7 incorporate in the elementary science core curriculum a student-centered problem-solving approach to intermediate science the following is an expanded version of the skills found in standards 1 2 6 and 7 of the learning standards for mathematics science and technology this list is not intended to be an all-inclusive list of the content or skills that teachers are expected to incorporate into their curriculum it should be a goal of the instructor to encourage science process skills that will provide students with background and curiosity sufficient to prompt investigation of important issues in the world around them note the use of e.g denotes examples which may be used for in-depth study the terms for example and such as denote material which is testable items in paranthesis denote further definition of the words preceding the item and are testable standard 1 analysis inquiry and design students will use mathematical analysis scientific inquiry and engineering design as appropriate to pose questions seek answers and develop solutions key idea 1 abstraction and symbolic representation are used to communicate mathematically m1.1 use special mathematical notation and symbolism to communicate in mathematics and to compare and describe quantities express relationships and relate mathematics to their immediate environment m1.1a use plus minus greater than less than equal to multiplication and division signs m1.1b select the appropriate operation to solve mathematical problems m1.1c apply mathematical skills to describe the natural world key idea 2 deductive and inductive reasoning are used to reach mathematical conclusions m2.1 use simple logical reasoning to develop conclusions recognizing that patterns and relationships present in the environment assist them in reaching these conclusions m2.1a explain verbally graphically or in writing the reasoning used to develop mathematical conclusions m2.1b explain verbally graphically or in writing patterns and relationships observed in the physical and living environment key idea 3 critical thinking skills are used in the solution of mathematical problems m3.1 explore and solve problems generated from school home and community situations using concrete objects or manipulative materials when possible m3.1a use appropriate scientific tools such as metric rulers spring scale pan balance graph paper thermometers [fahrenheit and celsius graduated cylinder to solve problems about the natural world standard 1 analysis inquiry and design mathematical analysis elementary science 5

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key idea 1 the central purpose of scientific inquiry is to develop explanations of natural phenomena in a continuing creative process s1.1 ask why questions in attempts to seek greater understanding concerning objects scientific inquiry and events they have observed and heard about s1.1a observe and discuss objects and events and record observations s1.1b articulate appropriate questions based on observations s1.2 question the explanations they hear from others and read about seeking clarification and comparing them with their own observations and understandings s1.2a identify similarities and differences between explanations received from others or in print and personal observations or understandings s1.3 develop relationships among observations to construct descriptions of objects and events and to form their own tentative explanations of what they have observed s1.3a clearly express a tentative explanation or description which can be tested key idea 2 beyond the use of reasoning and consensus scientific inquiry involves the testing of proposed explanations involving the use of conventional techniques and procedures and usually requiring considerable ingenuity s2.1 develop written plans for exploring phenomena or for evaluating explanations guided by questions or proposed explanations they have helped formulate s2.1a indicate materials to be used and steps to follow to conduct the investigation and describe how data will be recorded journal dates and times etc s2.2 share their research plans with others and revise them based on their suggestions s2.2a explain the steps of a plan to others actively listening to their suggestions for possible modification of the plan seeking clarification and understanding of the suggestions and modifying the plan where appropriate s2.3 carry out their plans for exploring phenomena through direct observation and through the use of simple instruments that permit measurement of quantities such as length mass volume temperature and time s2.3a use appropriate inquiry and process skills to collect data s2.3b record observations accurately and concisely key idea 3 the observations made while testing proposed explanations when analyzed using conventional and invented methods provide new insights into phenomena s3.1 organize observations and measurements of objects and events through classification and the preparation of simple charts and tables s3.1a accurately transfer data from a science journal or notes to appropriate graphic organizer s3.2 interpret organized observations and measurements recognizing simple patterns sequences and relationships s3.2a state orally and in writing any inferences or generalizations indicated by the data collected s3.3 share their findings with others and actively seek their interpretations and ideas s3.3a explain their findings to others and actively listen to suggestions for possible interpretations and ideas s3.4 adjust their explanations and understandings of objects and events based on their findings and new ideas s3.4a state orally and in writing any inferences or generalizations indicated by the data with appropriate modifications of their original prediction/explanation s3.4b state orally and in writing any new questions that arise from their investigation 6 elementary science standard 1 analysis inquiry and design

