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Kansas Science Education Standards
Mission Statement
The mission of science education in Kansas is to prepare students as lifelong learners who can use their scientific knowledge education to make reasoned decisions that will be beneficial in their personal, career, commercial, political, and civic activities. All students, regardless of gender, race, religious beliefs, creed, cultural or ethnic background, future aspirations or interest and motivation in science, should have the opportunity to attain high levels of scientific literacy. Science education in Kansas is not to promote one philosophical, religious or world view over another. The goal is "just science in the science classroom."
Dedication
The Kansas Science Education Standards are dedicated to all Kansas students. Our students are the future of Kansas. With this document, we pass on the legacy of our own teachers, who helped us to know that as lifelong learners of science, we can live more productive, responsible, and fulfilling lives.
Purpose of Kansas Science Education Standards
The purpose of this document is to:
These standards, benchmarks, and indicators are designed to assist Kansas public educators in selecting and developing local curricula, carrying out instruction, and making assessments. Also, they will serve as the foundation for the development of state assessments of public school science programs. Finally, these standards, benchmarks, and indicators represent high, yet reasonable, expectations for public school students.
Students may need further support in and beyond the regular classroom to attain these science standards. Teachers and school administrators are encouraged to seek the participation of parents, and other community organizations and members to assist students in working toward meeting or exceeding these science standards.
These standards should not be viewed as a state curriculum nor as requiring a specific local curriculum. These standards should not limit nor curtail the development and inclusion of other topics of science in local curricula. The content embodied in these standards can be organized and presented with many different emphases and perspectives in many different curricula.
Background Information
The original Kansas Curricular Standards for Science were drafted in 1992, approved by the Kansas State Board of Education in 1993, and up-dated in 1995. Although all of this work occurred prior to the release of the National Science Education Standards in 1996, the original Kansas standards reflected early work on the national standards. At the August, 1997 meeting of the Kansas State Board of Education, the Board directed that academic standards committees composed of stakeholders from throughout Kansas should be convened in each curriculum area defined by Kansas law (reading, writing, mathematics, science, and social studies). The National Science Education Standards have been reviewed and used where appropriate.
Acknowledgments
This document was prepared by the Kansas State Board of Education and is based upon recommendations submitted by the Kansas Science Education Standards Writing Committee.
Literature has been reviewed and parts of various documents are included in this document. These documents include: National Science Education Standards published by the National Research Council; Benchmarks for Science Literacy from Project 2061 of the American Association for the Advancement of Science; and Pathways to the Science Standards by National Science Teachers Association . Permission to use specific segments of text in the Kansas Science Education Standards has been requested from the National Research Council, The American Association for the Advancement of Science and the National Science Teachers Association.
Concepts that merit emphasis in the science classroom
Science education tends to teach facts and theories without developing a real understanding of the fundamental principles of science. With these standards, there is a shift in emphasis towards developing understanding. However, it must be stressed that without knowledge of facts and theories, there is no basis for understanding. Conversely, without understanding there is no basis for appreciating science or for making informed decisions based on scientific knowledge. These standards reflect the following emphases:
What is Science?
The word "science" comes from the Latin scientia, meaning knowledge. There are many types of knowledge; religious, philosophical, historical, etc., and in the past science was used to mean any of these kinds of knowledge. Today, however, the word is used to mean a certain kind of knowledge.
A problem with science (knowledge) has always been "How shall we decide whose knowledge to believe". For nearly 2000 years philosophers used various reasoning strategies to arrive at "theories" about nature. The most common of these methods used a priori assumptions and deductive reasoning to arrive at new knowledge. This practice was called "Natural Philosophy" and had the obvious disadvantage of being only as good as the assumptions used in the process. It also had the disadvantage that people with divergent philosophical and religious views started with different assumptions and so could not agree on a basis for their knowledge. Therefore, in the last few hundred years, it has become nearly universally acknowledged that reasoning from a priori assumptions as a method of arriving at knowledge needed to be changed.
Several people, most notably Descartes, Mill, Sir Francis Bacon, and, in this century, Sir Karl Popper, proposed that empirical observations and experiments, and inductive reasoning should replace philosophy as the chief mechanism for certifying the validity of knowledge claims (hypotheses, theories, models, etc.). Although they differed considerably in concept and detail, each of these philosophers of science has emphasized observations, experiments and induction over Natural Philosophy. Even today, it cannot be denied that much of theoretical science differs little from Natural Philosophy and attempts to reason from limited data about the nature of nature. As a result of the ideas of these men and other influential people, coupled with the tremendous explosion in technology in the last 800 years, most lay people today view science as a superior form of knowledge that has, in some manner, been verified. Today, most professional people agree that, to be taught as science, a theory ought to be testable and rigorously verified. The most widely accepted verification strategy is called "The Scientific Method" which is an inductive reasoning strategy that employs experiments and observations designed to, if possible, show that the theory is false. This technique is called "falsification."
Therefore, science is knowledge, but we expect modern scientific explanations to meet certain criteria:
We require that no experiments or observations contradict the theory or show the theory to be false (except obviously those cases where factors irrelevant to the theory caused failure). We expect the theory to be repeatable without successful falsification.
Since science today is defined as empirical and, therefore, inductive, no one can rationally claim that any scientific theory has been certified to be true. If direct tests on the theory have been repeatedly successful, these can and should be reported as lending support to the theory. If direct tests of the theory have not been made, or can not be made, the theory should be referred to as speculation. If tests have been made unsuccessfully and the theory cannot be modified, then the theory should be referred to as unusable.
Even when many apparently successful tests have been made on a theory, however, no one, who understands the nature of empirical science, can honestly claim it to be true; theories can and do change as new evidence becomes available. Students should be called upon to examine, understand, and challenge theories, but not to affirm them. Requiring affirmation only serves to deceive and to retard progress in science.
Areas of Science
Science can be divided into three broad areas that interconnect the traditional disciplines of science. These areas are: Technological, Theoretical and Historical science. Each uses different tools, applies different kinds of reasoning and utilizes different processes. The areas also define different levels of confidence. While there are certainly "gray areas," there is generally a considerable distinction between the three areas.
When applied to the traditional disciplines of science, these areas may apply to the different disciplines in differing degrees. For example: Historical science may apply more to biology, geology and astronomy than it does to the other disciplines. Theoretical science may apply more to chemistry , physics and the earth sciences than to the other disciplines. Technology normally used physics, chemistry and biology in the creation of the technology itself, but then may be used in all of the sciences as tools, i.e. telescopes, microscopes, etc.
The Nature of Technology
Technology is often called "Applied Science," "Engineering," etc., and is actually quite different from theoretical science. It is technology, not theory, that has given us virtually all of what we call "modern conveniences."
There are some "theories" that qualify as technology. For example, the "Second Law of Motion", which postulates the relationship between force, mass and acceleration (f = ma) has been tested so often and found to work in so many practical applications, that many people apply it every day. However, because a theory, in this case the Second Law of Motion," has many successful applications, it does not mean that it is proven or true. Since the acceptance of the Theory of Relativity, the Second Law has been modified dramatically for fast moving particles. Yet, a substantial minority of physicists believe Relativity to be false, and the 2nd Law to be valid even for fast moving particles. Clearly the ideas of both groups cannot be correct, but since Einstein’s theories, even if correct, do not apply in most applications, engineers will continue to successfully build cars and planes using Newton’s equations. The point is that technology will not await the outcome of theoretical debates, though these debates may impact technology at some time.
The distinguishing characteristics of technology are:
The Nature of Theoretical Science
It can be seen from the definition one will find in a dictionary that a theory is never a fact: the word theory, in no way connotes verification, much less does it imply earned acceptance. While this is understood by most people, it is often ignored by textbooks and proponents of theories. Often the phenomenon itself has been so widely observed and tested that it is used in technology, and yet, the explanation (theory) has not been tested, or has been tested very little, and may even have many opponents.
For example, it is known that objects go "down" when released, and heavy things do so with more force than light ones. This knowledge has been applied for all of recorded history. From thrown rocks and cannonballs to waterwheels, all have depended on the "technology" that men know that things that are up tend to go down. The "Law" (actually theory) of Gravity purports to explain why. This theory is not about things going down, it is a speculation, or guess that objects go down because of a unique attractive force between them, that is proportional to their mass and inversely proportional to the square of the distance between them. This theory has been tested very few times, has at least a modest body of evidence against it, and was (and is) not accepted by some notable scientists, e.g., A. Einstein. The important issue under consideration is not whether the "theory of gravity" is true, however, but to acknowledge that the fact that objects tend to go toward the center of nearby masses, is an entirely different idea than a theory about why they do so. Practically no one teaching science makes this distinction between technology (objects fall) and theory (why they fall).
The majority of philosophers of science for over 2000 years have noted that theoretical science is based entirely on inductive reasoning which all have agreed is risky. This remains absolutely true regardless of how much empirical evidence "supports" a theory. If one postulates that all action forces have an equal and opposite reaction ("Third Law of Motion"), the plain fact is that no one person, or group of persons will ever see all action forces. Therefore, it can never be certified absolutely. Moreover, action forces come in many kinds. Even an opponent of the "Third Law of Motion" will never see every action force, and, even worse, no proponent or opponent will likely ever even be aware of every type of action force. Thus, even a staunch opponent may be unsuccessful in proving a false theory to be false.
