Week

Content

Skills for Student Achievement

Assessment

Performance Standards Addressed

September

  • Ideas and Inventions 
  • Investigation 1: Rubbings
  • Investigation 2: Carbon Printing
  • Investigate textures which are different surface features of a material
  • Investigate patterns which are different surface features of a material
  • Experiment using  rubbing techniques and carbon-printing to observe things not easily seen
  • Record and compare patterns using rubbing and printing techniques
  • Experiment using the rubbing techniques  to create something
  • Describe that no two people have the same fingerprints
  • Describe how fingerprints can be compared using the whorl, arch, and loop
  • Describe how finger patterns can be used to identify people
  • Experiment using printing techniques to create something new
  • Teacher observation
  • Assessment for inventions
  • Response sheet
  • Student homework assignments

 

4         IV B 1,2

4      II  C 2

 

 

 

 

 

October

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

November

  • Ideas and Inventions (cont.)
  • Investigation 3: Color Writing
  • Investigation 4: Reflecting

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

  • Experiment using chromatography to separate the pigments in ink
  • Experiment using the application of the chromatography technique to create something new
  • Describe how chromatograms can be compared
  • Describe how chromatography can provide evidence to solve a mystery
  • Experiment using  mirrors to observe things in and about the common environment that are not easily seen
  • Describe how mirror images result from light reflected from a surface
  • Describe how mirrors work
  • Determine symmetry in objects and in pictures

 

 

  • Teacher observation
  • Response sheets
  • Assessment Chart
  • Creating an invention assessment
  • End of unit test

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

November

Space Science

  •  How day, night, seasons and the year occur
  • Planetary motion and speed
  • Relative planet sizes and distances from the Sun
  • Basic planetary characteristics
  • Sun as a supplier of heat, light, and food
  • Patterns and movements of celestial objects
  •  
  • Explain how the earth’s rotation results in daylight and nighttime.
  • Create a model to demonstrate how the Earth’s revolution around the Sun and the tilt of the Earth’s axis result in seasonal changes according to Canby’s relative position in the Northern Hemisphere.
  • Identify the orbiting of planets around the Sun and the Moon around the Earth as a result of centrifugal/centripetal forces as caused by gravity and differing masses of planets and stars
  • Explain why a planet’s relative position from the Sun results in a longer year.
  • Identify the planets in the solar system and their relative sizes, distances, and basic characteristics.
  • Name the planets in Earth’s solar system, and identify their relative positions from the Sun.
  • Classify planets as inner planets, outer planets, terrestrial (rocky planets) planets, and gas planets
  • Use scale models or photographs to measure the relative sizes of the solar system planets, and determine a size ratio relative to Earth.
  • Choose a model to represent solar system planets based on size.
  • Observe that the Sun applies heat and light to the Earth.
  • Identify the Sun as the source of heat and light which are essential to plant producers which support our entire food chain.
  • Recognize that the stars in the sky appear to slowly move from east to west.
  • Explain that planets are visible to us when the Sun shines on them, and they appear as wanderers because of their changing position relative to the Earth’s rotation, and as seasonal wanderers relative to their position in orbit around the Sun.
  • Know that Jupiter is visible because of its size, but that it appears at different places in the sky at different times of the year.
  • Identify Venus as the Morning star and the Evening star.
  • Understand that some planets such as Venus and the Moon appear to have phases due to how we view their sunny side or dark side from Earth.
  • Understand that Mercury’s close position to the Sun makes is difficult to see because of the Sun’s bright light.
  • Identify the Sun as an average sized star.  The other stars are so far away that they look like points of light.
  • Identify some basic constellations such as the Big Dipper, Little Dippper, Ursa Major, the North Star, Casseopeia, Pegasus, and Orion.
  • Observe how a star’s location appears to  move seasonally because of the earth’s changing position, and that different stars appear on the horizon at different times of the year due to the tilt of the Earth’s axis.
  • Unit Test
  • Observation Charts
  • Teacher observation of the following activities and discussions:
  • Styrofoam Ball – Earth Sun model
  • Curves
  • Washer on a string
  • Tennis ball/Centripetal force
  • Slinky and Centrifugal force
  • Quicker (Ruler/Clay)
  • Planet research poster/presentation
  • Grid sheet
  • Scale model solar system activity
  • How Old Are You?
  • How Much Do You Weigh?
  •  Cooler
  • Hot box
  • Too Close
  • Solar Matters
  • Growing Global Problem
  • Sun loving plants
  • Charting moon phases
  • Graphing Birthday Moons
  • Star Clock Umbrella
  • Changes (Shows moon’s illumination by Sun
  • Just a Phase
  • Star Charts/Planisphere

 