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standard 1 analysis inquiry and design engineering design key idea 1 engineering design is an iterative process involving modeling and optimization finding the best solution within given constraints this process is used to develop technological solutions to problems within given constraints t1.1 describe objects imaginary or real that might be modeled or made differently and suggest ways in which the objects can be changed fixed or improved t1.1a identify a simple/common object which might be improved and state the purpose of the improvement t1.1b identify features of an object that help or hinder the performance of the object t1.1c suggest ways the object can be made differently fixed or improved within given constraints t1.2 investigate prior solutions and ideas from books magazines family friends neighbors and community members t1.2a identify appropriate questions to ask about the design of an object t1.2b identify the appropriate resources to use to find out about the design of an object t1.2c describe prior designs of the object t1.3 generate ideas for possible solutions individually and through group activity apply age-appropriate mathematics and science skills evaluate the ideas and determine the best solution and explain reasons for the choices t1 3a list possible solutions applying age-appropriate math and science skills t1.3b develop and apply criteria to evaluate possible solutions t1.3c select a solution consistent with given constraints and explain why it was chosen t1.4 plan and build under supervision a model of the solution using familiar materials processes and hand tools t1.4a create a grade-appropriate graphic or plan listing all materials needed showing sizes of parts indicating how things will fit together and detailing steps for assembly t1.4b build a model of the object modifying the plan as necessary t1.5 discuss how best to test the solution perform the test under teacher supervision record and portray results through numerical and graphic means discuss orally why things worked or didn t work and summarize results in writing suggesting ways to make the solution better t1.5a determine a way to test the finished solution or model t1.5b perform the test and record the results numerically and/or graphically t1.5c analyze results and suggest how to improve the solution or model using oral graphic or written formats elementary science 7

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standard 2 information systems students will access generate process and transfer information using appropriate technologies standard 2 key idea 1 information systems information technology is used to retrieve process and communicate information and as a tool to enhance learning · use computer technology traditional paper-based resources and interpersonal discussions to learn do and share science in the classroom · select appropriate hardware and software that aids in word processing creating databases telecommunications graphing data display and other tasks · use information technology to link the classroom to world events key idea 2 key idea 2 knowledge of the impacts and limitations of information systems is essential to its effectiveness and ethical use · use a variety of media to access scientific information · consult several sources of information and points of view before drawing conclusions · identify and report sources in oral and written communications key idea 3 information technology can have positive and negative impacts on society depending upon how it is used · distinguish fact from fiction presenting opinion as fact is contrary to the scientific process · demonstrate an ability to critically evaluate information and misinformation · recognize the impact of information technology on the daily life of students standard 6 interconnectedness common themes students will understand the relationships and common themes that connect mathematics science and technology and apply the themes to these and other areas of learning key idea 1 standard 6 systems thinking key idea 1 through systems thinking people can recognize the commonalities that exist among all systems and how parts of a system interrelate and combine to perform specific functions · observe and describe interactions among components of simple systems · identify common things that can be considered to be systems e.g a plant a transportation system human beings 8 elementary science

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standard 6 models key idea 2 models are simplified representations of objects structures or systems used in analysis explanation or design · analyze construct and operate models in order to discover attributes of the real thing · discover that a model of something is different from the real thing but can be used to study the real thing · use different types of models such as graphs sketches diagrams and maps to represent various aspects of the real world key idea 3 standard 6 magnitude and scale the grouping of magnitudes of size time frequency and pressures or other units of measurement into a series of relative order provides a useful way to deal with the immense range and the changes in scale that affect behavior and design of systems · observe that things in nature and things that people make have very different sizes weights and ages · recognize that almost anything has limits on how big or small it can be standard 6 equilibrium and stability key idea 4 equilibrium is a state of stability due either to a lack of changes static equilibrium or a balance between opposing forces dynamic equilibrium · observe that things change in some ways and stay the same in some ways · recognize that things can change in different ways such as size weight color and movement some small changes can be detected by taking measurements standard 6 key idea 5 patterns of change identifying patterns of change is necessary for making predictions about future behavior and conditions · use simple instruments to measure such quantities as distance size and weight and look for patterns in the data · analyze data by making tables and graphs and looking for patterns of change standard 6 optimization key idea 6 in order to arrive at the best solution that meets criteria within constraints it is often necessary to make trade-offs · choose the best alternative of a set of solutions under given constraints · explain the criteria used in selecting a solution orally and in writing elementary science 9