Often theories have not been exhaustively tested, have known false assumptions and/or known experimental or observational exceptions, are bolstered by ad hoc supplementary theories, and are not commercially successful. Some "theories" may not even be testable.
The distinguishing characteristics of theoretical science are:
origins, natural history, archeology, anthropology)
The Nature of Historical Science
Beliefs about past events, such as the origin of life, the universe, animals, etc., are easy to present using terminology and styles employed in other branches of science. It is easy to attach words like theory, hypothesis, law, model, etc. to any idea, but students should be cautioned that even if such ideas about the past are true, they are not testable using the tools and methods of science because the past is not verifiable, falsifiable, or repeatable. Such statements may come with evidence that is testable, repeatable and falsifiable in the present, but a priori assumptions must always be made to extrapolate that evidence into the past. Therefore such statements, while they may come with some evidence that seems to support them, are not in the same category as statements about the biology of present life forms, or the composition of rocks which can be verified by independent investigators conducting repeatable experiments and observations.
The distinguishing characteristics of historical science are:
The content of historical science has extremely important implications involving where we came from, why we are here, how we should live, and what is our ultimate destiny. These implications rightly cause active debate. This does not mean the issue must be avoided, but does mean the teacher should handle the subject in a responsible manner. It is inappropriate to place such a claim before children, alongside other theories in geology, physics, biology, etc., which are all required to pass rigorous testing.
Kansas Will Not Mandate Belief in Any Origins View. There are two basic origins views; macro-evolution and intelligent design. These views are part of a whole class of Historical theories that do not qualify as empirical science. Origins views cannot be demonstrated, repeated, or falsified and no proof can be advanced that one view is superior to another in ensuring successful research, much less good citizenship. Since no scientific purpose for teaching unproved origins theories can be demonstrated, Kansas will not mandate belief in or understanding of any origins theory. We expect that most teachers will cover one or both of these origins views to some degree within the proper context of historical science. Kansas will not include benchmarks or indicators for either view.
Technological Science
Very few science students will have the luxury, as an adult, of a job where they will be paid to speculate endlessly on the true nature of things. The majority of students taking science courses will either not apply them at all or will apply what they have learned in a field of technology. Employers of people trained in technology are seldom interested in philosophy or speculation about the ultimate nature of things. They want people who know what they are doing, why they are there, and that are capable of producing results. In technological jobs, the students will generally be held accountable for the performance of their ideas. Therefore, most science courses should focus on understanding ideas in science that work, not on speculative theories.
Technology should not be taught as being "true," it should be taught as being something that works. A good practice is to teach it in contrast with alternative technologies; which works best is a particular application.
Theoretical Science
Since science is based on empirical evidence that must be analyzed inductively, and since the cosmos is so vast, so complex and so interrelated, science, especially theoretical science, is now known to be very tentative. Therefore, science teachers should refrain from teaching any "scientific theory" in such a manner as to appear to claim that it were actually true. It is far better to teach the theories as potentially useful ideas, which should be kept in mind when problems arise that seem to be addressed by the theory. A teacher should not teach the students to believe theories, but to test them thoroughly in any specific application where they seem to apply. This is the only way true knowledge can continue to expand.
Given the lack of teaching time and lack of proper data preparation, serious theoretical inquiry should be reserved for academic levels that are scientifically qualified to utilize the intellectual tools of the trade. Presenting complex theories to children who aren’t qualified to examine the assumptions, data, or reasoning, is not education, but proselytizing.
When contrasting technology with theoretical science, teachers should always be aware that technology has been commercially and often legally verified to be viable knowledge (science). Furthermore, and probably of much more importance, technologists are virtually always held accountable for the viability of their "science." Conversely, many very popular theories are poorly tested, or not tested at all, have seldom been commercially and/or legally tested, and proponents of theories are virtually never held legally or financially accountable for positive results. In fact, most proponents of theories are compensated largely proportionally to how many theories they have proposed regardless of whether any merit has been determined.
Historical Science
Theories about the past, regardless of how many scientists endorse them, cannot be subjected to the same rigorous testing standards required of other theories, therefore, they should always be presented more tentatively than other science. In the science classroom, students should not be tested about such theories in a manner that causes the "correct" answer to require an affirmation of the theory. If the teacher or other official feels the subject should be taught, it is quite easy to phrase questions in such a manner as to evaluate understanding of the theory without requiring affirmation. The same degree of skepticism, critique, analysis, and presentation of alternate historical theories should be encouraged as is recommended for all other theories.
It should be obvious from the definitions of "Science" and "Theory," and from reflecting on the fragility of inductive reasoning, that teachers, whether teaching technological, theoretical or historical science, should refrain from making dogmatic statements about theories. It should be equally obvious that public school teachers should refrain from teaching any theory, regardless of how popular, in such a manner as to censor evidence that tends to place the theory in an unfavorable light. Nor can the cause of science or education be served well by censoring, ridiculing or in any other way discouraging students from proposing and defending alternate theories.
Tools, Concepts and Methods of Science
There are a number of tools, concepts and methods that are used across multiple disciplines of science. These tools, concepts and methods are embedded within and across the seven standards listed below. These tools that investigators use in their attempts to understand and explain the cosmos are listed and explained below.
Systems: The natural and designed world is complex; it is too large and complicated to investigate and comprehend all at once. Scientists and students learn to define small portions for the convenience of investigations. The units of investigation can be referred to as systems, where a system is an organized group of related objects or components that form a whole. Systems are categorized as open, closed, or isolated, and can consist of organisms, machines, fundamental particles, galaxies, numbers, and cardiovascular systems. Systems typically have boundaries, components, resources, flow (input and output), and feedback.
Order: Sequential and positional relationships of events and components are often keys to understanding their function and purpose.
Organization: Types and levels of organizations provide useful ways of thinking about the world. Types of organization include the periodic table of elements and the classification of organisms. Physical systems can be described at different levels of organization - such as fundamental particles, atoms, and molecules. Living systems also have different levels of organizations - for example, cells, tissues, organs, organisms, populations, and communities.
Observation: Observation is similar and related to experimentation, but frequently refers to information gathered from careful investigation of existing systems as opposed to contrived events designed to produce observations (experiments). In the scientific method, results of Measurements, Experiments and Observations are evaluated inductively. (See experiments, observations, deduction, or induction below)
Experimentation: Experiments are typically contrived or planned observations. They are important in both acquiring data for learning about natural systems and falsifying (verify) theories.
Measurement: Measurements are planned observations, using accepted conventions, to describe properties of objects and systems. Examples of measurements are dimensions, velocity, acceleration, mass and weight. It is extremely difficult to draw detailed conclusions about systems without measurement.
Evidence: Evidence consists of information collected from experiments, observations, measurements, etc. on which scientific explanations are based. Using evidence to understand interactions helps investigators to predict changes in natural and designed systems.
Change: Change is an observed characteristic of the cosmos that all human observers must recognize in order to understand or formulate theories about the properties of systems and objects. In order even to begin scientific investigation, one must understand that "change" is universally understood as an effect produced by adequate causes. The entire fabric of science depends upon recognition of this simple fact. The most common purpose of scientific investigation is to understand the causes of observed change. The campaign to promote change to a cause should be resolutely resisted by teachers and students.
Constancy: Most things in the cosmos are subject to forces and processes that result in change, some properties of objects and processes are currently understood to be constant (e.g., speed of light, charge of an electron, total mass and energy in the universe). Students should realize that constancy is itself a theory reinforced by experiment, observation and induction. It is verified only within the context of current technology of measurement.
Equilibrium: A physical state in which forces and changes occur in opposite and offsetting directions, such as opposite forces at the same magnitude, or offsetting changes occurring at equal rates is called equilibrium. Steady state, balance, and homeostasis also describe equilibrium states. Interacting units of matter tend toward equilibrium states in which the energy is distributed as randomly and uniformly as possible.
Deductive Reasoning: Deduction is the reasoning process that draws conclusions about the small piece from beliefs about the whole. Deduction is a valid tool in science and math. All the theorems of Plane Geometry, for example, are proved to be true using mathematical deduction. In science it is used especially in technology where general principles are applied to specific problems. However, it should be remembered that any deduction, typically expressed as an equation, may appear more impressive than it actually is. Since in natural science all general principles are derived by experimentation/observation and induction, all deduction is based either on assumption, induction or both. Therefore, no matter how elegant, deduction cannot be any better than the data and inductive reasoning that furnished the general principle.
Inductive Reasoning: Inductive reasoning is the basis for scientific inquiry. Measurements, experiments and observations do not formulate or verify theories! The results of these activities must be evaluated by human reasoning. In trying to understand nature, man must cope with the reality that nature is extremely large and complex. Man can never put nature in a laboratory and make it perform for him. He must use Induction. Induction is a reasoning strategy intended to allow man to draw conclusions about nature without depending on "a priori" assumptions and rigorous deductive logic. Using induction, the scientist examines the small piece and draws conclusions about the whole.
Explanations: Theories, Models, Hypotheses and Laws. Theories, models, hypotheses and laws are attempts by man to explain the content and or behavior of objects and systems. These scientific explanations incorporate existing scientific knowledge that consists of observations and data from experiments. These explanations are tentative schemes or structures that correspond to real objects, events, or classes of events. Models may be used by theoretical scientists to describe their theories or as alternate titles for their theories. Models are frequently used by engineers and applied scientists in simulating designs and processes. These Models may take many forms, including physical objects, engineering designs, mathematical equations, and computer simulations that incorporate scientific theories which have been rigorously verified to the extent that they are widely accepted as laws.
