Grade 2

Wholes and Parts

As students grow in their ability to speak, read, write, and reason mathematically, they also grow in their ability to grapple with larger systems and the parts that make them up. In grade 2, students start to look beyond the structures of individual plants and animals to looking at the environment in which the plants and animals live as a provider of the food, water, and shelter that the organisms need.

They learn that water is found everywhere on Earth and takes different forms and shapes.
They map landforms and bodies of water and observe that flowing water and wind shapes these landforms.
Grade 2 students use their observation skills gained in earlier grades to classify materials based on similar properties and functions.
They gain experience testing different materials to collect and then analyze data for the purpose of determining which materials are the best for a specific function.
They construct large objects from smaller pieces and, conversely, learn that when materials are cut into the smallest possible pieces, they still exist as the same material that has weight.

These investigations of how parts relate to the whole provide a key basis for understanding systems in later grades.

What this looks like in the classroom:

Students begin by looking at the rock cycle, then examined soil, how it forms, and its components.What makes healthy soil, mycorhizzae fungi, their relationship to tree roots. They learn how to use chemical, drainage, and nutrient tests to reveal the health of soil, and how to use additives to improve the health of the soil.(Ashley Metz)

ESS2. Earth’s Systems

2-ESS2-1. Investigate and compare the effectiveness of multiple solutions designed to slow or prevent wind or water from changing the shape of the land.*

Clarification Statements:

Solutions to be compared could include different designs of dikes and windbreaks to hold back wind and water, and different designs for using shrubs, grass, and trees to hold back the land.
Solutions can be generated or provided.

What this looks like in the classroom:

Soil Experiment: In this experiment, students can compare the effects of wind and water erosion on soil. They can create a simple erosion model with a tray of soil, a fan, and a watering can. Students can observe and record the effects of wind and water on the soil, and then explore ways to prevent erosion.
Planting Experiment: Students can learn about how planting vegetation can help prevent erosion. They can plant grass seeds in two different trays of soil, one with a slope and one without, and observe the effects of water erosion. They can then compare the results and learn about the importance of planting vegetation on slopes to prevent erosion.
Erosion Control Poster: Students can create posters that illustrate different erosion control techniques such as planting vegetation, building retaining walls, and using erosion control blankets. They can draw pictures and write descriptions of these techniques to help others understand how to prevent erosion.
Erosion Control Model: Students can create a 3D model of a hillside or riverbank, and use different materials such as rocks, vegetation, and sandbags to demonstrate different erosion control techniques. They can present their models to the class and explain how each technique works to prevent erosion.
Watershed Model: Students can create a simple model of a watershed to learn about how water moves through an ecosystem. They can use sand, soil, and rocks to create a miniature landscape, and then simulate rainfall to observe how water moves through the watershed. They can then explore ways to prevent erosion in different parts of the watershed. (ChatGPT)

ESS2. Earth’s Systems

2-ESS2-2. Map the shapes and types of landforms and bodies of water in an area.

Clarification Statements:

Examples of types of landforms can include hills, valleys, river banks, and dunes.
Examples of water bodies can include streams, ponds, bays, and rivers.
Quantitative scaling in models or contour mapping is not expected.

2-ESS2-3. Use examples obtained from informational sources to explain that water is found in the ocean, rivers and streams, lakes and ponds, and may be solid or liquid.

2-ESS2-4(MA). Observe how blowing wind and flowing water can move Earth materials from one place to another and change the shape of a landform.

Clarification Statement:

Examples of types of landforms can include hills, valleys, river banks, and dunes.

What this looks like in the classroom:

Salt Dough Maps: Have students create salt dough maps of different landforms such as mountains, hills, rivers, lakes, and oceans. They can use different colors to represent different types of landforms.
3D Landform Models: Students can create 3D models of different landforms using clay or other materials. They can make a volcano, a mountain, or a river with surrounding hills.
Landform Bingo: Create a bingo game with different landforms, such as mountains, valleys, canyons, rivers, and lakes. Students can learn to identify these landforms and have fun playing the game. (Chat GPT)

LS2. Ecosystems: Interactions, Energy, and Dynamics

2-LS2-3(MA). Develop and use models to compare how plants and animals depend on their surroundings and other living things to meet their needs in the places they live.

Clarification Statement:

Animals need food, water, air, shelter, and favorable temperature; plants need sufficient light, water, minerals, favorable temperature, and animals or other mechanisms to disperse seeds.

