Science as Inquiry (4ASI)
Abilities necessary to do scientific inquiry
4ASI1.1 Ask a question about objects, organisms, and events in
the environment. This aspect of the standard emphasizes students
asking questions that they can answer with scientific knowledge,
combined with their own observations. Students should answer their
questions by seeking information from reliable sources of scientific
information and from their own observations and investigations.
4ASI1.2 Plan and conduct an investigation. In the earliest years,
investigations are largely based on systematic observations. As
students develop, they may design and conduct simple experiments
to answer questions. The idea of a fair test is possible for many
students to consider by fourth grade.
4ASI1.3 Employ simple equipment and tools to gather data and
extend the senses. In early years, students develop simple skills,
such as how to observe, measure, cut, connect, switch, turn on
and off, pour, hold, tie, and hook. Beginning with simple instruments,
students can use rulers to measure the length, height, and depth
of objects and materials; thermometers to measure temperature;
watches to measure time; beam balances and spring scales to measure
weight and force; magnifiers to observe objects and organisms;
and microscopes to observe the finer details of plants, animals,
rocks, and other materials. Children also develop skills in the
use of computers and calculators for conducting investigations.
4ASI1.4 Use data to construct a reasonable explanation. This
aspect of the standard emphasizes the students thinking
as they use data to formulate explanations. Even at the earliest
grade levels, students should learn what constitutes evidence
and judge the merits or strength of the data and information that
will be used to make explanations. After students propose an explanation,
they will appeal to the knowledge and evidence they obtained to
support their explanations. Students should check their explanations
against scientific knowledge, experiences, and observations of
others.
4ASI1.5 Communicate investigations and explanations. Students
should begin developing the abilities to communicate, critique,
and analyze their work and the work of other students. This communication
might be spoken or drawn as well as written.
Understandings About Scientific Inquiry
4ASI2.1 Scientific investigations involve asking and answering
a question and comparing the answer with what scientists already
know about the world.
4ASI2.2 Scientists use different kinds of investigations depending
on the questions they are trying to answer. Types of investigations
include describing objects, events, and organisms; classifying
them; and doing a fair test (experimenting).
4ASI2.3 Simple instruments such as magnifiers, thermometers,
rulers, provide more information than scientists obtain using
only their senses.
4ASI2.4 Scientists develop explanations using observations (evidence)
and what they already know about the world (scientific knowledge).
Good explanations are based on evidence from investigations.
4ASI2.6 Scientists review and ask questions about the results
of other scientists work.
Physical Science (4BPS)
Properties of objects and materials
4BPS1.1 Objects have many observable properties, including size,
weight, shape, color, temperature, and the ability to react with
other substances. Those properties can be measured using tools,
such as rulers, balances and thermometers.
4BPS1.2 Objects are made of one or more materials, such as paper,
wood and metal. Objects can be described by the properties of
the materials from which they are made, and those properties can
be used to separate or sort a group of objects or materials.
4BPS1.3 Materials can exist in different states solid,
liquid, and gas. Some common materials, such as water, can be
changed from one state to another by heating or cooling.
Position and motion of objects
4BPS2.1 The position of an object can be described by locating
it relative to another object or the background.
4BPS2.2 An objects motion can be described by tracing and
measuring its position over time.
4BPS2.3 The position and motion of objects can be changed by
pushing or pulling. The size of the change is related to the strength
of the push or pull.
4BPS2.4 Sound is produced by vibrating objects. The pitch of
the sound can be varied by changing the rate of vibration.
Light, heat, electricity, and magnetism
4BPS3.1 Light travels in a straight line until it strikes an
object. Light can be reflected by a mirror, refracted by a lens,
or absorbed by the object.
4BPS3.2 Heat can be produced in many ways, such as burning, rubbing,
or mixing one substance with another. Heat can move from one object
to another by conduction.
4BPS3.3 Electricity in circuits can produce light, heat, sound,
and magnetic effects. Electrical circuits require a complete loop
through which an electrical current can pass.
4BPS3.4 Magnets attract and repel each other and certain kinds
of other materials.
Life Science (4CLS)
The characteristics of organisms
4CLS1.1 Organisms have basic needs. For example, animals need
air, water, nutrients, and light. Organisms can survive only in
environments in which their needs can be met. The world has many
different environments, and distinct environments support the
life of different types of organisms.