Paradigm A paradigm is a philosophical framework under which people make personal and scientific judgments and assessments. It is the framework within which data and observations are interpreted. Explanations and interpretation of observations and data are always biased by the paradigm under which the observer is operating. Paradigms are generally outside of empirical verification.
Overview:
The Kansas Science Education Standards are divided into seven areas called "standards". These standards are general statements of what students should know, understand, and be able to do in the natural sciences over the course of their K-12 education. These standards are:
The traditional subject matter disciplines of science (biology, physics, chemistry, etc.) are embedded within the context of the seven standards. The standards are interwoven ides, however, not separate entities, and should be taught as interwoven ideas. These standards are clustered for grade levels K-2, 3-4, 5-8, and 9-12.
Science as Inquiry:
Inquiry is central to science learning and to the science progress. When engaging in inquiry, students describe objects and events, ask questions, construct explanations, test those explanations against current scientific knowledge, and communicate their ideas to others. They identify assumptions, use critical and logical thinking, identify faulty reasoning and consider alternative explanations. In this way, students actively develop an understanding of science by combining scientific knowledge with reasoning and thinking skills. As a result of such experiences, students will be empowered to add to the growing body of scientific knowledge. Every innovation in the history of science has required that the then currently popular theories be challenged and then over thrown. Therefore, the skills learned in inquiry should not be limited to the experiments that the students do in the classroom. In addition, students will learn to identify the assumptions that underlie the hypotheses, theories and laws taught to them in the classroom.
Physical Science:
Physical science encompasses the traditional disciplines of physics and chemistry. Students should develop an understanding of physical science including: properties, changes of properties of matter, motion and force, velocity, structure of atoms, chemical reactions, and the interaction of energy and matter.
Life Science:
Students will develop an understanding of biological concepts. Students should learn: the characteristics of life, the needs of living organisms, their life cycles, their habitats, the molecular basis of heredity, and reproduction. They should also learn how organisms interact with their environment, energy transfer from the sun and through the environmental system, the chemical basis for life and behavior of organisms. Students should be able to apply process skills to explore and demonstrate an understanding of the structure and function in living systems, heredity, regulation and behavior, and ecosystems.
Life Science is interactive with Physical Science, Earth and Space Science and Science In Personal and Environmental Perspectives. Students should be able to demonstrate an understanding of the interrelationship between these standards.
Earth and Space Science:
While Earth and Space Science encompasses the traditional disciplines of geology and astronomy and the basic subject matter of these disciplines will be taught, it also includes interactive elements with the Life Sciences, the Physical Sciences, Technology and the environment. Students will develop and understanding of the Earth system, the solar system and the cosmos.
Technology:
There is a strong motivation for theoreticians to claim credit for technology, but history clearly records that theory played little positive role in the advance of technology. While it can be argued that theory occasionally helps the progress of technology, it is easy to demonstrate from any history of inventions that wide acceptance of currently popular theory generally retarded rather helped technology, often by many centuries. Science teachers should not fall into the error of misleading students by confusing, or, in any way equating, theoretical science with technology. Students will learn about technology in their world and the world of the past.
Science In Personal and Environmental Perspectives:
Students will learn about personal and community health and hygiene. Students should develop an appreciation and understanding of personal and community health, population growth, natural resources, environmental quality, natural and human-induced hazards and improvements, and technological implications in environmental quality. All students should be able to research and assess prevailing environmental and personal health issues and develop a rational understanding of man’s relationship to the environment. (See Appendix 2)
History and Nature of Science:
Understanding the nature of science is fundamental to scientific learning. Students will learn to distinguish between science and other forms of knowledge such as philosophy and religion. Science uses observation, experimentation, logical argument and skepticism in formulating scientific explanations for the world around us. These explanations must be testable, repeatable, falsifiable and not based upon authority: it must be open to criticism. It is also important that students learn to distinguish between scientific information (data), scientific explanations (theories, hypotheses, etc.) and the scientific method (the process of arriving at and verifying scientific explanations). Students should learn the applications and limits of science and the inductive and deductive reasoning processes that underlies science.
Learning the history of scientific thought and the people behind it will give the student an appreciation of science and an understanding of why science is defined as it is. The student should learn the evolution of scientific thought.
For the purposes of clarity, if the various disciplines are viewed with the areas of science, it would look like the following matrix. Arguments can be made that the physical sciences would utilize a great amount of theoretical science and little historical; the earth and space sciences would utilize a great amount of historical science, moderate amount of theoretical and little technological.
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Science in Personal and Environmental Perspectives |
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Benchmarks, Indicators and Examples
Each standard contains a series of benchmarks, which describe what students should be able to do at the end of a certain point in their education (e.g., grade 2, 4, 8, 10). Each benchmark contains a series of indicators, which identify what it means for students to meet a benchmark. Indicators are frequently followed by examples, which are specific, concrete ideas.
Benchmarks: are specific statements of what students should know and be able to do at a specified point in their schooling. Benchmarks are used to measure students’ progress toward meeting a standard. In the Kansas Science Education Standards, benchmarks are defined for grades 2, 4, 8 and 10.
Indicators: are statements of the knowledge skills which students demonstrate in order to meet a benchmark. Indicators are critical to understanding the benchmarks and standards and are to be met by all students. The set of indicators listed under each benchmark is not listed in priority order nor should the list be considered as all inclusive. The list of indicators and examples should be considered as representative, but not as comprehensive or all-inclusive.
Examples: are specific, concrete instances of ideas or activities of what is called for by an indicator. Like the indicators themselves, examples are considered to be representative, but not comprehensive or all-inclusive.
By The End Of SECOND GRADE
STANDARD 1: SCIENCE AS INQUIRY
As a result of the activities for grades K-2, all students should begin to develop an understanding of the steps and tools used in doing scientific inquiry.
Benchmark 1: All students will begin to develop abilities necessary to do scientific inquiries. Not every activity will involve all of the steps of scientific inquiry nor must any particular sequences of these steps be followed. Inquiry involves asking a simple question, completing an investigation, answering the question, and presenting the results to others.
Indicators: The students will:
4 1. Identify characteristics of objects.
Example: State characteristics of leaves, shells, water, and air.
4 2. Classify and arrange groups by a variety of characteristics.
Example: Group seeds by color, texture, size; group objects by whether they float or sink; group rocks by texture, color, and hardness.
4 3. Use appropriate materials and tools to collect information.
Example: Uses magnifiers, balances, scales, thermometers measuring cups, and spoons.
4. Ask and answer questions about objects, organisms, and events in their environment.
Example: The student will ask, "What must I do to balance an object on my finger?"
Example: The student will ask "Which parts of a fish and a bird are the same" and "which parts are different." Why are the different parts important for each organism?
5. Describe an observation orally or pictorially.
Example: Draw pictures of plant growth on a daily basis; note color, number of leaves.
Example: Tell how a clam shell found along a creek bank looks like a fossil clam shell.
By The End Of SECOND GRADE
STANDARD 2: PHYSICAL SCIENCE
As a result of the activities in grades K-2, all students should be encouraged to explore the world by observing and manipulating common objects and materials in their environment.
Benchmark 1: All students will begin to develop abilities to describe objects.
All students will begin to compare, describe, and sort objects.
Indicators: The students will:
4 1. Observe properties and measure those properties using age appropriate tools and materials.
Example: Compare size, weight, shape, color and temperature of objects.
4 2. Describe objects by the materials from which they are made.
Example: Compare materials made from wood, metal and cloth.
4 3. Separate or sort a group of objects of materials.
Example: Compare shapes, sizes, weights and color of objects.
4 4. Compare solids and liquids.
Example: Compare the properties of water with the properties of wood.
By The End Of SECOND GRADE
STANDARD 3: LIFE SCIENCE
As a result of the activities for grades K-2, all students will begin to develop an understanding of biological concepts.
Benchmark 1: All students will develop an understanding of the characteristics of living things.
Through direct experiences, students will observe living things, their life cycles, and their habitats.
Indicators: The student will:
4 1. Discuss that living things need air, water, and food.
Example: What children need…what plants need…what animals need.
Example: Butterflies, meal worms, plants and humans.
3. Observe living things in various environments.
Example: Classroom plants, nature walks in your own area, various field trips, terrariums, aquariums.
4 4. Examine the characteristics of living things.
Example: Butterflies have wings. Plants may have leaves and roots. People have skin and hair.
By The End Of SECOND GRADE
STANDARD 4: EARTH AND SPACE SCIENCE
As a result of the activities for grades K-2, all students should be encouraged to observe closely the objects and materials in their environment.
Benchmark 1: All students will begin to describe properties of Earth materials.
Earth materials may include rock, soil, air and water.
Indicators: The student will:
4 1. Group Earth materials.
Example: Describe and compare soils by color and texture, sort pebbles and rocks by size, shape and color.
4 2. Describe where earth materials are found.
Example: Around the playground, on a field trip, in their own yard.
Benchmark 2: All students will observe and compare objects in the sky.
The sun, moon, stars, birds and other objects such as airplanes have properties that can be observed and compared.
