Science

Exploring My Weather

Unit Overview

Students use their senses and the tools of meteorologists to explore temperature, precipitation, wind, and cloud cover. Through their observations and investigations, students develop weather vocabulary as they explore how water changes between its forms and how weather affects humans and other animals. Students engage in engineering activities to design roofs and hats to protect against weather. They conclude by discussing seasonal changes and the importance of weather forecasting.

Exploring Forces and Motion

Unit Overview

From pushing open the school door, to kicking a ball across the field, to riding a bike, forces are a part of our daily lives. In this physical science unit students investigate how pushes and pulls are responsible for the motion of objects. They model the effects of applying forces of different strengths and in different directions while exploring what happens when objects collide or connect, the effects of slope, and what happens to an object when subjected to equal and unequal forces from different directions. Through creative writing, creative dramatics, and play, students begin to develop emerging ideas about fundamental physics concepts.

Exploring Living Things

Unit Overview

In Kindergarten Life Science, students explore the needs and life cycles of plants and animals. Through planting seeds and building animal habitats, students investigate what living things need to survive and grow. As they witness firsthand the life cycles of living things, students use personal observations to describe patterns in the natural world. Kindergarten scientists compare and contrast different types of living things, create scientific drawings of real plants and animals, and learn to utilize descriptive language to communicate their observations and ideas with others.