3rd Grade Science Standards

Animal Development and Survival

• The stages of an animal’s life cycle include birth, growth, reproduction, and death.

• The stages of a plant’s life cycle include seed, seedling, plant with leaves, and an adult plant.

• Animals that live in groups help each other get food, protect themselves and others, and adapt to changes in their environment.

Environments and the Traits of Organisms

• Organisms inherit looks from their parents.

• Organisms learn behaviors to help them survive in their environment.

• Organisms adapt to their environment.

• Changes in an organism’s environment affect the organisms living there.

Organisms Change over Time

• Fossils give us information about the types of organisms that lived long ago.

• Fossils give us information about the types of environments in which organisms lived.

• Organisms had differences in characteristics to help them survive, find mates, and reproduce.

• Fossils can give us information about why organisms might have died.

Dealing with Hazardous Weather Worldwide

• Weather occurs constantly, while climate is average weather conditions of an area taken over a long period of time.

• Scientists record weather patterns so they can make predictions about future weather and identify changes in climate.

• Natural hazards, such as floods, hurricanes, tornados, droughts, blizzards, and landslides, cannot be eliminated, but people can take steps to reduce their impacts.

Using Magnetic Force

• Balanced forces are separate forces on an object that together do not change the motion of the object.

• Unbalanced forces are separate forces that change the motion of the object.

• Objects made of iron or steel are magnetic.

• Magnets can move magnetic objects without touching them.

• A push or pull in any direction causes motion.

• The direction and how far an object will travel can be predicted by the direction and amount of the force used.