Utah
Elementary Science Core Curriculum
Fifth
Grade
Adopted
by Utah State Board of Education
March
12, 2002
Science is a way of
knowing, a process for gaining knowledge and understanding of the natural
world. The Science Core Curriculum places emphasis on understanding and using
skills. Students should be active learners. It is not enough for students to
read about science; they must do science. They should observe, inquire,
question, formulate and test hypotheses, analyze data, report, and evaluate
findings. The students, as scientists, should have hands–on, active experiences
throughout the instruction of the science curriculum.
The Elementary Science
Core describes what students should know and be able to do at the end of each
of the K–6 grade levels. It was developed, critiqued, piloted, and revised by a
community of Utah science teachers, university science educators, State Office
of Education specialists, scientists, expert national consultants, and an
advisory committee representing a wide variety of people from the
community. The Core reflects the
current philosophy of science education that is expressed in national documents
developed by the American Association for the Advancement of Science, the
National Academies of Science. This Science
Core has the endorsement of the Utah Science Teachers Association. The Core reflects high standards of
achievement in science for all students.
The Core is designed
to help teachers organize and deliver instruction.
The Science Core
Curriculum’s organization:
ü Each
grade level begins with a brief course description.
ü The
INTENDED LEARNING OUTCOMES (ILOs) describe the goals for science skills and
attitudes. They are found at the
beginning of each grade, and are an integral part of the Core that should be
included as part of instruction.
ü The
SCIENCE BENCHMARKS describe the science content students should know. Each grade level has three to five Science
Benchmarks. The ILOs and Benchmarks
intersect in the Standards, Objectives and Indicators.
ü A
STANDARD is a broad statement of what students are expected to understand.
Several Objectives are listed under each Standard.
ü An
OBJECTIVE is a more focused description of what students need to know and be
able to do at the completion of instruction. If students have mastered the
Objectives associated with a given Standard, they are judged to have mastered
that Standard at that grade level. Several Indicators are described for each
Objective.
ü An
INDICATOR is a measurable or observable student action that enables one to
judge whether a student has mastered a particular Objective. Indicators are not
meant to be classroom activities, but they can help guide classroom
instruction.
Eight Guidelines Were
Used in Developing the Elementary Science Core
Reflects the Nature of
Science: Science is a way of knowing, a process of
gaining knowledge and understanding of the natural world. The Core is designed
to produce an integrated set of Intended Learning Outcomes (ILOs) for students.
Please see the Intended Learning Outcomes document for each grade level core.
As described in these
ILOs, students will:
1.
Use science process and thinking skills.
2.
Manifest science interests and attitudes.
3.
Understand important science concepts and
principles.
4.
Communicate effectively using science language
and reasoning.
5.
Demonstrate awareness of the social and
historical aspects of science.
6.
Understand the nature of science.
Coherent:
The Core has been designed so that, wherever possible, the science ideas taught
within a particular grade level have a logical and natural connection with
each other and with those of earlier grades. Efforts have also been made to
select topics and skills that integrate well with one another and with other
subject areas appropriate to grade level. In addition, there is an upward
articulation of science concepts, skills, and content. This spiraling is intended to prepare
students to understand and use more complex science concepts and skills as they
advance through their science learning.
Developmentally
Appropriate: The Core
takes into account the psychological and social readiness of students. It
builds from concrete experiences to more abstract understandings. The Core
describes science language students should use that is appropriate to
each grade level. A more extensive
vocabulary should not be emphasized. In
the past, many educators may have mistakenly thought that students understood
abstract concepts (such as the nature of the atom), because they repeated
appropriate names and vocabulary (such as electron and neutron). The Core
resists the temptation to tell about abstract concepts at inappropriate grade
levels, but focuses on providing experiences with concepts that students can
explore and understand in depth to build a foundation for future science
learning.
Encourages Good
Teaching Practices: It
is impossible to accomplish the full intent of the Core by lecturing and having
students read from textbooks. The Elementary Science Core emphasizes student
inquiry. Science process skills are central in each standard. Good science encourages students to gain
knowledge by doing science: observing, questioning, exploring, making and
testing hypotheses, comparing predictions, evaluating data, and communicating
conclusions. The Core is designed to encourage instruction with students
working in cooperative groups.