LS4. Biological Evolution: Unity and Diversity

2-LS4-1. Use texts, media, or local environments to observe and compare (a) different kinds of living things in an area, and (b) differences in the kinds of living things living in different types of areas.

Clarification Statements:

Examples of areas to compare can include temperate forest, desert, tropical rain forest, grassland, arctic, and aquatic.
Specific animal and plant names in specific areas are not expected.

What this looks like in the classroom:

Changes in distribution and behavior: As temperatures warm, many plant and animal species are shifting their ranges further northward or to higher elevations, or changing their migration patterns. This can lead to changes in ecosystems and competition with other species.
Habitat loss and fragmentation: Rising temperatures, changes in precipitation patterns, and more frequent natural disasters such as wildfires, hurricanes, and droughts can cause habitat loss or fragmentation, which can lead to declines in population size or even extinction for some species.
Changes in plant life cycles: Warmer temperatures can cause earlier onset of spring, which can affect the timing of plant growth and flowering, leading to changes in food availability and interactions between plants and animals.
Ocean acidification: Rising levels of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere lead to acidification of oceans, which can harm marine life such as corals and shellfish.(Chat GPT)

PS1. Matter and Its Interactions

2-PS1-1. Describe and classify different kinds of materials by observable properties of color, flexibility, hardness, texture, and absorbency.

2-PS1-2. Test different materials and analyze the data obtained to determine which

materials have the properties that are best suited for an intended purpose.*

Clarification Statements:

Examples of properties could include, color, flexibility, hardness, texture, and absorbency.
Data should focus on qualitative and relative observations.

What this looks like in the classroom:

Why do pots have wooden or plastic handles?
What is the most absorbent paper towel?
Design a better shopping bag
Science of Cooking

2-PS1-3. Analyze a variety of evidence to conclude that when a chunk of material is cut or broken into pieces, each piece is still the same material and, however small each piece is, has weight. Show that the material properties of a small set of pieces do not change when the pieces are used to build larger objects.

Clarification Statements:

Materials should be pure substances or microscopic mixtures that appear contiguous at observable scales.
Examples of pieces could include blocks, building bricks, and other assorted small objects.

2-PS1-4. Construct an argument with evidence that some changes to materials caused by heating or cooling can be reversed and some cannot.

Clarification Statements:

Examples of reversible changes could include materials such as water, butter, chocolate, or hot glue at different temperatures.
Examples of irreversible changes could include cooking an egg, freezing a plant leaf, and burning paper.

What this looks like in the classroom:

Reversible:

Mold chocolate candies.
Mold wax
Use wax molds to cast plaster.
Use hot glue to attach things.
Learn about injection molding of Legos.

Irreversible:

Baking Soda and Vinegar Reaction: Place baking soda into a container and pour vinegar over it. The mixture will fizz and bubble, releasing carbon dioxide gas. This reaction is an example of a chemical change where a new substance is formed.
Rust Experiment: Place a small piece of iron or steel wool in a container of water and allow it to sit for a few days. The iron or steel wool will rust, which is a chemical change that occurs when iron reacts with oxygen in the presence of water.
Milk and Vinegar Experiment: Add a small amount of vinegar to milk and stir gently. The milk will curdle, which is a chemical change caused by the vinegar reacting with the proteins in the milk. This can be extended into making cheese.

PS3. Energy

2-PS3-1(MA). Design and conduct an experiment to show the effects of friction on the relative temperature and speed of objects that rub against each other.

Clarification Statements:

Examples could include an object sliding on rough vs. smooth surfaces.
Observations of temperature and speed should be qualitative

What this looks like in the classroom:

Measure temperature changes when drilling with a power drill
Start a fire using a bow-and-drill
Experiment with bicycle brakes

ETS1. Engineering Design

2.K-2-ETS1-3. Analyze data from tests of two objects designed to solve the same design problem

to compare the strengths and weaknesses of how each object performs.

Clarification Statements:

Data can include observations and be either qualitative or quantitative.
Examples can include how different objects insulate cold water or how different types of grocery bags perform.

What this looks like in the classroom:

Students engage in design challenges, such as:

how different objects insulate cold water
how different types of grocery bags perform.
Students construct various types of pinball machines.
Students build a device to protect an egg dropped off a roof
Building a better electromagnet
Creating a game in Scratch
Design a knee prosthetic or crutch

Page updated

Report abuse