Grade 4 Science, Quarter 1, Unit 1 Materials

Overview

Number of instructional days: 10 (1 day = 45 minutes)

Content to be learned Science processes to be integrated • Identify the four basic materials of the earth • Use physical properties to describe, compare, (, , rocks, air). and sort objects. • Describe, compare, and sort rocks, , and • Make, record, and analyze observations and minerals by similar and different physical data. properties. • Cite evidence to support classification of • Record and analyze observations/data about objects. physical properties. • Identify and determine the uses of materials • Cite evidence to support why rocks, soils, or based on their physical properties. minerals are or are not classified together. • Support explanations using observations and • Determine and support explanations of the uses data. of earth materials.

Essential questions • In what ways can we identify, describe, sort, • How can we use earth materials? and classify earth materials?

Bristol-Warren, Little Compton, Portsmouth, Tiverton Public Schools, C-1 in collaboration with the Charles A. Dana Center at the University of Texas at Austin Grade 4 Science, Quarter 1, Unit 1 Earth Materials (10 days)

Written Curriculum

Grade-Span Expectations

ESS1 - The earth and earth materials as we know them today have developed over long periods of time, through continual change processes.

ESS1 (K-4) INQ –1 Given certain earth materials (soils, rocks or minerals) use physical properties to sort, classify, and describe them.

ESS1 (3-4) –1 Students demonstrate an understanding of earth materials by …

1d identifying the four basic materials of the earth (water, soil, rocks, air).

1a describing, comparing, and sorting rocks, soils, and minerals by similar or different physical properties (e.g., size, shape, color, texture, smell, weight, temperature, hardness, composition).

1b recording and analyzing observations/data about physical properties (e.g., within a grouping, which characteristics are the same and which are different).

1c citing evidence (e.g., prior knowledge, data) to support why rocks, soils, or minerals are classified/not classified together.

ESS1 (K-4) FAF -6 Given information about earth materials explain how their characteristics lend themselves to specific uses

ESS1 (3-4)-6 Students demonstrate an understanding of properties of earth materials by…

6a determining and supporting explanations of their uses (e.g., best soils to grow plants, best building material for a specific purpose, determining which size will best prevent ).

Clarifying the Standards

Prior Learning

The concepts in this unit of study are not addressed in kindergarten or grade 1.

In grade 2, students demonstrated an understanding of earth materials by describing, comparing, and sorting rocks and soils using physical properties (e.g., size, shape, color, texture, smell, weight), and they recorded observations/data about physical properties. Students used attributes of properties to state why objects are grouped together, and identified which materials are best suited for different uses.

The concepts in this unit of study are not addressed in grade 3.

Bristol-Warren, Little Compton, Portsmouth, Tiverton Public Schools, C-2 in collaboration with the Charles A. Dana Center at the University of Texas at Austin Grade 4 Science, Quarter 1, Unit 1 Earth Materials (10 days)

Current Learning

Fourth grade students identify the four basic materials of the earth, and they identify, compare, and sort earth materials using physical properties (e.g., size, shape, color, texture, smell, and weight) at the drill- and-practice level of instruction. Additional physical properties of temperature, hardness and composition are introduced to students at the developmental level through the drill-and-practice level of instruction. Students record and analyze observations about physical properties, and they learn to cite evidence that supports their conclusions regarding classification of earth materials. Analyzing observations and citing evidence are new to grade 4, and should be taught from the developmental level to the drill-and-practice level of instruction. In addition, students determine and support explanations for the uses of earth materials (water, soil, rocks, and air). Supporting explanations is also new to grade 4 and should be taught from the developmental level to the drill-and-practice level of instruction.

Future Learning

In the next unit of study, students in grade 4 will extend prior learning about earth materials by conducting investigations and using observational data to describe how water moves through soil. They will investigate local landforms to find examples of how wind, water, and ice have shaped and reshaped them, and they will use or build models that simulate the effects of wind and water on the land. Additionally, students will identify sudden and gradual changes that affect the earth, such as floods and erosion.

Student learning in grades 5–6 will demonstrate an understanding the processes and change over time within earth systems by identifying and describing the layers of the earth. They will plot location of volcanoes and and explain the relationship between the location of these and phenomena and faults. Students will represent the process of the rock cycle in words, diagrams, or models, and will cite evidence and develop a logical argument to explain the formation of a rock, given its characteristics and location.

Additional Findings

In studying the use of earth materials, primary students learned that people burn fuels such as wood, oil, coal, and natural gas or use electricity to cook their food and warm their houses. They also learned that people need food, air, waste removal, and a particular range of temperatures in their environment in order to survive, just as other animals do ( Atlas of Science Literacy, Vol. 2, p. 23).

In grades 3–5, students should become adept at using magnifiers to inspect a variety of rocks and soils, not to classify rigorously, but to notice the variety of components. By the end of fifth grade, students should know that rock is composed of different combinations of minerals. Smaller rocks come from the breakage and weathering of and larger rocks. Soil is made partly from weathered rock, partly from plant remains, and also contains many living organisms ( Benchmarks for Science Literacy , p. 72).

Appropriate use of content specific vocabulary might be challenging for some students during this unit of study. In science, although the word “material” is used to designate any kind of matter or “stuff” that can be observed or detected in the world around us, children may initially use the word to mean those things that are required to make objects, for example, fabrics for clothing and bricks for building. When studying materials, pupils are expected to develop skills in classifying not only several types of materials encountered daily but also the changes the materials undergo ( Making Sense of Secondary Science , pp. 73, 78).

Bristol-Warren, Little Compton, Portsmouth, Tiverton Public Schools, C-3 in collaboration with the Charles A. Dana Center at the University of Texas at Austin Grade 4 Science, Quarter 1, Unit 1 Earth Materials (10 days)

Challenges/Understandings

There will probably be some confusion among children when deciding whether a sample is natural or not. House brick might be regarded as a rock because it contains some natural material, while a cut and polished piece of marble might not be considered a natural rock, because to be natural it must be “untouched by mankind” ( Making Sense , p. 112).

It is important for students to understand that varied materials have different properties that make them useful in many different ways, as building materials, as sources of fuel, or for growing the plants we use as food. Soils have properties of texture and color, capacity to retain water, and ability to support the growth of many kinds of plants, including those in our food supply ( National Science Education Standards , p. 134).

Misconceptions

Students may have misconceptions about the of soil. They often think that soil is “just dirt” or “stuff in the ground.” Children seem to be largely unaware of the role of living organisms or of the identity of these organisms in soil. A widely held notion is that soil is the precursor of rock and that it changes to rock in the sequence of soil--rock. (Making Sense, p. 114) Additionally, many children do not associate minerals with rocks. They are most likely to think of mineral water, minerals and vitamins, or mineral resources (Making Sense, p. 112).

Bristol-Warren, Little Compton, Portsmouth, Tiverton Public Schools, C-4 in collaboration with the Charles A. Dana Center at the University of Texas at Austin