Instruction should connect lessons with students’ daily lives. The Core
directs experiential science instruction for all students, not just those who
have traditionally succeeded in science classes. The vignettes listed on the
“Utah Science Home Page” at http://www.usoe.k12.ut.us/curr/science
for each of the Core standards provide examples, based on actual practice, that
demonstrate that excellent teaching of the Science Core is possible.
Comprehensive: The Elementary Science
Core does not cover all topics that have traditionally been in the elementary
science curriculum; however, it does provide a comprehensive background in
science. By emphasizing depth rather than breadth, the Core seeks to empower
students rather than intimidate them with a collection of isolated and
eminently forgettable facts. Teachers are free to add related concepts and
skills, but they are expected to teach all the standards and objectives
specified in the Core for their grade level.
Feasible: Teachers and others who are familiar with
Utah students, classrooms, teachers, and schools have designed the Core. It can be taught with easily obtained
resources and materials. A Teacher Resource Book (TRB) is available for
elementary grades and has sample lessons on each topic for each grade level.
The TRB is a document that will grow as teachers add exemplary lessons aligned
with the new Core. The middle grade
levels have electronic textbooks available at the Utah State Office of
Education’s “Utah Science Home Page” at http://www.usoe.k12.ut.us/curr/science.
Useful and
Relevant: This
curriculum relates directly to student needs and interests. It is grounded in
the natural world in which we live. Relevance of science to other endeavors
enables students to transfer skills gained from science instruction into their
other school subjects and into their lives outside the classroom.
Encourages Good
Assessment Practices: Student achievement of the standards and
objectives in this Core are best assessed using a variety of assessment
instruments. One’s purpose should be clearly in mind as assessment is planned
and implemented. Performance tests are
particularly appropriate to evaluate student mastery of science processes and
problem-solving skills. Teachers should use a variety of classroom assessment
approaches in conjunction with standard assessment instruments to inform their
instruction. Sample test items, keyed to each Core Standard, may be located on
the Utah Science Home Page. Observation of students engaged in science
activities is highly recommended as a way to assess students’ skills as well as
attitudes in science. The nature of the
questions posed by students provides important evidence of students’
understanding of science.
Elementary school
reaches the greatest number of students for a longer period of time during the
most formative years of the school experience. Effective elementary science
instruction engages students actively in enjoyable learning experiences. Science instruction should be as thrilling
an experience for a child as seeing a rainbow, growing a flower, or holding a
toad. Science is not just for those who have traditionally succeeded in the
subject, and it is not just for those who will choose science–related careers.
In a world of rapidly expanding knowledge and technology, all students must
gain the skills they will need to understand and function responsibly and
successfully in the world. The Core provides skills in a context that enables
students to experience the joy of doing science.
Fifth Grade Science
Core
In
the Fifth Grade students begin to understanding concepts of Change and Cause
and Effect. Students will learn
about the constantly changing Earth’s surface. They will investigate physical
and chemical changes in matter. They will begin to relate causes for changes
with their effects. Students will have opportunity to investigate the effects
of various forces, such as magnetism and electricity upon materials. They will begin to learn how traits passed
from parent organisms to their offspring effect their survival.
Students
should learn to value the scientific processes as means of obtaining knowledge.
They should be encouraged to maintain an open and questioning mind and should
be helped and encouraged to pose their own questions about objects, events,
processes and results. Fifth graders should have the opportunity to plan and
conduct their own experiments and come to their own conclusions as they read,
observe, compare, describe, infer and draw conclusions.
Good science instruction requires hands–on science investigations in which student inquiry is an important goal. Teachers should provide opportunities for all students to explore many things. Fifth graders should have sufficient understanding of Earth Science to point out an interesting landform to others and hypothesize its origin; feel the success of connecting batteries and wire to make the lights come on; learn about chemical change as they mix baking soda and vinegar and test changes in acidity of liquids using the juice of red cabbage leaves. They should come to enjoy science as a process of learning about their world.
Science
Core concepts should be integrated with concepts and skills from other
curriculum areas. Reading, writing and mathematics skills should be emphasized
as integral to the instruction of science.
Technology issues and the nature of science are significant components
of this Core. Personal relevance of
science in students’ lives is always an important part of helping students to
value science and should be emphasized at this grade level.
This
Core was designed using the American Association for the Advancement of
Science’s Project 2061: Benchmarks For Science Literacy and the
National Academy of Science’s National Science Education Standards as
guides to determine appropriate content and skills.
