Scientists
Big Ideas – Term Two
Living things have life cycles adapted to their environment.
Sample questions to support inquiry with students
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- Why are life cycles important?
- How are the life cycles of local plants and animals similar and different?
- How do offspring compare to their parents?
Students are expected to know the following:
- metamorphic life cycles of different organisms: body structure changes (e.g., caterpillar to butterfly, mealworm transformation, tadpoles to frog)
- non-metamorphic life cycles of different organisms: organism keeps same body structure through life but size changes (e.g., humans)
- similarities and differences between offspring and parent
- a kitten looks like cat and a puppy looks like dog but they do change as they grow; salmon change a great deal as they grow and need fresh and salt water environments to survive
First Peoples use of their knowledge of life cycles
- stewardship: sustainably gathering plants and hunting/fishing in response to seasons and animal migration patterns (e.g., clam gardens, seasonal rounds, etc.)
- sustainable fish hatchery programs run by local First Peoples
Big Ideas – Term One
Materials can be changed through physical and chemical processes
All matter is made of particles.
Key Questions
- Why would we want to change the physical properties of an object?
- What are some natural processes that involve chemical and physical changes?
- Why is matter known as the material of the universe?
- How are matter and energy related?
Learning Standards
- matter is anything that has mass and takes up space
- atoms are building blocks of matter
- sources of thermal energy
- Sources: thermal energy can be produced by chemical reactions (e.g., hand warmers), friction between moving objects, the sun, etc.
- Thermal energy: the energy that comes from the movement of particles within matter
- transfer of thermal energy
- conduction (touching — e.g., hold an ice cube)
- convection (through a liquid — e.g., hot water can heat a mug)
- radiation (through space by a wave — e.g., heat from the sun)
- physical ways of changing materials
- warming, cooling, cutting, bending, stirring, mixing
- materials may be combined or physically changed to be used in different ways (e.g., plants can be ground up and combined with other materials to make dyes)
- chemical ways of changing materials
- cooking, burning, etc.
- water sources including local watersheds
- oceans, lakes, rivers, wells, springs
- the majority of fresh water is stored underground and in glaciers
- water conservation
- fresh water is a limited resource and is not being replaced at the same rate as it is being used
- the water cycle
- The water cycle is driven by the sun and includes evaporation, condensation, precipitation, and runoff. The water cycle is also a major component of weather (e.g., precipitation, clouds).
Curricular competencies
- Demonstrate curiosity about the natural world
- Ask questions about familiar objects and events
- Transfer and apply learning to new situations