Indicators: The student will:
1. Distinguish between manmade and non-manmade objects in the sky.
Example: Birds vs. Airplanes.
Example: Observe day and night sky regularly.
4 3. Describe that the sun provides light and warmth.
Example: Feel heat from the sun on the face and skin. Observe shadows.
Benchmark 3: All students will begin to describe changes in the weather.
Weather includes snow, rain, sleet, wind and violent storms.
Indicators: The student will:
1. Observe changes in the weather from day to day.
Example: Draw pictures
Example: Weather charts, calendars and logs.
By The End Of SECOND GRADE
STANDARD 5: TECHNOLOGY
As a result of the activities for grades K-2, all students should have a variety of educational experiences that involve technology. As can be seen in the following sections, the benchmarks are developed in greater depth in subsequent grades as students’ interests develop.
Benchmark 1: All students will learn about technology in the world around them.
Indicators: The students will:
1. Explore the way things work.
Example: Observe the inner workings of toys, clocks, telephones, toasters, music boxes, magnetic compass and measuring tools such as tape measure, spirit level and spring scale.
4 2. Experience science through technology.
Example: Analyze balances, electronic and liquid filled thermometers, hand lenses and bug viewers.
Example: Explore simple machines, i.e., wedge, lever and wheel, and their combinations, ramp, screw, pulley, roller and axle in the classroom.
By The End Of SECOND GRADE
STANDARD 6: SCIENCE IN PERSONAL AND ENVIRONMENTAL PERSPECTIVES
As a result of the activities for grades K-2, all students should have a variety of experiences that provide initial understanding for various science-related environmental challenges.
This standard should be integrated with physical science, life science and earth & space science standards.
Benchmark 1: All students will begin to understand that they have some responsibility for their own health.
Health encompasses safety, personal hygiene, exercise and nutrition.
Indicators: The student will:
1. Discuss that safety and security are basic human needs.
Example: Traffic signals, crosswalks and not talking to strangers.
2. Discuss weather safety procedures.
Example: Practice tornado drill procedures, talk about the danger of lightning and flooding.
3. Engage in personal care.
Example: Washing hands, brushing teeth, wearing appropriate clothing, taking baths, being careful what is put in one’s mouth.
4. Discuss healthy foods.
Example: Cut out pictures of foods and sort into healthy and not healthy groups.
By The End Of SECOND GRADE
STANDARD 7: HISTORY AND THE NATURE OF SCIENCE
As a result of the activities for grades K-2, all students will begin to be aware of science as being empirical in nature. Students will learn about people in science from history.
This standard should be integrated with physical science, life science and earth & space science standards.
Benchmark 1: All students will begin to learn the empirical nature of science.
Indicators: The student will:
4 1. Use their senses to see what happens when they do an experiment.
Examples: Place a banana or an orange (with and without the skin) or crayon in water. Hold an M&M or a chocolate chip or a raisin in one hand. See what happens when you rub your hands together very fast.
2. Learn about people in science.
Examples: Short stories, films, videos and parents who are involved in science.
By The End Of FOURTH GRADE
STANDARD 1: SCIENCE AS INQUIRY
As a result of the activities for grades 3-4, students should develop the abilities necessary to do scientific inquiry.
Benchmark 1: All students will continue to develop the abilities necessary to do scientific inquiry. However, not every activity will involve all of the steps of scientific inquiry nor must any particular sequences of these steps be followed. Students will ask questions that can be investigated using scientific inquiry, design experiments that will answer these questions and perform the investigations. Students should ask "What could prove the experiment to be wrong?"
Indicators: The students will:
4 1. Ask questions that they can answer by scientific investigation.
Example: Will oil and water mix? How much water will a sponge hold?
Example: What happens when an acid (vinegar) and a base (baking soda) is mixed? How long will it react?
4 2. Plan and conduct a simple investigation.
Example: Design a test of the wet strength of paper towels; experiment with plant growth; experiment to find ways to prevent soil erosion.
4 3. Employ appropriate equipment and tools to gather data.
Example: Use a balance to find the mass of the wet paper towel, meter sticks to measure length of the room, our height, arm span.
4 4. Begin developing the abilities to communicate, critique, and analyze their own investigations and interpret the work of other students.
Example: Describe investigations with pictures, written language, oral presentations.
By The End Of FOURTH GRADE
STANDARD 2: PHYSICAL SCIENCE
As a result of the activities in grades 3-4, all students will compare, describe and sort as they begin to form explanations of the world.
Benchmark 1: All students will develop abilities to describe objects.
Through observation, manipulation and classification of common objects, children reflect on the similarities and differences of the objects.
Indicators: The student will:
4 1. Observe properties and measure those properties using appropriate tools.
Example: Observe the size, weight, shape, color and temperature of objects using balances, thermometers and other measurement tools.
4 2. Describe objects by the materials from which they are made.
Example: Separate or sort a group of objects by the materials from which they are made.
4 3. Describe objects by more than one property.
Example: Observe that an object could be hard, round and rough.
4 4. Observe and record how one object reacts with another object or substance.
Example: Mix baking soda and vinegar and observe how the mixture fizzes.
4 5. Recognize the difference between solids and liquids.
Example: Observe differences between ice as a solid and water as a liquid.
Benchmark 2: All students will manipulate and describe the movement of objects.
When students describe and manipulate objects, they also begin to focus on position and movement of objects.
Indicators: The students will:
1. Move objects by pushing, pulling, throwing, spinning, dropping and rolling.
Example: Spin a top; roll a ball.
4 2. Demonstrate locations of objects.
Example: Describe locations as up, down, in front or behind.
Benchmark 3: All students will begin to recognize and demonstrate what makes sounds.
The concept of sound is very abstract. However, by investigating a variety of sounds made by common objects, students can form a connection between sounds the objects make and the materials from which the objects are made. Plastic objects make a different sound than do wooden objects.
Indicators: The student will:
1. Discriminate between sounds made by different objects.
Example: Listen to drums, other musical instruments, cans, gourds, plastic spoons, pennies, plastic disks and compare the sounds they make.
Benchmark 4: All students will experiment with electricity and magnetism.
Repeated activities involving simple electrical circuits can help students develop the concept that electrical circuits require a complete loop through which an electric current can pass. Magnets attract and repel each other and certain kinds of other materials.
Indicators: The student will:
4 1. Construct a simple circuit.
Example: Use a battery, bulb and a wire to light a bulb; make a motor run; produce sound; make an electromagnet.
4 2. Demonstrate that magnets attract and repel.
4 3. Design a simple experiment to determine whether various objects will be attracted to magnets.
By The End Of FOURTH GRADE
STANDARD 3: LIFE SCIENCE
As a result of the activities for grades 3-4, all students will build an understanding of biological concepts through direct experience with living things, their life cycles, and their habitats.
Benchmark 1: All students will develop a knowledge of organisms in their environment.
The study of organisms should include observations and interactions within the natural world of the child.
Indicators: The Students will:
4 1. Compare and contrast structural characteristics and functions of different organisms.
Example: Compare a meal worm to a guppy, compare a bean seed to a corn seed.
4 2. Compare basic needs of different organisms in their environment.
Example: Fish live in water compared to birds that do not.
3. Discuss ways humans and other organisms use their senses in their environments.
Example: Food getting, shelter, defense.
Benchmark 2: All students will observe and illustrate the life cycles of various organisms.
Plants and animals have life cycles that have different beginnings, maturing into adults, reproducing, and eventually dying.
Indicators: The Students will:
4 1. Compare, contrast, and ask questions about the life cycles of various organisms.
Example: Seed to seedling to plant; larva to pupa to adult.
By The End Of FOURTH GRADE
STANDARD 4: EARTH AND SPACE SCIENCE
As a result of the activities for grades 3-4, all students will be encourages to observe closely the objects, materials, and changes in their environment, note their properties, distinguish one from another, and develop their own explanations of how things become the way they are which are consistent with observations.
Benchmark 1: All students will develop an understanding of the properties of earth materials.
Earth materials may include rock, soil, and water. Playgrounds or parks are convenient study sites to observe.
Indicators: The students will:
1. Observe a variety of earth materials in their environment.
Examples: Rocks, soil, sand, air, and water.
4 2. Collect, observe, and become aware of properties of various soils.
Example: Students could bring in samples of soils from their surroundings and observe color, texture, and reaction to water.
4 3. Experiment with a variety of soils.
Example: By planting seeds in a variety of soil samples, students can compare the effect of different soils on plant growth.
4 4. Describe properties of many different kinds of rocks.
Example: Bring rocks from the playground, immerse in water, and observe color, texture, and reaction to liquids.
5. Observe fossils and discuss how fossils provide evidence of plants and animals that lived in the past.
Example: Provide a variety of fossils for observation. Discuss how fossils are formed; how long it takes an organism to decay or to be scavenged; how long it takes an organism to be fossilized; whether or not all fossilized organisms were dead at the time of burial (i.e. closed clam fossils).
Benchmark 2: All students will be guided to observe and describe objects in the sky.
The sun, moon, stars, clouds, birds, and other objects such as airplanes have properties that can be observed and compared.
Indicators: The students will:
1. Observe the moon and stars.
Example: Sketch the position of the moon in relation to a tree, rooftop, or building.
2. Observe and compare the length of shadows.
Example: Students can observe the movement of an object’s shadow during the course of a day, or construct simple sundials.