The
fifth grade Science Core has three online resources designed to help with
classroom instruction; they include Teacher Resource Book –a set of
lesson plans, assessment items and science information specific to fifth grade;
Sci-ber Text –an electronic science textbook specific to the Utah Core,
and the science test item pool. This
pool includes multiple-choice questions, performance tasks, and interpretive
items aligned to the standards and objectives of the fifth grade Science
Core. These resources are all available
on the Utah Science Home Page at: http://www.usoe.k12.ut.us/curr/science
SAFETY
PRECAUTIONS:
The
hands–on nature of this science curriculum increases the need for teachers to
use appropriate precautions in the classroom and field. Teachers must adhere to
the published guidelines for the proper use of animals, equipment, and
chemicals in the classroom. These
guidelines are available on the Utah Science Home Page.
Intended
Learning Outcomes for Fifth Grade Science
The
Intended Learning Outcomes (ILOs) describe the skills and attitudes students
should learn as a result of science instruction. They are an essential part of the Science Core Curriculum and
provide teachers with a standard for evaluation of student learning in
science. Instruction should include
significant science experiences that lead to student understanding using the
ILOs.
The main intent of science
instruction in Utah is that students will value and use science as a process of
obtaining knowledge based upon observable evidence.
By the end of fifth grade students will be able to:
1. Use Science
Process and Thinking Skills
a.
Observe
simple objects, patterns, and events and report their observations.
b.
Sort
and sequence data according to criteria given.
c.
Given
the appropriate instrument, measure length, temperature, volume, and mass in
metric units as specified.
d.
Compare
things, processes, and events.
e.
Use
classification systems.
f.
Plan
and conduct simple experiments.
g.
Formulate
simple research questions.
h.
Predict
results of investigations based on prior data.
i.
Use
data to construct a reasonable conclusion.
2. Manifest
Scientific Attitudes and Interests
a.
Demonstrate
a sense of curiosity about nature.
b.
Voluntarily
read and look at books and other materials about science.
c.
Pose
science questions about objects, events, and processes.
d.
Maintain
an open and questioning mind toward new ideas and alternative points of view.
e.
Seek
and weigh evidence before drawing conclusions.
f.
Accept
and use scientific evidence to help resolve ecological problems.
3. Understand Science
Concepts and Principles
a.
Know
and explain science information specified for the grade level.
b.
Distinguish
between examples and non-examples of concepts that have been taught.
c.
Solve
problems appropriate to grade level by applying science principles and
procedures.
4. Communicate Effectively
Using Science Language and Reasoning
a.
Record
data accurately when given the appropriate form (e.g., table, graph, chart).
b.
Describe
or explain observations carefully and report with pictures, sentences, and
models.
c.
Use
scientific language in oral and written communication.
d.
Use
reference sources to obtain information and cite the source.
e.
Use
mathematical reasoning to communicate information.
5. Demonstrate Awareness of
Social and Historical Aspects of Science
a.
Cite
examples of how science affects life.
b.
Understand
the cumulative nature of science knowledge.
6. Understand the Nature of
Science
a.
Science
is a way of knowing that is used by many people not just scientists.
b.
Understand that science investigations use a variety
of methods and do not always use the same set of procedures; understand that
there is not just one "scientific method."
c.
Science findings are based upon evidence.
Science Benchmark
The weight of an object is always equal to the sum
of its parts, regardless of how it is assembled. In a chemical reaction or physical change matter is neither
created nor destroyed. When two or more
materials are combined, either a chemical reaction or physical change may
occur. Chemical reactions are often
indicated when materials give off heat or cool as they take in heat, give off
light, give off gas, or change colors.
In a chemical reaction, materials are changed into new substances. In a physical change a new substance is not
formed.
STANDARD I: Students will understand that chemical and
physical changes occur in matter.
Objective 1: Describe that matter is neither created nor
destroyed even though it may undergo change.
a.
Compare
the total weight of an object to the weight of its individual parts after being
disassembled.
b.
Compare
the weight of a specified quantity of matter before and after it undergoes
melting or freezing.
c.
Investigate
the results of the combined weights of a liquid and a solid after the solid has
been dissolved and then recovered from the liquid (e.g., salt dissolved in
water then water evaporated).
d.
Investigate
chemical reactions in which the total weight of the materials before and after
reaction is the same (e.g., cream and vinegar before and after mixing, borax
and glue mixed to make a new substance).
Objective 2: Evaluate evidence that indicates a physical change has occurred.
a.
Identify
the physical properties of matter (e.g., hard, soft, solid, liquid, gas).
b.
