Science

Third Grade Science

Matter and Energy (2005-2008) -- https://www.fossweb.com/module-summary?dDocName=D1446005

The Matter and Energy Module consists of four sequential investigations to introduce the multiple forms that matter and energy can take and to give students experience with the transfer of energy from one form to another. Light absorption and reflection is the focus of an entire investigation. Students also conduct and observe chemical reactions and are introduced to atoms and elements.

• Learn that light from the Sun is the source of most of the energy on Earth.
• Observe energy sources doing work and learn how energy (light, heat, motion, chemical, electric) can be converted from one form to another.
• Learn that stored energy take many forms; machines and organisms can convert energy into motion and heat.
• Describe how energy can be carried from one place to another by waves, electric current, and moving objects.
• Learn that light energy travels in straight lines from a source.
• Find out how light can reflect from the surface of a mirror.
• Learn that an object is seen only when light from that object enters an eye.
• Learn that white light is a mixture of all colors of light, that matter can absorb and reflect light, and that a shadow is the dark area behind objects that block light.
• Learn that the apparent color of an object is the result of the light it reflects; observe that the apparent colors of an object is affected by the color of light striking it.
• Explore properties of the three forms of matter (solid, liquid, and gas), including change of state.
• Use metric tools to measure mass, volume, and temperature and make multiple numerical observations to improve accuracy.
• Observe and analyze a chemical reaction.
• Collect and analyze data to develop logical conclusions.
• Predict the outcome of an event and compare the results with the prediction.

No Place Like Home (2016) -- https://goopenmichigan.org/courses/unit-3-3-no-place-like-home

Overview: Plants and Animals

Michigan Science Standards:

MI.SS.3.LS4.3 Grade 3

Standard: Construct an argument with evidence that in a particular habitat some organisms can survive well, some survive less well, and some cannot survive at all.

MI.SS.3.LS3.1 Grade 3

Standard: Analyze and interpret data to provide evidence that plants and animals have traits inherited from parents and that variation of these traits exists in a group of similar organisms.

MI.SS.3.LS4.1 Grade 3

Standard: Analyze and interpret data from fossils to provide evidence of the organisms and the environments in which they lived long ago.

MI.SS.3.LS1.1 Grade 3

Standard: Develop models to describe that organisms have unique and diverse life cycles but all have in common birth, growth, reproduction, and death.

Earth Materials (2005-2008) -- https://www.fossweb.com/module-summary?dDocName=D1445307

The Earth Materials Module consists of four sequential investigations dealing with observable characteristics of solid materials from the earth – rocks and minerals. The focus is on taking materials apart to find what they are made of and putting materials together to better understand their properties. The module introduces fundamental concepts in earth science and takes advantage of the students' intrinsic interest in the subject matter and in the physical world around them.

• Develop an interest in earth materials.
• Gain experiences with rocks and minerals.
• Understand the process of taking apart and putting together to find out about materials.
• Use measuring tools to gather data about rocks.
• Collect and organize data about rocks.
• Observe, describe, and record properties of minerals.
• Organize minerals on the basis of the property of hardness.
• Investigate the effect of vinegar (acid) on a specific mineral, calcite.
• Use evaporation to investigate rock composition.
• Learn that rocks are composed of minerals and that minerals cannot be physically separated into other materials.
• Compare their activities to the work of a geologist.
• Acquire vocabulary used in earth science.
• Exercise language and math skills in the context of science.
• Use scientific thinking processes to conduct investigations and build explanations: observing, communicating, comparing, and organizing.