GET YOUR BEARINGS ALIGNMENT WITH
NEXT GENERATION SCIENCE STANDARDS
The activities in this unit help children understand the basic concepts in the Disciplinary Core Ideas listed here. You can use the following list as a guide for lesson planning. These Disciplinary Core Ideas are taken from Grade Band Endpoints in A Framework for K-12 Science Education. Additionally, our activities give children opportunities to engage in many of the Science and Engineering Practices and reflect on the Crosscutting Concepts as identified in the Next Generation Science Standards.
Grades K-2 Disciplinary Core Ideas
PS4C: People use their senses to learn about the world around them. Their eyes detect light, their ears detect sound, and they can feel vibrations by touch. People also use a variety of devices to communicate (send and receive information) over long distances. p.137
LS1D: Animals have body parts that capture and convey different kinds of information needed for growth and survival – for example, eyes for light, ears for sounds, and skin for temperature or touch. Animals respond to these inputs with behaviors that help them survive (e.g. find food, run from a predator). p.149
ESS1B: Seasonal patterns of sunrise and sunset can be observed, described, and predicted. p.176
ESS2B: Maps show where things are located. One can map the shapes and kinds of land and water in any area. p.183
ETS2A: There are many types of tools produced by engineering that can be used in science to help answer these questions through observation or measurement. p.211
Grades 3-5 Disciplinary Core Ideas
PS2B: Electric, magnetic & gravitational forces between a pair of objects do not require that the objects be in contact – for example, magnets push or pull at a distance. p.117
LS1A: Plants and animals have both internal and external structures that serve various functions in growth, survival, behavior and reproduction. p.144
LS1D: Different sense receptors are specialized for particular kinds of information, which may then be processed and integrated by an animal’s brain, with some information stored as memories. Animals are able to use their perceptions and memories to guide their actions. Some responses to information are instinctive – that is, animals’ brains are organized so that they do not have to think about how to respond to certain stimuli. p.149
ESS1B: Stars appear in patterns called constellations, which can be used for navigation. p.176
ESS2B: Maps can help locate the different land and water features where people live in other areas of Earth. p.183
ETS2A: Tools and instruments (e.g., rulers, balances, thermometers, graduated cylinders, telescopes, microscopes) are used in scientific exploration to gather data and help answer questions about the natural world. p.211
Grades 6-8 Disciplinary Core Ideas
LS1D: Each sense receptor responds to different inputs (electromagnetic, mechanical, chemical), transmitting them as signals that travel along nerve cells to the brain. The signals are then processed in the brain, resulting in immediate behaviors or memories. Changes in the structure and functioning of many millions of interconnected nerve cells allow combined inputs to be stored as memories for long periods of time. p.149
GET YOUR BEARINGS ALIGNMENT
WITH COMMON CORE STANDARDS
In addition to science content, activities in this unit also can help students to practice the following mathematics and language arts concepts. The Common Core Standards listed here are in addition to the ones that our activities typically address, as listed in the Four Winds document, The Nature Program: Alignment with Learning Standards.
Grades 3-5 Common Core Standards
Reading for Informational Text Standard 7: Use information gained from illustrations (e.g., maps, photographs) to demonstrate understanding (e.g., where, when, why, and how key events occur).
Mathematics Standard 4.MD: An angle is measured with reference to a circle with its center at the common endpoint of the rays, by considering the fraction of the circular arc between the points where the two rays intersect the circle. An angle that turns through 1/360 of a circle is called a “one-degree angle,” and can be used to measure angles.
Nearby Nature 