prediction and propose an explanation.

a. A list of materials needed.

b. A diagram, with important elements labeled, that supports

procedures and illustrates the setup .

c. A procedure that lists steps sequentially (beginning, middle,

d. Appropriate timing between observations (intervals) and/or

with appropriate units.

with expectations.

when applicable.

a. Recording varying degrees of color, shading or texture

and consistent proportion throughout.

b. Labeling significant parts of a scientific drawing or diagram

and includes a key if necessary.

and justifying groupings.

chart or diagram) to represent their findings most accurately.

necessary keys.

correctly.

data.

connecting a classroom model to a real-world example.

remains the same (e.g., water and gravel mixture, or a

of water equals the total weight of the sugar solution).

Science Concepts:

a. All matter has weight that can be measured.

b. The weight of the whole is the same as the sum of the

parts.

c. Most objects/substances are made of smaller parts.

Science Concepts:

a. Solids, liquids and gases are states of matter that can be

observed, described, and measured.

b. Gases take up as much space as you give them.

balloon or a bag) and describing how pressure on the container

changes when the volume of the gas changes.

Science Concepts:

a. Gas is a state of matter that takes up space.

• Investigating and explaining what happens to liquids in open containers.

Science Concepts:

a. Adding heat can change a substance from a solid, to a liquid, to a gas.

can change the direction and speed of an object in motion.

Science Concepts:

a. Changes in speed or direction of motion are caused by

forces.

b. The greater the force, the greater the change of motion.

circuits and explaining why electricity flows or does not

flow through the circuit.

conductors and insulators.

a. A complete loop is needed through which an electric

charge can flow.

b. Batteries are a source of electrical energy.

c. Electric circuits can produce light, run motors and create

sounds.

d. Certain materials are conductors of electricity. Non conductors

of electricity are called insulators.

magnet are placed near each other.

a. Magnets have opposite charged poles.

b. When the same poles of a magnet are placed near each

other the magnets are repelled.

describing how light rays reflect off of objects.

shadows).

Science Concepts:

a. Light maintains direction of motion until it interacts

with another object.

b. Light can be reflected or absorbed.

organism allows it to survive and defend itself (e.g., The

coloring of a fiddler crab allows it to camouflage itself in

the sand and grasses of its environment so that it will be

protected from predators. A rose is protected by its

thorns.).

Science Concept:

a. Organisms have characteristics that help them find what

they need to survive in their environment and provide for

their survival:

a. A characteristic of an organism is that it has a life cycle that

involves being born, developing into adulthood, reproducing

and dying. Details of a life cycle are different for different

organisms.

an Ecosystem by…

Science Concept:

a. Energy derived from food is needed for all organisms

(plants and animals) to stay alive and grow.

begins with plants.

meets the needs of the organisms that live there.

Science Concept:

a. Food for animals can be traced back to plants.

b. Organisms can survive best only in habitats in which their

needs are met.

to survive.

Science Concept:

a. Organisms interact with one another in various ways

besides providing food (e.g., Many plants depend on animals

for carrying their pollen to other plants for fertilizing

their flowers).

Vermont Department of Education (Science Grade Expectations)

of Organisms by…

based on structural similarities and differences (e.g., All

pine, spruce and evergreen trees have similar leaf structures;

Spiders have eight legs, and insects have six).

Science Concept:

a. The great variety of living things can be sorted into

groups in many ways using various characteristics to decide

which things belong to which group.

of organism (e.g., dogs with long hair or short hair; humans

with blue or brown eyes).

Science Concept:

a. Organisms of the same kind differ in their individual

characteristics (traits) (e.g., Even though all dogs are of

the same species, they can have very different traits.).

parent.

Science Concepts:

a. Some similarities between children and parents such as

eye color, are inherited.

a. There are external and internal structures that provide

for the survival needs of human organisms.

- Skin protects the body from harmful substances and

other organisms and from drying out.

- The skeletal system provides shape and protection for the

body’s organs.

- The brain gets/gives signals from/to all parts of the body

"telling" the body what to do.

- From food, people obtain nutrients and other materials

for body repair and growth. The un-digestible parts of

food are eliminated. Key structures are mouth, esophagus,

stomach, intestine and anus.

- By breathing, people take in the oxygen that they need to

live. Key structure is the lung.

from harmful germs.

Science Concepts:

a. If germs are able to get inside a person’s body, they may

keep it from working properly. Tears, saliva, and skin

protect our bodies from germs.

from the sun.

Science Concepts:

a. The earth is one of several planets that orbit the sun, and

the moon orbits the earth.

b. Like all planets and stars, the earth is approximately

spherical in shape. The rotation of the earth on its axis

every 24 hours produces the night and day cycle.

Science Concepts:

a. Stars are like the sun, but so far away that they look like

points of light. Some are smaller; some are larger than the

sun.

b. The patterns of the stars stay the same, although they

appear to move across the sky.

Recognizing and identifying the four basic materials of the

Observing and describing the properties of rocks.

Science Concepts:

a. Soil is made partly from rock, partly from plant remains

and also contains many living organisms.

b. Earth materials are solid rocks, soils, water and the

gases of the atmosphere.

c. Rock is composed of different combinations of minerals.

Large rocks can be broken down into small rocks.

d. Rocks have properties of color, texture and hardness.

Rocks can be classified by their physical properties.

a stream table.

models created in the classroom.

Science Concept:

a. Waves, wind, water and ice shape and reshape the

earth’s land surface by eroding rock and soil in some areas

and depositing them in other areas.

making predictions based on that data.

reappears as a liquid when it is cooled.

the formation of clouds.

Science Concepts:

a. Weather changes from day to day and over the seasons.

Weather can be described by measurable quantities (such

as temperature, wind direction and speed, precipitation and

air pressure.

b. Air is a substance that surrounds us, takes up space and

whose movement we feel as wind.

c. Liquid water is changed by heat from the sun to gas

(vapor) and returns to a liquid or solid state when cooled

to the freezing point.

d. Clouds and fog are made of small drops of water.

resources.

resources make them suitable for use by humans.

Science Concepts:

a. The varied earth materials have different physical and

chemical properties, which make them useful in different

ways, for example, as building materials, as sources of

fuel, for growing the plants we use as food, or supporting

animal life. Earth materials provide many of the resources

that humans use.

b. Earth materials have chemical and physical properties

that make them useful as building materials, or for growing

plants or for fuel.