Compare
changes in substances that indicate a physical change has occurred.
c.
Describe
the appearance of a substance before and after a physical change.
Objective
3: Investigate evidence for changes in matter
that occur during a chemical reaction.
a.
Identify
observable evidence of a chemical reaction (e.g., color change, heat or light
given off, heat absorbed, gas given off).
b.
Explain
why the measured weight of a remaining product is less than its reactants when
a gas is produced.
c.
Cite
examples of chemical reactions in daily life.
d.
Compare
a physical change to a chemical change.
e.
Hypothesize
how changing one of the materials in a chemical reaction will change the
results.
|
Science language students should use: |
heat, substance, chemical change, dissolve, physical change, matter,
product, reactants, solid, liquid, weight |
Science Benchmark
The Earth’s surface is
constantly changing. Some changes
happen very slowly over long periods of time, such as weathering, erosion, and
uplift. Other changes happen abruptly, such as landslides, volcanic eruptions,
and earthquakes. All around us, we see
the visible effects of the building up and breaking down of the Earth’s
surface.
STANDARD II: Students will understand that volcanoes,
earthquakes, uplift, weathering, and erosion reshape Earth's surface.
Objective
1: Describe how weathering and erosion change
Earth’s surface.
a.
Identify
the objects, processes, or forces that weather and erode Earth’s surface (e.g.,
ice, plants, animals, abrasion, gravity, water, wind).
b.
Describe
how geological features (e.g., valleys, canyons, buttes, arches) are changed
through erosion (e.g., waves, wind, glaciers, gravity, running water).
c.
Explain
the relationship between time and specific geological changes.
Objective
2: Explain how volcanoes, earthquakes, and
uplift affect Earth’s surface.
a.
Identify
specific geological features created by volcanoes, earthquakes, and uplift.
b.
Give
examples of different landforms that are formed by volcanoes, earthquakes, and
uplift (e.g., mountains, valleys, new lakes, canyons).
c.
Describe
how volcanoes, earthquakes, and uplift change landforms.
d.
Cite
examples of how technology is used to predict volcanoes and earthquakes.
Objective
3: Relate the building up and breaking down of
Earth’s surface over time to the various physical land features.
a.
Explain
how layers of exposed rock, such as those observed in the Grand Canyon, are the
result of natural processes acting over long periods of time.
b.
Describe
the role of deposition in the processes that change Earth’s surface.
c.
Use
a time line to identify the sequence and time required for building and
breaking down of geologic features on Earth.
d.
Describe
and justify how the surface of Earth would appear if there were no mountain
uplift, weathering, or erosion.
|
Science language students should use: |
earthquakes, erode, erosion, faults, uplift, volcanoes, weathering,
buttes, arches, glaciers, geological, deposition |
Science Benchmark
Earth and some
earth materials have magnetic properties.
Without touching them, a magnet attracts things made of iron and either
pushes or pulls on other magnets.
Electricity is a form of energy.
Current electricity can be generated and transmitted through pathways. Some materials are capable of carrying
electricity more effectively than other materials. Static electricity is a result of objects being electrically
charged. Without touching them,
materials that are electrically charged may either push or pull other charged
materials.
STANDARD
III: Students will understand that
magnetism can be observed when there is an interaction between the magnetic
fields of magnets or between a magnet and materials made of iron.
Objective 1: Investigate and compare the behavior of magnetism using magnets.
a.
Compare
various types of magnets (e.g., permanent, temporary, and natural magnets) and
their abilities to push or pull iron objects they are not touching.
b.
Investigate
how magnets will both attract and repel other magnets.
c.
Compare
permanent magnets and electromagnets.
d.
Research
and report the use of magnets that is supported by sound scientific principles.
Objective 2: Describe how the magnetic field of Earth and a magnet are
similar.
a.
Compare
the magnetic fields of various types of magnets (e.g., bar magnet, disk magnet,
horseshoe magnet).
b.
Compare
Earth’s magnetic field to the magnetic field of a magnet.
c.
Construct
a compass and explain how it works.
d.
Investigate
the effects of magnets on the needle of a compass and compare this to the
effects of Earth’s magnetic field on the needle of a compass (e.g., magnets
effect the needle only at close distances, Earth’s magnetic field affects the
needle at great distances, magnets close to a compass overrides the Earth’s
effect on the needle).
STANDARD IV: Students will
understand features of static and current electricity.
