Unit 2- Earth Systems

Unit 2 Earth's Systems: Processes that Shape the Earth

• Four major themes to this unit:
  • Earth changes that happen quickly or slowly
  • wind and water can change the shape of Earth
  • landforms, and bodies of water have characteristics that make them unique to a location
  • water is solid or liquid depending on where that water is found
• This unit also provides students several opportunities to make different types of models that represent landforms and bodies of water.

Vocabulary:

Change – The act or instance of becoming different. Change has taken place when anything that is observed is different from what it was when last observed.

Event – Something that happens, especially one of importance. A change or a series of changes can be called an event.

Gradual – Taking place or progressing slowly or by degrees

Landform – A natural feature of Earth’s land surface

Solution – A means of solving a problem

System – A set of connected things or parts forming a complex whole; a group of related parts that move or work together

Time Scale – The time it takes for a process or sequence of events to occurTimeline – A linear representation of important events in the order in which they occurred

Science 21 Home Connection – Grade 2 Unit 2

Dear Parents/Guardians,

As a part of the second-grade curriculum, your child will be learning fundamental science core ideas, science engineering practices, and crosscutting concepts that will enhance his or her understanding of the natural anddesigned worlds. We hope you will support your child’s curiosity about the world around them at home.

In the second unit, your child will learn about Earth event. Using information from several sources, your child will provide evidence that Earth events can occur quickly or slowly. Students will use their engineering skills to design solutions to prevent wind or water from changing the shape of the land. They will use their design skills to develop a model to represent the shapes and kinds of landforms and bodies of water in an area. Finally, your child will obtain information to identify where water is found on Earth and that it can be solid or liquid.

Developmentally, a second-grade student is still a “concrete” learner but are developing abstract thinking skills in their learning. To support this important developmental stage, your child will design hands-on investigations, record findings, and experience many real-world learning tasks. Your child will also make predictions, discuss their investigations and explore the “why” of each lesson. Your child will become a second-grade geologist, and you willbe amazed at all their learning! Thank you for being a partner in your child’s education.