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standard 7 interdisciplinary problem solving students will understand the relationships and common themes that connect mathematics science and technology and apply the themes to these and other areas of learning key idea 1 the knowledge and skills of mathematics science and technology are used together to make informed decisions and solve problems especially those relating to issues of science/technology/society consumer decision making design and inquiry into phenomena · analyze science/technology/society problems and issues that affect their home school or community and carry out a remedial course of action · make informed consumer decisions by applying knowledge about the attributes of particular products and making cost/benefit trade-offs to arrive at an optimal choice · design solutions to problems involving a familiar and real context investigate related science concepts to determine the solution and use mathematics to model quantify measure and compute · observe phenomena and evaluate them scientifically and mathematically by conducting a fair test of the effect of variables and using mathematical knowledge and technological tools to collect analyze and present data and conclusions standard 7 connections standard 7 strategies key idea 2 solving interdisciplinary problems involves a variety of skills and strategies including effective work habits gathering and processing information generating and analyzing ideas realizing ideas making connections among the common themes of mathematics science and technology and presenting results · work effectively · gather and process information · generate and analyze ideas · observe common themes · realize ideas · present results skills and strategies for interdisciplinary problem solving working effectively ­ contributing to the work of a brainstorming group laboratory partnership cooperative learning group or project team planning procedures identifying and managing responsibilities of team members and staying on task whether working alone or as part of a group gathering and processing information ­ accessing information from printed media electronic databases and community resources using the information to develop a definition of the problem and to research possible solutions generating and analyzing ideas ­ developing ideas for proposed solutions investigating ideas collecting data and showing relationships and patterns in the data common themes ­ observing examples of common unifying themes applying them to the problem and using them to better understand the dimensions of the problem realizing ideas ­ constructing components or models arriving at a solution and evaluating the results presenting results ­ using a variety of media to present the solution and to communicate the results 10 elementary science

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process skills based on standard 4 science is an ongoing process most often there is a question or problem that initiates an investigation searching for a possible solution or solutions there is no single prescribed scientific method to govern an investigation it is important that students practice the skills outlined below for younger students the emphasis is on discovery for older students the emphasis is on formulating and investigating their own questions note the use of e.g denotes examples which may be used for in-depth study the terms for example and such as denote material which is testable items in paranthesis denote further definition of the words preceding the item and are testable general skills i ii follow safety procedures in the classroom laboratory and field safely and accurately use the following tools · hand lens · ruler metric · balance · gram weights · spring scale · thermometer c° f° · measuring cups · graduated cylinder · timepieces iii develop an appreciation of and respect for all learning environments classroom laboratory field etc iv manipulate materials through teacher direction and free discovery v use information systems appropriately vi select appropriate standard and nonstandard measurement tools for measurement activities vii estimate find and communicate measurements using standard and nonstandard units viii use and record appropriate units for measured or calculated values ix order and sequence objects and/or events x classify objects according to an established scheme xi generate a scheme for classification xii utilize senses optimally for making observations xiii observe analyze and report observations of objects and events xiv observe identify and communicate patterns xv observe identify and communicate cause-and-effect relationships xvi generate appropriate questions teacher and student based in response to observations events and other experiences xvii observe collect organize and appropriately record data then accurately interpret results xviii collect and organize data choosing the appropriate representation · journal entries · graphic representations · drawings/pictorial representations xix make predictions based on prior experiences and/or information xx compare and contrast organisms/objects/events in the living and physical environments xxi identify and control variables/factors xxii.plan design and implement a short-term and long-term investigation based on a student or teacher-posed problem xxiii communicate procedures and conclusions through oral and written presentations 11 elementary science

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