Objective 1: Describe
the behavior of static electricity as observed in nature and everyday
occurrences.
a.
List
several occurrences of static electricity that happen in everyday life.
b.
Describe
the relationship between static electricity and lightning.
c.
Describe
the behavior of objects charged with static electricity in attracting or
repelling without touching.
d.
Compare
the amount of static charge produced by rubbing various materials together
(e.g., rubbing fur on a glass rod produces a greater charge then rubbing the
fur with a metal rod, the static charge produced when a balloon is rubbed on
hair is greater than when a plastic bag is rubbed on hair).
e.
Investigate
how various materials react differently to statically charged objects.
Objective 2: Analyze the behavior of current electricity.
a.
Draw
and label the components of a complete electrical circuit that includes
switches and loads (e.g., light bulb, bell, speaker, motor).
b.
Predict
the effect of changing one or more of the components (e.g., battery, load,
wires) in an electric circuit.
c.
Generalize
the properties of materials that carry the flow of electricity using data by
testing different materials.
d.
Investigate
materials that prevent the flow of electricity.
e.
Make
a working model of a complete circuit using a power source, switch, bell or
light, and a conductor for a pathway.
|
Science language students should use: |
battery, complete circuit, incomplete circuit, current, conductor,
insulator, pathway, power source, attract, compass, electromagnetism,
magnetic force, magnetic field, natural magnet, permanent magnet, properties,
repel, static electricity, temporary magnet, switch, load |
Science Benchmark
All living
things inherit a set of characteristics or traits from their parents. Members of any given species transfer traits
from one generation to the next. The passing of traits from parent to offspring
is called heredity and causes the offspring to resemble the parent. Some traits differ among members of a
population, and these variations may help a particular species to survive
better in a given environment in getting food, finding shelter, protecting
itself, and reproducing. These
variations give the individual a survival advantage over other individuals of
the same species.
STANDARD V:
Students will understand that traits are
passed from the parent organisms to their offspring, and that sometimes the
offspring may possess variations of these traits that may help or hinder
survival in a given environment.
Objective 1: Using supporting evidence, show that
traits are transferred from a parent organism to its offspring.
a.
Make
a chart and collect data identifying various traits among a given population
(e.g., the hand span of students in the classroom, the color and texture of
different apples, the number of petals of a given flower).
b.
Identify
similar physical traits of a parent organism and its offspring (e.g., trees and
saplings, leopards and cubs, chickens and chicks).
c.
Compare
various examples of offspring that do not initially resemble the parent
organism but mature to become similar to the parent organism (e.g., mealworms
and darkling beetles, tadpoles and frogs, seedlings and vegetables,
caterpillars and butterflies).
d.
Contrast
inherited traits with traits and behaviors that are not inherited but may be
learned or induced by environmental factors (e.g., cat purring to cat meowing
to be let out of the house; the round shape of a willow is inherited, while
leaning away from the prevailing wind is induced).
e.
Investigate
variations and similarities in plants grown from seeds of a parent plant (e.g.,
how seeds from the same plant species can produce different colored flowers or
identical flowers).
Objective 2: Describe how some characteristics could give a
species a survival advantage in a particular environment.
a.
Compare
the traits of similar species for physical abilities, instinctual behaviors,
and specialized body structures that increase the survival of one species in a
specific environment over another species (e.g., difference between the feet of
snowshoe hare and cottontail rabbit, differences in leaves of plants growing at
different altitudes, differences between the feathers of an owl and a
hummingbird, differences in parental behavior among various fish).
b.
Identify
that some environments give one species a survival advantage over another
(e.g., warm water favors fish such as carp, cold water favors fish such as
trout, environments that burn regularly favor grasses, environments that do not
often burn favor trees).
c.
Describe
how a particular physical attribute may provide an advantage for survival in
one environment but not in another (e.g., heavy fur in arctic climates keep
animals warm whereas in hot desert climates it would cause overheating;
flippers on such animals as sea lions and seals provide excellent swimming
structures in the water but become clumsy and awkward on land; cacti retain the
right amount of water in arid regions but would develop root rot in a more
temperate region; fish gills have the ability to absorb oxygen in water but not
on land).
d.
Research
a specific plant or animal and report how specific physical attributes provide
an advantage for survival in a specific environment.
|
Science
language students should use: |
inherited,
environment, species, offspring, traits, variations, survival, instincts,
population, specialized structure, organism, life cycle, parent organism,
learned behavior |