4 3. Discuss that the sun provides light and heat to maintain the temperature of the earth.
Example: When on the playground and the sun goes behind a cloud, discuss why it seems cooler.
Benchmark 3: all students will develop an ability to describe changes in the earth and weather.
If the students revisit a study site regularly, they will develop an understanding that the earth’s surface and weather are constantly changing.
Indicators: The students will:
4 1. Describe changes in the surface of the earth.
Example: Students will observe erosion and changes in plant growth at a study site.
4 2. Observe, describe, and record daily and seasonal weather changes.
Example: Write observations on a calendar or a log.
By The End Of FOURTH GRADE
STANDARD 5: TECHNOLOGY
As a result of the activities for grades 3-4, all students will have a variety of educational experiences that involve technology. They will begin to understand the design process, as well as develop the ability to solve simple design problems that are appropriately challenging for their developmental level. To do this, the student should understand applications for fasteners, adhesives, sealants, and which ones are appropriate with different materials. For example nails work well in wood, but are not to be used with metal, or brittle materials like glass.
Benchmark 1: All students will begin to develop the ability to apply technology to solve problems.
Problem solving should occur within the setting of the home and school.
Indicators: The students will:
4 1. Identify a simple problem; design an approach/plan; implement the plan; solve and check for reasonableness and communicate the results.
Example: Compare two types of string to see which is best for lifting different objects; design the best paper airplane, helicopter, or terrarium; design a simple system to hold two objects together.
Benchmark 2: All students will begin to develop an understanding about technology.
Children’s abilities in technological problem solving can be developed by firsthand experience in tackling tasks with a technological purpose. They also can study technological products and systems in their world: zippers, coat hooks, can openers, ten-speed bicycles and automobiles. Observe the basic mechanisms apparent in the former examples, and find these mechanisms in other technological products such as locomotives, planes, and ships.
Indicators: The students will:
4 1. Discuss the scientific method as a way of investigating questions about their world.
Example: How does a zipper work? Does the same process repeat every time it is performed. How does a can opener work? What simple machines are applied in these everyday mechanisms?
4 2. Invent a product to solve problems around the home, classroom or office.
Example: Invent a new use for old products; potato masher, strainer, carrot peeler. Use a juice can to invent something useful.
3. Understand the principle of mechanical advantage as applied to simple hand tools. Show how these are applied in daily experience.
4. Investigate tools found in the kitchen and workshop. Sort each device into categories of wedge, lever, wheel, impact, and momentum.
5. Investigate how scientists use specialized and ordinary tools to observe and measure the world of nature about them.
Examples: Research on the Internet; interview the weatherman; research in the library; call or visit a laboratory.
Benchmark 3: All students will begin to distinguish between natural and human made objects.
Some patterns occur in nature; others have been designed and made by people to solve human problems and enhance the quality of life.
Indicators: The student will:
4 1. Compare, contrast, and sort designed versus random objects.
Example: Real flowers vs. Silk flowers; hexagonal honeycombs in: beehives, aircraft wings, and athletic shoes; geometric spirals in: sunflower seed heads, and multiple eyes of flies; lenses in: hand magnifier, eyes of mammals and birds, and cameras and projector lenses.
4 2. Use appropriate tools when observing natural and man-made objects.
Example: A microscope, hand magnifier, telephoto camera lens or astronomical telescope, all use lenses to measure and examine different things. It is important to use the right tool for the scale and scope of the item to be measured.
3. Ask questions about natural or man-made objects and discuss the reasoning behind their answers.
Example: The teacher will ask, "Is this a man-made object? Why do you think so?"
By The End Of FOURTH GRADE
STANDARD 6: SCIENCE IN PERSONAL AND ENVIRONMENTAL PERSPECTIVES
As a result of the activities for grades 3-4, all students will learn about personal health and hygiene as well as environmental knowledge.
Benchmark 1: All students will develop basic understanding of physiology and health.
Health involves physical well being, including hygienic practices, and proper nutrition.
Indicators: The students will:
4 1. Discuss that safety involves precautions against danger, risk or injury.
Example: Classroom discussions could include bike safety, water safety, weather safety, sun protection.
4 2. Assume some responsibility for their own health.
Example: Dental hygiene, cleanliness, and exercise
4 3. Discuss how various foods contribute to health.
Example: Discuss healthy foods, make a healthy snack. Compare nutrition information on food labels to determine how healthy it is.
Benchmark 2: all students will demonstrate an awareness of changes of environmental homeostasis.
Through classroom discussions, students can begin to recognize environmental processes.
Indicators: The students will:
4 1. Define pollution. Identify the various sources of environmental pollutants, both natural and human.
Example: Take two pollution walks, gathering examples of litter and trash on a street as well as leaves, droppings, conifer fronds and humus in the park or woods.
4 2. Develop personal actions to reduce playground pollution.
Example: After the pollution walk, children could develop a playground cleanliness policy.
By The End Of FOURTH GRADE
STANDARD 7: HISTORY AND THE NATURE OF SCIENCE
As a result of the activities for grades 3-4, students will learn that science is testable, repeatable and has limits. Students will be able to determine the difference between data, explanations and the scientific method and students will learn about people in science.
Experiences of investigating and thinking about explanations, not memorization, will provide fundamental ideas about the history and nature of science. This standard should be integrated with physical science, and earth & space science standards.
Benchmark 1: Students will perform testable and repeatable experiments.
Indicators: The students will:
4 1. Ask a question that can be answered by scientific experiment and do an experiment that will answer the question. Then repeat the experiment to see if they can get the same results.
Examples: What will happen if a plant is under light for different lengths of time? What will happen if the length or width of the wing of a paper airplane is changed? What will happen if vinegar is dropped on different kinds of rocks?
4 2. Discover that science has limits because a universal negative cannot be proven.
Example: Try to prove that dinosaurs are extinct. Show examples of living fossils. Read a book about the Loch Ness Monster and discuss it in class.
Benchmark 2: Determine the difference between data, explanations and the scientific method.
Indicators: The student will:
4 1. Gather data and develop an explanation about the results of the experiment. Tell what is data, what is the explanation and what was the method.
Examples: The amount of growth of a plant is the data. An explanation might be that more light and the nature of the plant caused more growth and the scientific method is doing the repeatable and testable experiment and developing the explanation.
Benchmark 3: Learn about people in science.
Indicators: The students will:
4 1. Learn about the contributions people have made to science.
Examples: Short stories, films, videos, and speakers.
By The End Of EIGHTH GRADE
STANDARD 1: SCIENCE AS INQUIRY
As a result of activities in grades 5-8, all students should develop the abilities to do scientific inquiry and be able to demonstrate how scientific inquiry is applied.
Benchmark 1: Demonstrate abilities necessary to do the processes of scientific inquiry.
Students should develop the skills of investigation and the understanding that scientific inquiry is guided by knowledge, observations, questions, and a design which identifies and controls variables to gather evidence to formulate an answer to the original question. Students are to be provided opportunities to engage in full and partial inquiries in order to develop the skills of inquiry.
Teachers can facilitate success by allowing students to choose interesting questions, monitor design plans, provide relevant examples of effective observation and organization strategies and by checking and improving skills in the use of instruments, technology and techniques. Students at the middle level need guidance in identifying assumptions and paradigms, using evidence to build explanations, inference, and models, guidance to think critically and logically, and to make the relationships between evidence and explanations.
Indicators: The students will:
7 1. Identify questions that can be answered through scientific investigations.
Example: Explore properties and phenomena of materials, such as a balloon, string, straw, and tape and generate questions to investigate.
7 2. Design and conduct a scientific investigation.
Example: Students design and conduct an investigation on the question, "Which paper towel absorbs the most?" Materials include different kinds of paper towels, water, and a measuring cup. Components of the investigation should include background and hypothesis, identification of independent variables, dependent variable, constants, list of materials, procedures, collection and analysis data, and conclusions.
7 3. Use appropriate tools, mathematics, technology, and techniques to gather, analyze and interpret data.
Example: Given an investigative question, students determine what to measure, how to measure, display results in graph or other graphic format.
7 4. Think critically to make the relationships between evidence and logical conclusions.
Example: Students check data to determine: Was the question answered? Was the hypothesis supported/not supported? Did this design work? How could this experiment be improved? What other questions could be investigated?
7 5. Apply mathematical reasoning to scientific inquiry.
Examples: Look for patterns from the mean of multiple trials, such as rate of dissolving relative to different temperatures. Use observations for inductive and deductive reasoning, such as explaining a person’s energy level after a change in eating habits (i.e. use Likert-type scale). State relationships in data, such as variables which vary directly or inversely.
7 6. Identify assumptions used in the reasoning process
Example: Is there a statement that must be true to arrive at the explanation.
7 7. Communicate scientific procedures and explanations.
Example: Present a report of your investigation so that others understand it and can replicate the design.
Benchmark 2: Apply different kinds of investigations to different kinds of questions.
Some investigations involve observing and describing objects, organisms or events. Investigations can also involve collecting specimens, experiments, seeking more information, discovery of new objects and phenomena, and creating models to explain the phenomena. Instructional activities of scientific inquiry need to engage students in identifying and shaping questions for investigations. Different kinds of questions suggest different kinds of investigations.