4CLS1.2 Each plant or animal has different structures that serve
different functions in growth, survival, and reproduction. For
example, humans have distinct body structures for walking, holding,
seeing, and talking.
4CLS1.3 The behavior of individual organisms is influenced by
internal cues (such as hunger) and by external cues (such as a
change in the environment). Humans and other organisms have senses
that help them detect internal and external cues.
Life cycles of organisms
4CLS2.1 Plants and animals have life cycles that include being
born, developing into adults, reproducing, and eventually dying.
The details of this life cycle are different for different organisms.
4CLS2.2 Plants and animals closely resemble their parents.
4CLS2.3 Many characteristics of an organism are inherited from
the parents of the organism, but other characteristics result
from an individuals interactions with the environment. Inherited
characteristics include the color of flowers and the number of
limbs of an animal. Other features, such as the ability to ride
a bicycle, are learned through interactions with the environment
and cannot be passed on to the next generation.
Organisms and their environments
4CLS3.1 All animals depend on plants. Some animals eat plants
for food. Other animals eat animals that eat the plants.
4CLS3.2 An organisms patterns of behavior are related to
the nature of that organisms environment, including the
kinds and numbers of other organisms present, the availability
of food and resources, and the physical characteristics of the
environment. When the environment changes, some plants and animals
survive and reproduce, and others die or move to new locations.
4CLS3.3 All organisms cause changes in the environment where
they live. Some of these changes are detrimental to the organism
or other organisms, whereas others are beneficial.
4CLS3.4 Humans depend on their natural and constructed environments.
Humans change environments in ways that can be either beneficial
or detrimental for themselves and other organisms.
Earth and Space Science (4DESS)
Properties of earth materials
4DESS1.1 Earth materials are solid rocks and soils, water, and
the gases of the atmosphere. The varied materials have different
physical and chemical properties, which make them useful in different
ways, for example, as building materials, as sources of fuel,
or for growing the plants we use as food. Earth materials provide
many of the resources that humans use.
4DESS1.2 Soils have properties of color and texture, capacity
to retain water, and ability to support the growth of many kinds
of plants, including those in our food supply.
4DESS1.3 Fossils provide evidence about the plants and animals
that lived long ago and the nature of the environment at that
time.
Objects in the sky
4DESS2.1 The sun, moon, stars, clouds, birds and airplanes all
have properties, locations, and movements that can be observed
and described.
4DESS2.2 The sun provides the light and heat necessary to maintain
the temperature of the earth.
Changes in the earth and sky
4DESS3.1 The surface of the earth changes. Some changes are due
to slow processes, such as erosion and weathering, and some changes
are due to rapid processes, such as landslides, volcanic eruptions,
and earthquakes.
4DESS3.2 Weather changes from day to day and over the seasons.
Weather can be described by measurable quantities, such as temperature,
wind direction and speed, and precipitation.
4DESS3.3 Objects in the sky have patterns of movement. The sun,
for example, appears to move across the sky in the same way every
day, but its path changes slowly over the seasons. The moon moves
across the sky on a daily basis much like the sun. The observable
shape of the moon changes from day to day in a cycle that lasts
about a month.
Science and Technology (4EST)
Abilities of technological design
4EST1.1 Identify a simple problem. In problem identification,
children should develop the ability to explain a problem in their
own words and identify a specific task and solution related to
the problem.
4EST1.2 Propose a solution. Students should make proposals to
build something or get something to work better; they should be
able to describe and communicate their ideas. Students should
recognize that designing a solution might have constraints, such
as cost, materials, time, space, or safety.
4EST1.3 Children should develop abilities to work individually
and collaboratively and to use suitable tools, techniques, and
quantitative measurements when appropriate. Students should demonstrate
the ability to balance simple constraints in problem solving.
4EST1.4 Evaluate a product or design. Students should evaluate
their own results or solutions to problems, as well as those of
other children, by considering how well a product or design met
the challenge to solve a problem. When possible, students should
use measurements and include constraints and other criteria in
their evaluations. They should modify designs based on the results
of evaluations.
4EST1.5 Student abilities should include oral, written, and pictorial
communication of the design process and product. The communication
might be show and tell, group discussions, short written reports,
or pictures, depending on the students abilities and the
design project.
Understanding about science and technology
4EST2.1 People have always had questions about their world. Science
is one way of answering questions and explaining the natural world.
