science

Unit 1

Earth Science Part 1:

Geography Matters! The Earth's Land and Water

In this integrated Social Studies and Science Unit students will learn about Earth’s landforms and water features and how they affect the way that people live. Geography skills are taught to develop students spatial thinking and their ability to use geographic tools to describe the organization of people, places and environments. Surface features such as mountains, hills, valleys, and plains will examined as well as water features such as oceans, rivers, lakes, and ponds. Students will create models to represent these various features. Students will also understand that water on Earth can be fresh or salt and exist in it’s liquid or solid state. The distribution of water on Earth will be examined. Students will use their knowledge of the Earth's land and its features to analyze how regions form and change. Knowledge of New Jersey and United States geography are emphasized with a goal of enhancing not only name-place recognition, but to also foster an understanding of relationships between people and environments.

Earth Science Part 2: Changes to Earth's Land

Students will come to understand that Earth’s surface features change continuously. Some changes are fast and immediately observable, such as earthquakes, volcanoes, flooding, and landslides. Other changes are slower, occurring over a longer period of time, such as weathering and erosion. Students will develop and use models to explore weathering and erosion then engage in an erosion prevention design challenge.

Unit 2

Physical Science

Students will learn that different kinds of matter exist (e.g. wood, metal, water) and many of them can be either solid or liquid, depending on temperature. Students will describe and classify matter by its observable properties. Students will learn that a variety of objects can be built up from a small set of pieces and that heating or cooling a substance may cause changes that can be observed. Additionally students will engage in the engineering design process as they test different materials to determine which materials have the properties that are best suited for an intended purpose. Students will develop their ability to use scientific tools and measure.

Unit 3

Biodiversity and Dependence