To help focus, students need to frame questions such as "What do we want to find out about?" "How can we make the most accurate observations?" "If we do this, then what do we expect will happen?" Students need instruction to develop the ability to refine and refocus broad and ill-defined questions.
Indicators: The students will:
7 1. Differentiate between a qualitative and a quantitative investigation
Example: Observe a decomposing compost pile and consider the questions to be asked. Decide which questions lead toward the collection of quantitative and/or qualitative data. Explain how to collect quantitative and qualitative data?
Example: Each student designs a question to investigate. Class analyzes all questions to classify as qualitative or quantitative. After reading a science news article, identify variables and write a qualitative and/or quantitative investigative question related to the topic of the article.
10 2. Develop questions and adapt the inquiry process to guide an investigation.
Example: Adapt an existing lab or activity to: write a different question, identify another variable, and/or adapt the procedure to guide a new investigation.
Benchmark 3: Analyze how science advances through new ideas, scientific investigations, skepticism, and examining evidence of varied explanations.
Scientific investigations often times result in new ideas and phenomena for study. These generate new investigations in the scientific community. Science advances through skepticism. Asking questions and querying other scientist’s explanations is part of scientific inquiry. Scientists evaluate the proposed explanations by examining and comparing evidence, identifying faulty reasoning, and suggesting other alternatives.
Much time can be spent asking students to scrutinize evidence and explanations, but to develop critical thinking skills students must be allowed this time. Data can be reviewed and compared with other data providing insights beyond the original investigation. This teaching and learning strategy allows students to discuss, debate, question, explain, clarify, compare, and propose new thinking through social discourse. Students will apply this strategy to their own investigations and to current scientific theories.
Indicators: The students will:
7 1. After doing an investigation, generate alternative methods of investigation and/or further questions for inquiry.
Example: Ask "What would happen if..?" questions to generate new ideas for investigation.
10 2. Determine evidences which support/deny a scientific theory/hypothesis.
Example: Review the traditional explanation for stratified rocks and analyze the evidence. Review other sources for information that will support or deny the explanation [polystrate fossils, turbidity currents].
10 3. Identify faulty reasoning of conclusions which go beyond evidence and/or are not supported by data in a current scientific hypothesis or theory.
Example: Analyze hypotheses about characteristics of and extinction of dinosaurs. Identify the assumptions behind the hypothesis and show the weaknesses in the reasoning that led to the hypothesis.
Example: Analyze hypotheses about why we still see short period comets [Oort cloud]. Identify the assumptions used to arrive at the hypothesis. Examine and list the evidence. Is the hypothesis reasonable based on the evidence?
Example: Examine several methods for determining the age of the earth, the earth moon system or the solar system such as: helium in the atmosphere, the moon receding from the earth, the shrinking sun and radiometric dating. Compare the answers with the current accepted age of the earth.
10 4. Suggest alternative explanations to scientific hypotheses or theories.
Example: At least some stratified rocks may have been laid down quickly.
By The End Of EIGHTH GRADE
STANDARD 2: PHYSICAL SCIENCE
As a result of activities in grades 5-8, all students should be able to apply process skills to develop an understanding of physical science including: properties, changes of properties of matter, motion and forces, and transfer of energy.
Benchmark 1: Observe, compare and classify properties of matter.
Substances have characteristic properties. Substances often are placed in categories if they react or act in similar ways. An example of a category is metals. There are more than 100 known elements that combine in a multitude of ways to produce compounds, which account for the living and non-living substances we encounter. Middle level students have the capability of understanding relationships among properties of matter. For example, they are able to understand that density is a ratio of mass to volume, boiling point is affected by atmospheric pressure and solubility is dependent on pressure and temperature.
These relationships are developed by concrete activities that involve hands-on manipulation of apparatus, making quantitative measurements, and interpreting data using graphs. It is important to connect characteristics of matter to common experiences so that concepts can be reconstructed. Some relevant questions, are: "What happens in a pressure cooker?" "Why does adding oil to boiling rice and pasta keep it from boiling over?" "What is in antifreeze and how does it keep your radiator from freezing?" "Why do bridges have metal expansion joints?"
Indicators: The student will:
7 1. Explore properties of matter, including phases of matter, boiling point, solubility and density.
Examples: Measure and graph the boiling point temperature for several different liquids. Graph the cooling curve of a freezing ice cream mixture. Observe substances that dissolve (sugar) and substances that do not dissolve (sand).
7 2. Distinguish components of various types of mixtures by using the characteristic properties of each original substance.
Examples: Separate alcohol and water using distillation. Separate sand, iron filings and salt using a magnet and dissolving in water. Observe properties of kitchen powders (baking soda, salt, sugar, flour). Mix in various combinations, then identify by properties.
10 3. Categorize chemicals based on common properties.
Examples: Create operational definitions of metals and nonmetals and classify by observable chemical and physical properties.
Benchmark 2: Observe, explore and infer changes in properties of matter.
Substances react chemically in characteristic ways with other substances to form new substances (compounds) with different characteristic properties. Middle level students have the capability of inferring characteristics that are not directly observable. Students must state their reasons for inferring unobserved characteristics and what the characteristics are based upon. Students need opportunities to form relationships between what they can see and inferences of characteristics of matter and determine if these inferred characteristics always perform as indicated.
We cannot always see the products of chemical reactions, so the teacher can provide opportunities for the student to measure reactants and products to build the concept of conservation of mass. "Is mass lost when baking soda (solid) and vinegar (liquid) react to produce a gas?" "How could we design an experiment which would (safely) contain the reaction in a closed container in order to measure the materials before and after the reaction?" Students need to engage in activities that lead to these understandings.
Indicators: The students will:
7 1. Measure and graph the effects of temperature on matter.
Example: Change water from solid to liquid to gas using heat. Measure and graph temperature changes. Observe changes in volume occupied.
10 2. Recognize that total mass is conserved in chemical reactions.
Example: Measure the mass of an Alka Seltzer tablet, water, and a container with a lid. Then drop in tablet, close tightly, and measure the mass after the reaction.
10 3. Show relationship of elements to compounds.
Example: Draw a diagram to show how different compounds are composed of elements in various combinations.
Benchmark 3: Investigate motion and forces.
All matter is subjected to forces that affect its position and motion. Relating motions to direction, amount of force, and/or speed allows students to graphically represent data for making comparisons. A moving object that is not being subjected to a force will continue to move in a straight line at a constant speed. The principle of inertia helps to explain many events such as sports actions, household accidents, and space walks. If more than one force acts upon an object moving along a straight line, the forces may reinforce each other or cancel each other out, depending on their direction and magnitude.
Students experience forces and motions in their daily lives when kicking balls, riding in a car, and walking on ice. Teachers should provide hands-on opportunities for students to experience these physical principles. The forces acting on natural and human made structures can be analyzed using physical models and games such as pool, soccer, bowling, and marbles.
Indicators: The students will:
7 1. Describe motion of an object (position, direction of motion, speed, potential, and kinetic energy).
Examples: Follow the path of a toy car down a ramp. The ramp is first covered with tile and then with sandpaper. Trace the force, direction, and speed of a baseball, from leaving the pitcher’s hand and returning back to the pitcher through one of many possible paths.
7 2. Measure motion and represent data in a graph.
Example: Roll a marble down a ramp. Make adjustments to the board or to the marble’s position in order to hit a target located on the floor. Measure and graph the results.
10 3. Demonstrate that an object not being subjected to a force will continue to move at a constant speed in a straight line (Law of Inertia).
Example: Place a small object on a rolling toy vehicle; stop the vehicle abruptly; observe the motion of the small object. Relate to personal experience - stopping rapidly in a car.
10 4. Demonstrate and mathematically represent that unbalanced forces will cause changes in the speed or direction of an object’s motion.
Example: With a Ping-Pong ball and 2 straws, investigate the effects of the force of air through two straws on the Ping-Pong ball with the straws at the same side of the ball, on opposite sides, and at other angles. Illustrate results with vectors (force arrows).
10 5. Investigate forces, including gravity and friction.
Example: Explore the variables of (wheel and ramp) surfaces that would allow a powered car to overcome the forces of gravity and friction to climb an inclined plane.
Benchmark 4: Demonstrate the transfer of energy.
Energy forms, such as heat, light, electricity, mechanical (motion), sound, and chemical energy are properties of substances. Energy can be transformed from one form to another. The sun is the ultimate source of energy for life systems while heat convection currents deep within the earth are an energy source for shaping the earth’s surface. Energy cycles through physical and living systems. Energy can be measured and predictions can be made based on these measurements.
Students can explore light energy using lenses and mirrors, then connect with real life applications such as cameras, eyeglasses, telescopes, and bar code scanners. Students connect the importance of energy transfer with sources of energy for their homes, such as chemical, nuclear, solar, and mechanical sources. Teachers provide opportunities for students to explore and experience energy forms, energy transfers, and make measurements to describe relationships.
Indicators: The students will:
7 1. Explore and transfer various forms of energy.
Examples: Explore electrical circuits. Design an energy transfer device. Use various forms of energy such as mechanical (including elastic materials and buoyant force), heat, light, electrical, and chemical. The device should accomplish a simple task such as popping a balloon. Explore sound waves using a spring.
7 2. Sequence the transmission of energy through various real life systems.
Example: Draw a chart of energy flow through a hair dryer from electrical source to dry hair.