4EST2.2 People have always had problems and invented tools and
techniques (ways of doing something) to solve problems. Trying
to determine the effects of solutions helps people avoid some
new problems.
4EST2.3 Scientists and engineers often work in teams with different
individuals doing different things that contribute to the results.
This understanding focuses primarily on teams working together
and secondarily, on the combination of scientists and engineer
teams.
4EST2.4 Women and men of all ages, backgrounds, and groups engage
in a variety of scientific and technological work.
4EST2.5 Tools help scientists make better observations, measurements,
and equipment for investigations. They help scientists see, measure,
and do things that they could not otherwise see, measure and do.
Abilities to distinguish between natural objects and objects made
by humans
4EST3.1 Some objects occur in nature; others have been designed
and made by people to solve human problems and enhance the quality
of life.
4EST3.2 Objects can be categorized into two groups, natural and
designed.
Science in Personal and Social Perspective (4FSPSP)
Personal health
4FSPSP1.1 Safety and security are basic needs of humans. Safety
involves freedom from danger, risk, or injury. Security involves
feelings of confidence and lack of anxiety and fear. Student understandings
include following safety rules for home and school, preventing
abuse and neglect, avoiding injury, knowing whom to ask for help,
and when and how to say no.
4FSPSP1.2 Individuals have some responsibility for their own
health. Students should engage in personal care - dental hygiene,
cleanliness, and exercise - that will maintain and improve health.
Understandings include how communicable diseases, such as colds,
are transmitted and some of the bodys defense mechanisms
that prevent or overcome illness.
4FSPSP1.3 Nutrition is essential to health. Students should understand
how the body uses food and how various foods contribute to health.
Recommendations for good nutrition include eating a variety of
foods, eating less sugar, and eating less fat.
4FSPSP1.4 Different substances can damage the body and how it
functions. Such substances include tobacco, alcohol, over-the-counter
medicines, and illicit drugs. Students should understand that
some substances, such as prescription drugs, can be beneficial,
but that any substance can be harmful if used inappropriately.
Characteristics and changes in populations
4FSPSP2.1 Human populations include groups of individuals living
in a particular location. One important characteristic of a human
population is the population density the number of individuals
of a particular population that lives in a given amount of space.
4FSPSP2.2 The size of a human population can increase or decrease.
Populations will increase unless other factors such as disease
or famine decrease the population.
Types of resources
4FSPSP3.1 Resources are things that we get from the living and
nonliving environment to meet the needs and wants of a population.>
4FSPSP3.2 Some resources are basic materials, such as air, water,
and soil; some are produced from basic resources, such as food,
fuel, and building materials; and some resources are nonmaterial,
such as quiet places, beauty, security, and safety.>
4FSPSP3.3 The supply of many resources is limited. If used, resources
can be extended through recycling and decreased use. >
Changes in environments
NSMF4.1 Science influences society through its knowledge and
world view. Scientific knowledge and the procedures used by scientists
influence the way many individuals in society think about themselves,
others and the environment. The effect of science on society is
neither entirely beneficial nor entirely detrimental.
4FSPSP4.2 Changes in environments can be natural or influenced
by humans. Some changes are good, some are bad, and some are neither
good nor bad. Pollution is a change in the environment that can
influence the health, survival, or activities of organisms, including
humans.
4FSPSP4.3 Some environmental changes occur slowly, and others
occur rapidly. Students should understand the different consequences
of changing environments in small increments over long periods
as compared with changing environments in large increments over
short periods.
Science and technology in local challenges
4FSPSP5.1 People continue inventing new ways of doing things,
solving problems, and getting work done. New ideas and inventions
often affect other people; sometimes the effects are good and
sometimes they are bad. It is helpful to try to determine in advance
how ideas and inventions will affect other people.
4FSPSP5.2 Science and technology have greatly improved food quality
and quantity, transportation, health, sanitation, and communication.
These benefits of science and technology are not available to
all of the people in the world.
History and Nature of Science (4GHNS)
Science as a human endeavor
4GHNS1.1 Science and technology have been practiced by people
for a long time.
4GHNS1.2 Men and women have made a variety of contributions throughout
the history of science and technology.
4GHNS1.3 Although men and women using scientific inquiry have
learned much about the objects, events, and phenomena in nature,
much more remains to be understood. Science will never be finished.
4GHNS1.4 Many people choose science as a career and devote their
entire lives to studying it. Many people derive great pleasure
from doing science.
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