Science

Grade 4: Smithsonian Science Topics and Disciplinary Core Ideas Covered

What is Our Evidence That We Live on a Changing Earth? (11/11/19 - 2/3/20)

Disciplinary Core Ideas

• Local, regional, and global patterns of rock formations reveal changes over time due to Earth forces, such as earthquakes. The presence and location of certain fossil types indicate the order in which rock layers were formed.

• Rainfall helps shape the land and affects the types of living things found in a region. Water, ice, wind, living organisms, and gravity break rocks, soils, and sediments into smaller particles and move them around.

• The locations of mountain ranges, deep ocean trenches, ocean floor structures, earthquakes, and volcanoes occur in patterns. Most earthquakes and volcanoes occur in bands that are often along the boundaries between continents and oceans. Major mountain chains form inside continents or near their edges. Maps can help locate the different land and water features areas of Earth.

• Living things affect the physical characteristics of their regions.

• A variety of hazards result from natural processes (e.g., earthquakes, tsunamis, volcanic eruptions). Humans cannot eliminate the hazards but can take steps to reduce their impacts.

• Waves, which are regular patterns of motion, can be made in water by disturbing the surface. When waves move across the surface of deep water, the water goes up and down in place; there is no net motion in the direction of the wave except when the water meets a beach.

• Waves of the same type can differ in amplitude (height of the wave) and wavelength (spacing between wave peaks).

• Possible solutions to a problem are limited by available materials and resources (constraints). The success of a designed solution is determined by considering the desired features of a solution (criteria). Different proposals for solutions can be compared on the basis of how well each one meets the specified criteria for success or how well each takes the constraints into account.

• Research on a problem should be carried out before beginning to design a solution. Testing a solution involves investigating how well it performs under a range of likely conditions.

• Tests are often designed to identify failure points or difficulties, which suggest the elements of the design that need to be improved. (3-5-ETS1-3)*

How Can We Provide Energy to People’s Homes? (2/3/20 - 4/13/20)

Disciplinary Core Ideas

• Energy can be moved from place to place by moving objects or through sound, light, or electric currents.

• Energy is present whenever there are moving objects, sound, light, or heat. When objects collide, energy can be transferred from one object to another, thereby changing their motion. In such collisions, some energy is typically also transferred to the surrounding air; as a result, the air gets heated and sound is produced.

• Light also transfers energy from place to place.

• Energy can also be transferred from place to place by electric currents, which can then be used locally to produce motion, sound, heat, or light. The currents may have been produced to begin with by transforming the energy of motion into electrical energy.

• The expression “produce energy” typically refers to the conversion of stored energy into a desired form for practical use.

• Energy and fuels that humans use are derived from natural sources, and their use affects the environment in multiple ways. Some resources are renewable over time, and others are not.

• Possible solutions to a problem are limited by available materials and resources (constraints). The success of a designed solution is determined by considering the desired features of a solution (criteria). Different proposals for solutions can be compared on the basis of how well each one meets the specified criteria for success or how well each takes the constraints into account.

• Research on a problem should be carried out before beginning to design a solution. Testing a solution involves investigating how well it performs under a range of likely conditions.

• At whatever stage, communicating with peers about proposed solutions is an important part of the design process, and shared ideas can lead to improved designs.

• Tests are often designed to identify failure points or difficulties, which suggest the elements of the design that need to be improved.

• Different solutions need to be tested in order to determine which of them best solves the problem, given the criteria and the constraints.

Topic: How Does Matter Energy Change in Collisions (4/20/20-6/22/20)

Disciplinary Core Ideas

• The faster a given object is moving, the more energy it possesses.

• Energy can be moved from place to place by moving objects or through sound, light, or electric currents.

• Energy is present whenever there are moving objects, sound, light, or heat. When objects collide, energy can be transferred from one object to another, thereby changing their motion. In such collisions, some energy is typically also transferred to the surrounding air; as a result, the air gets heated and sound is produced.

• Light also transfers energy from place to place.

• When objects collide, the contact forces transfer energy so as to change the objects’ motions.

• Plants and animals have both internal and external structures that serve various functions in growth, survival, behavior, and reproduction.

• Possible solutions to a problem are limited by available materials and resources (constraints). The success of a designed solution is determined by considering the desired features of a solution (criteria). Different proposals for solutions can be compared on the basis of how well each one meets the specified criteria for success or how well each takes the constraints into account.

• Research on a problem should be carried out before beginning to design a solution. Testing a solution involves investigating how well it performs under a range of likely conditions.

• At whatever stage, communicating with peers about proposed solutions is an important part of the design process, and shared ideas can lead to improved designs.

• Tests are often designed to identify failure points or difficulties, which suggest the elements of the design that need to be improved.

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