7 3. Observe how light interacts with matter: transmitted, reflected, refracted, absorbed.
Example: Classify classroom objects as to how they interact with light: a window transmits; black paper absorbs; a projector lens refracts; a mirror reflects.
7 4. Relate the transfer (through radiation, convection, or conduction) of heat from hot to cold.
Examples: Add colored warm water to cool water. Observe convection. Measure and graph temperature over time.
By The End Of EIGHTH GRADE
STANDARD 3: LIFE SCIENCE
As a result of activities in grades 5-8, all students should be able to apply process skills to explore and demonstrate an understanding of the structure and function in living systems, reproduction and heredity, regulation and behavior, populations and ecosystems, and diversity of organisms.
Benchmark 1: Model structures of organisms and relate functions to the structures.
Living things at all levels of organization demonstrate the complimentary nature of structure and function. Disease is a breakdown in structure or function of an organism. Complex systems can be composed of several simple structures. Students must also understand how parts relate to the whole, such as each structure is distinct and has a set of functions that serve the whole.
Teachers can help students understand this organization of life by comparing and contrasting the levels of organization in both plants and animals. Teachers reinforce understanding of the cellular nature of life by providing opportunities to observe live cultures, such as pond water, creating models of cells, and using the Internet to observe and describe electron micrographs. Early adolescence is an ideal time to investigate the human body systems as an example of relating structure and function of parts to the whole.
Indicators: The students will:
7 1. Relate the structure of cells, organs, tissues, organ systems, and whole organisms to their function.
Examples: Identify human body organs and characteristics. Then relate their characteristics to function. Map human body systems, research their functions, show how each supports the health of the human body. Relate an organisms structure to how it works (long neck for reaching leaves on a tree).
7 2. Compare organisms composed of single cells with organisms that are multi-cellular.
Example: Create and compare two models: the major parts and their function of a single-cell organism and the major parts and their functions of a multi-cellular organism, i.e., amoebae and hydra.
3. Conclude that breakdowns in structure or function of an organism may be caused by disease, damage, heredity or aging.
Example: Compare lung capacity of smokers with that of non-smokers. Graph results.
Benchmark 2: Recognize and understand the role of reproductions and heredity for all living things.
Reproduction is a activity of all living systems to ensure the continuation of every species. Organisms reproduce sexually and asexually. Every organism requires a set of instructions for specifying its traits. Heredity is the passage of these instructions from one generation to another. Students need to clarify misconceptions about reproduction, specifically about the role of the sperm and egg, and the sexual reproduction of flowering plants. In learning about heredity, younger middle level students will focus on observable traits and older students will gain understanding that the genetic material carries coded information.
Teachers should provide opportunities for students to observe a variety of organisms and their sexual and asexual methods of reproduction such as culturing bacteria, yeast cells, paramecium, hydra, mealworms, guppies and/or frogs. Tracing the origin of student’s own development back to sperm and egg reinforces how life arises from a combination of male and female sex cells. Discussions with students about traits they possess from their father and mother, leads to understanding of how an organism receives genetic information from both parents and how new combinations result in their (the students’) unique characteristics.
Indicators: The students will:
1. Recognize that reproduction is essential to the continuation of a species.
Examples: Observe and communicate the life cycle of an organism (seed to seed; larvae to larvae; or adult to adult). Culture more than one generation (life cycle) of an invertebrate organism. Discuss implications of one generation of the species not reproducing.
2. Differentiate between asexual and sexual reproduction in plants and animals.
Example: Compare the regeneration of a planaria to the reproduction of an earthworm. Compare the propagation of new plants from cuttings, to the process of producing a new plant from fertilization to a seed.
Example: Most plants rely on insects for pollination to facilitate their reproduction. Examine the common dandelion’s asexual reproduction.
7 3. Explain that the characteristics of an organism results from heredity.
Examples: Choose an organism. Research its characteristics. Explain how these characteristics result from heredity.
10 4. Explore how hereditary information contained in the genes (part of the chromosomes) of each cell is passed from one generation to the next.
Example: In a cooperative setting, have students trace parent characteristics with that of an offspring. Use coin tossing to predict the probability of traits being passed on. Remember that not all traits are single gene traits.
Benchmark 3: Describe the effects of a changing external environment on the regulation/balance of internal conditions and processes of organisms.
All organisms perform similar processes to maintain life. They take food and gasses, eliminate wastes, grow and progress through their life cycle, reproduce, and maintain stable internal conditions while living in a constantly changing environment. An organism’s behavior changes as its environment changes. Students need opportunities to investigate a variety of organisms to realize that all living things have similar fundamental needs. After observing an organism’s way of moving, obtaining food and responding to danger, students can alter the environment and observe the effects on the organism.
This is an appropriate time to study the human nervous and endocrine systems and to compare and contrast how messages are sent through the body and how the body responds. An example is how fright causes changes within the body, preparing it for fighting or fleeing.
Indicators: The student will:
7 1. Investigate the effects of a change in environmental conditions on behavior.
Example: Select a variable to alter the environment (e.g., temperature light, moisture, gravity) and observe the effects on an organism (e.g., pillbug or earthworm). Students could also think of their own behaviors and determine environmental conditions which affect behavior.
7 2. Identify behaviors of an organism that are a response made to an internal or environmental stimulus.
Example: Observe the response of the body when competing in a running event. In order to maintain body temperature, various systems begin cooling through such processes as sweating and cooling the blood at the surface of the skin.
10 3. Explain that all organisms must be able to maintain and regulate stable internal conditions to survive in a constantly changing external environment.
Example: Investigate the effects of various stimuli on plants and how they adapt their growth: phototropism, geotropism and thermotropism are examples.
Benchmark 4: Identify and relate interactions of populations within an ecosystem.
A population consists of all individuals of a species that occur together at a given time and place. All populations living together and the physical factors with which they interact compose an ecosystem. Populations can be categorized by the functions they serve in an ecosystem: producers (make their own food), consumers (obtain food by eating other organisms), and decomposers (use waste materials). The major source of energy for ecosystems is sunlight. This energy enters the ecosystem as sunlight and is transformed by producers into food energy which then passes from organism to organism which we observe as food webs. The resources of an ecosystem, biotic and abiotic, determine the number of organisms within a population that can be supported.
Middle level students understand populations and ecosystems best when they have an opportunity to explore them actively. Taking students to a pond or a field, or even having them observe life under a rotting log, allows them to identify and observe interactions between populations and identify the physical conditions needed for their survival. A classroom terrarium, aquarium or river tank can serve as an excellent model for observing ecosystems and changes and interactions that occur over time between populations of organisms and changes in physical conditions. Constructing their own food webs, given a set of organisms, helps students to see multiple relationships more clearly.
Indicators: The student will:
7 1. Recognize that all populations living together and the physical factors with which they interact compose an ecosystem.
Example: Create a classroom terrarium and identify the interactions between the populations and physical conditions needed for survival. Participate in a field study examining the living and non-living parts of a community.
7 2. Categorize organisms in a system by the function they serve in that system (producers, consumers, decomposers).
Example: Explore populations at a pond, field, forest floor and/or rotting log. Have students identify the various food webs and observe that organisms in a systems are categorized by their function.
7 3. Trace (or show) the energy flow from the sun (source) to the producers (chemical energy), to organisms in the food webs.
Example: Role play the interaction and energy flow of organisms in a food web by passing a ball of string starting with the sun, progressing to green plants, insects, etc.
7 4. Relate the limiting factors of biotic and abiotic resources with a population’s growth and decline.
Example: Change variables such as a wheat crop yield, mice or a predator and chart the possible outcomes. For example, how would a low population of mice affect the population of the predator over time? Participate in a simulation such as "Oh Deer" from Project Wild.
By The End Of EIGHTH GRADE
STANDARD 4: EARTH AND SPACE SCIENCE
As a result of activities in grades 5-8, all students should be able to apply process skills to explore and develop an understanding of the structure of the Earth system, and Earth in the solar system.
Benchmark 1: Relate the current understanding of the structure of the Earth’s system to the physical processes that change it.
Earth has four major interacting systems: the lithosphere/geosphere, the atmosphere, the hydrosphere and the biosphere. Earth material is constantly being reworked and changed. The rock cycle, the water cycle and the carbon cycle are powered by physical forces, chemical reactions, heat, energy and biological processes. In the current prevailing model, the solid earth is layered with a lithosphere, a hot convecting mantle, and a dense metallic core. Huge lithospheric plates containing continents and oceans move in response to movement in the mantle. These plate motions also result in earthquakes, volcanoes and mountain building. Constructive and destructive Earth forces cause landforms.
Middle level students learn about the major Earth systems and their relationships through direct and indirect evidence. First-hand observations of weather, rock, soil, oceans and gases lead students to make inferences about some of those major systems. Indirect evidence is used when determining the composition, structure and movement in Earth’s mantle and core. The prevailing model postulates that continents float on the denser mantle, like slabs of wax on the surface of water.
Indicators: the student will:
7 1. Predict patterns from data collected.
Example: Map the movement of weather systems and predict the local weather conditions.
7 2. Identify properties of the solid Earth, the oceans and fresh water and the atmosphere.
Examples: Create a concept map of Earth materials using links to show connections, such as water causing erosion of solids, wind evaporating water, etc. Compare the densities of salt and fresh water. Classify rocks, minerals and soil by properties. Compare heating and cooling over land and water.
