Resources for Teachers
Curriculum Overview
Kindergarten
Unit 1: What do plants need to survive?
Unit 2: What do animals need to survive?
Unit 3: What do humans need to survive?
Unit 4: Why is weather forecasting important?
Unit 5: What is the relationship between the needs of plants, animals, and humans and the places they live?
Unit 6: How can we reduce the impact of humans on the environment?
NGSS Standards: K-LS1-1, K-ESS2-2, K-ESS3-1, K-ESS3-3, K-PS3-2,K-ESS2-1, K-ESS3-2
1st Grade
Unit 1: Why do individuals of the same species vary in how they look, function, and behave?
Unit 2: How do parents help offspring survive?
Unit 3: How can we use observations of the sun to predict patterns?
NGSS Standards: 1-ESS1-1, 1-ESS1-2, 1-LS1-2, 1-LS3-1
2nd Grade
Unit 1: Do plants need sunlight and water to grow?
Unit 2: How do plants and animals in different habitats vary from one another?
Unit 3: What role do animals play in pollination and seed dispersal?
Unit 4: How are materials classified?
Unit 5: How is soil classified?
Unit 6: Which materials have the properties that are best suited for the intended purpose?
Unit 7: Where is water found on earth?
NGSS Standards: 2-LS2-1, 2-LS2-2, 2-LS4-1, 2-PS1-1, 2-PS1-2, 2-ESS1-1, 2-ESS2-2, 2-ESS2-3, K-2-ETS1-2, K-2-ETS1-3
3rd Grade
Unit 1: Do plants need sunlight and water to grow?
Unit 2: How do plants and animals in different habitats vary from one another?
Unit 3: What role do animals play in pollination and seed dispersal?
Unit 4: How are materials classified?
Unit 5: How is soil classified?
Unit 6: Which materials have the properties that are best suited for the intended purpose?
Unit 7: Where is water found on earth?
NGSS Standards: 2-LS2-1, 2-LS2-2 , 2-LS4-1, 2-PS1-1 , 2-PS1-2, 2-ESS1-1, 2-ESS2-2, 2-ESS2-3, K-2-ETS1-2, K-2-ETS1-3
4th Grade
Unit 1: What internal and external structures do plants have that function to support survival, growth, behavior, and reproduction?
Unit 2: What internal and external structures do animals have that function to support survival, growth, behavior, and reproduction?
Unit 3: How do animals respond to different types of information received through their senses?
Unit 4: What are the effects of weathering and erosion?
Unit 5: How can maps be used to describe patterns of Earth’s features?
Unit 6: How does the use of energy and fuels affect the environment?
Unit 7: How can the impacts of natural earth processes on humans be reduced?
NGSS Standards: 4-LS1-1, 4-LS1-2, 4-PS3-2, 4-PS3-4, 4-ESS3-1, 4-ESS2-1, 4-ESS2-2, 4-ESS3-2, 3-5-ETS1-1, 3-5-ETS1-2, 3-5-ETS1-3
5th Grade
Unit 1: What is matter made of?
Unit 2: What observations and measurements can be used to identify materials?
Unit 3: Where did the energy in animals’ food come from?
Unit 4: Can plants grow without soil?
Unit 5: How does matter and energy move through an ecosystem?
Unit 6: How can science ideas be used to protect the Earth’s resources and environment?
Unit 7: How do the geosphere, biosphere, hydrosphere, and/or atmosphere interact?
NGSS Standards: 5-PS2-1, 5-PS1-1, 5-PS1-3, 5-PS1-2, 5-PS3-1, 5-LS1-1, 5-LS2-1, 5-ESS1-2, 5-ESS2-1, 3-5-ETS1-2, 3-5-ETS1-3, 5-ESS2-2, 5-ESS3-1