  •  
  • 3 III B 1.2
  • 3 III C 1,2,3,4
  • 4 III  C 1,2,3

November

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

  • Human Body
  • Investigation 1: Bones
  • Explain that a skeleton is a system of bones
  • Locate and label bones of human skeleton on a model and on a chart
  • Assemble the tagboard bones of a skeleton correctly
  • Examine and sort bones found in owl pellets
  • Reconstruct the skeleton of the rodent
  • Compare human bones to that of an rodent
  • Observe the bone structure and position of the human skeleton and a rodent
  • Teacher observation
  • Response sheet
  • Performance assessment
  • Student sheet
  • Mr. Bones puzzle
  • Diagram of bones from owl pellets
  • Short answer tests
  • Foss end of unit test

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

  • 4 IV A 1,2
  • 4 IV B 1,2
  • 4 IV G 1,2,3
  • 4 IV B
  • 5 IV E  2

December

  • Human Body (continued)
  • Investigation 2: Joints
  • Identify 3 basic kinds of joints
  • Observe joints in hand, elbow, knee, shoulder, hip and foot
  • Experiment with models to study how hinge joints and ball-and-socket joints work differently
  • Describe bone structure and function
  • Experiment with models how to articulate leg and pelvic bones
  • Investigate and determine hand and foot response time

 

 

  • Teacher observation
  • Diagrams and worksheets
  • Graphs and tables
  • Short answer tests
  • Response sheet
  • Performance assessment
  • End of unit test

  

 

January

  • Human Body (continued)
  • Investigation 3: Muscles
  • Describe how muscles move bones
  • Explain where muscles are and what they do
  • Describe basic information about muscles
  • Identify muscles in the arm
  • Experiment with models to study muscle action
  • Teacher observation
  • Response sheet
  • Performance assessment
  • Student sheet

 

February

  • Human Body (continued)
  • Investigation 4: Coordination
  • Define stimulus and response
  • Identify stimuli and responses in a narrative form
  • Independently investigate and research hand and foot response to visual and non-visual stimuli
  • Investigate the effect of practice on response time.
  • Teacher observation
  • Response sheet
  • Performance assessment
  • Student sheet
  • End-of-module assessment

 

March

  • Magnetism and Electricity
  • Investigation 1: The Force
  • Investigation 2:  Making Connections
  • Describe how to induce magnetism
  • Describe the relationship between magnets and iron objects
  • Describe temporary magnets
  • Experiment using magnets the force of attraction between a variety of materials
  • Experiment using model to identify how electricity flows
  • Describe how to a complete circuit works
  • Identify hidden connections
  • Explain bulb and battery circuit
  • State important uses of magnets
  • Acquire vocabulary associated with magnets
  • Experiment to feel how magnets attract and repel through paper or plastic
  • Measure the force of attraction between 2 magnets and graph results
  • Measure the change in force between two magnets as the distance between the magnets increases or decreases
  • Teacher observation
  • Response sheet
  • Graphs and tables
  • Performance assessment
  • Student sheet
  • 4 I A 1
  • 4 I B 2,3
  • 4 I C 1,2,3
  • 4 I E 1,2

April

  • Magnetism and Electricity (continued)
  • Investigation 2:  Making Connections
  • Investigation 3: Advanced Connections
  • Experiment using model to identify how electricity flows in one direction
  • Describe how a complete circuit works
  • Demonstrate the ability of a switch to turn electric current on and off.
  • Demonstrate static electricity
  • Name sources of current electricity and list ways electricity helps us
  • Identify materials that are conductors and insulators
  • Draw pictures and diagrams of parallel / series circuits
  • Demonstrate an electromagnet and explain its usefulness
  • Describe how electricity flows one direction

Describe the flow of electricity through a short circuit

  • Explain the use of a short circuit
  • Describe a complete circuit
  • Experiment using models of series / parallel circuits to create an electric flow
  • Explain the differences between parallel and series circuits

 

  • Teacher observation
  • Response sheet
  • Performance assessment
  • Student sheet
  • End-of-module assessment
  • House model using parallel circuit

 

May

 

  • Physics of Sound

Describe the flow of electricity through a short circuit

  • Explain the use of a short circuit
  • Describe a complete circuit
  • Experiment using models of series / parallel circuits to create an electric flow
  • Explain the differences between parallel and series circuits
  • Observe and compare sounds to develop discrimination ability
  • Communicate with others using a drop code
  • Learn that sound originates from a source that is vibrating and is detected in a receiver such as the human ear
  • Understand the relationship between the pitch of a sound and the physical properties of the sound source
  • Compare methods to amplify sound at the source and at the receiver
  • Observe and compare how sounds travel through solids, liquids, and air

 

Teacher observation

Tests

  • 3 II C. 1

 

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