10 3. Model Earth’s cycles.
Example: Create rock cycle and water cycle dioramas. Illustrate global ocean and wind currents. Flow-chart a carbon atom through the carbon cycle and/or oxygen atom through the oxygen cycle.
10 4. Based on the prevailing model, connect the layers of the lithosphere with Earth’s plate movement that results in major geologic events and landform development.
Example: Plot the location of the Earth’s plate boundaries and compare with recent volcano and earthquake activity in the Ring of Fire. Refer to US Geologic Survey data available on the Internet.
10 5. Relate the impact of water on the surface of the Earth, such as the effect of oceans on the climates and water as an erosional force
Example: Map major climate zones and relate to ocean currents.
Benchmark 2: compare evidence of unobservable past events and processes with present, observable Earth properties and processes.
The constructive and destructive forces we see today may be similar to those that occurred in the past. Constructive forces include crustal formation by plate movement, volcanic eruptions, earthquakes and deposition of sediments. Destructive forces include weathering, erosion, volcanic explosions and glacial action. Rock formations and deposits may provide some clues to what happened in the past. Geologic processes that form rocks and mountains today may be similar to processes that formed rocks and mountains in the distant past.
Teachers can provide opportunities for students to observe and research evidence of changes that can be found in the earth’s crust. Volcanic flows of ancient volcanoes and earthquake damage can show us what to expect from modern day catastrophes. Glacial deposits show past ice sheets and global cooling and warming. Sedimentary rocks, such as limestone, sandstone and shale show deposition of sediments over time. The most common way of organizing the rock layers is based on the sequence expected by the theory of evolution into what is called the geologic column or geologic time scale.
Indicators: The student will:
7 1. Examine the dynamics of Earth’s constructive and destructive forces over time.
Example: Construct models of rock types using food. Peanut brittle without the peanuts can illustrate a molten material crystallizing to form a solid substance similar to an igneous rock.
10 2. Compare geologic evidence from different areas.
Example: Locate the same rock layer in 2 local road cuts; give fossil and other evidence that the layer is the same in both exposures. Compare sedimentary deposits from other areas. Are all layers of the geologic column present? If not. Which ones are missing? Are the layers of the geologic column always found in the expected sequence?
10 3. Compare the current arrangement of continents with the arrangement of continents throughout Earth’s history.
Example: Cut out continents from a world map and slide them together to see how they fit. Compare the fit of the continents based on the shorelines versus the continental shelf boundaries.
Benchmark 3: Identify and classify planets and other solar system components.
The solar system consists of the sun, which is an average-sized star, the nine planets and their moons, asteroids and comets, which travel in elliptical orbits around the sun. The sun, the central and largest body in the system, radiates energy outward. The Earth is the third of nine planets in the system and has one moon. Other stars in our galaxy are visible from Earth, as are distant galaxies, but are so distant they appear as pinpoints of light. Scientists have discovered much about the composition and size of stars and how they move in space.
Space and the solar system are of high interest to middle level students. Teachers can help students take advantage of the many print and on-line resources, as well as becoming amateur sky-watchers.
Indicators: The student will:
7 1. Compare and contrast the characteristics of the planets and their moons.
Example: Search reliable Internet sources for current information. Create a graphic organizer to visualize comparisons of planets and moons.
7 2. Develop understanding of spatial relationships via models of the solar system to scale.
Examples: Model the solar system to scale in a long hallway or school yard using rocks for rocky planets and balloons for gaseous planets. Designate a large object as the sun. Model the Earth/moon/sun system to scale with the question: "If the Earth were a tennis ball, how big would the moon be?" "How big would the sun be?" "How far apart would they be?"
3. Research smaller components of the solar system such as asteroids and comets.
Example: Identify and classify characteristics of comets and asteroids.
10 4. Identify the sun as a star and compare its characteristics to those of other stars.
Example: Classify bright stars visible from Earth by color, temperature, apparent brightness and distance from the Earth.
5. Trace cultural, as well as scientific, influences on the study of astronomy.
Example: Research ancient observations and explanations of the heavens and compare with today’s knowledge (i.e. Ptolemy, Job 26:7-8).
Benchmark 4: Model motions and identify forces that explain Earth phenomena.
There are many motions and forces that affect the Earth. Most objects in the solar system have regular motions, which can be tracked, measured, analyzed and predicted. Such phenomena as the day, year, seasons, tides, phases of the moon and eclipses of the sun and moon can be explained by these motions. The force that governs the motions of the solar system, and keeps the planets in orbit around the sun, and the moon around the Earth, is gravity. Phenomena on the Earth’s surface such as the growth of plants, wind, ocean currents and the water cycle receive their energy from the sun.
Misconceptions abound among middle level students about such concepts as the cause of the seasons and the reasons for the phases of the moon. Hands-on activities, role-playing, models and computer simulations are helpful for understanding the relative motion of the planets and the moons. Teachers can help students make connections between force and motion concepts, such as Newton’s Laws of Motion and Newton’s Law of Gravitational Force and application to Earth and space science. Many ideas are misconceptions that could be considered in a series of "What if…?" questions: What if the sun’s energy did not cause cloud formation and other parts of the water cycle?" "What if the Earth rotated once a month?" "What if the Earth’s axis was not tilted?" "What if the Earth was closer to or further from the sun?" "What if the Earth had no moon?" "What if the Earth’s atmosphere was 100% oxygen?" "What if ice did not float?"
Indicators: The student will:
7 1. Demonstrate object/space/time relationships that explain phenomena such as the day, the month, the year, and seasons.
Example: Use an earth/moon/sun model to demonstrate a day, month, year and seasons.
10 2. Model earth/moon/positions that create phases of the moon and eclipses.
Example: Use students to demonstrate the relative positions of the sun, earth and moon to create eclipses, phases of the moon, and tides using a circle of students representing the fluid water.
10 3. Apply principles of force and motion to an understanding of the solar system.
Example: Use string and ball model to illustrate gravity and movement creating an orbit around a hand.
10 4. Infer the effect of the angle of incidence of solar energy striking the Earth’s surface, to the amount of energy absorbed at the Earth’s surface.
Examples: Place a piece of graph paper on the surface of a globe at the equator. Hold a flashlight 10 cm from paper parallel to the globe. Mark the lighted area of the paper. Then, place the graph paper at a high latitude. Again hold the flashlight parallel to the paper 10 cm from the paper. Compare the areas lit at the equator and at the high latitude, both with the same amount of light energy. Where does each lighted square of paper receive the most energy?
By The End Of EIGHTH GRADE
STANDARD 5: TECHNOLOGY
As a result of activities in grades 5-8, all students should be able to demonstrate abilities of technological design and understanding of technology.
Benchmark 1: Demonstrate abilities of technological design.
Technological design focuses on creating new products for meeting human needs. Students need to develop abilities to identify specific needs and design solutions for those needs. The tasks of technological design include addressing a range of needs, materials, and aspects of science. Suitable experiences could include designing inventions that meet a need in the student’s life.
Building a tower of straws is a good start for collaboration and work in design preparation and construction. Students need to develop criteria for evaluating their inventions/products. These questions could help develop criteria: Who will be the users of the product? How will we know if the product satisfies their needs? Are there any risks to the design? What is the cost? How much time will it take to build? Using their own criteria, students can design several ways of solving a problem and evaluate the best approach. Students could keep a log of their designs and evaluations to communicate the process of technological design. The log might address these questions: What is the function of the device? How does the device work? How did students come up with the idea? What were the sequential steps taken in constructing the design? What problems were encountered?
Indicators: The students will:
7 1. Identify appropriate problems for technological design.
Example: Select and research a current technology, then project how it might change in the next 20 year.
2. Design a solution or product, implement the proposed design and evaluate the results.
Example: Design, create and evaluate a product that meets a need or solves a problem in a student’s life.
Example: Keep a log of designing [and building] a technology, then use the log to explain the process.
Benchmark 2: Develop understandings of the similarities, differences, and relationships in science and technology.
The primary difference between science and technology is that science investigates and experiments in order to answer questions about the natural world, whereas technology creates a product to meet human needs by applying scientific principles. Students may compare and contrast scientific discoveries with advances in technological design. Students may select a device they use, such as a radio, microwave, PC or television, and compare it to a counterpart that their grandparents used.
Indicators: The students will:
7 1. Compare the work of scientists with that of technologists.
Examples: A scientist studies air pressure; a technologist designs and airplane wing. Complete a Venn diagram to compare the processes of scientists and technologists.
Example: Select a technology to evaluate using a graphic organizer. List uses, limitations, possible consequences.
Example: Show the development of compound and complex machines in today’s technological culture, i.e., a hand twist drill encompasses wheel, helix, wedge, lever.
By The End Of EIGHTH GRADE
STANDARD 6: SCIENCE IN PERSONAL AND ENVIRONMENTAL PERSPECTIVES
As a result of activities in grades 5-8, all students should be able to apply process skills to explore and develop and understanding of issues of personal health; population, resources and environment and natural hazards.
Benchmark 1: Make decisions based on scientific understanding of personal health.
Regular exercise, rest, and proper nutrition are important to the maintenance and improvement of human health. Injury and illness are risks to maintaining health. Middle level students need opportunities to apply science learning to their understanding of personal health and science-based decision