Kindergarten-Fifth Grade

Standard #2:  Students understand the "big ideas" of science: the unifying concepts of the life sciences, physical sciences, and earth and space sciences.

Standard #3:  Students have a deep understanding of the key concepts, principles, phenomena, and basic factual material include in at least one of the following subjects: biology, chemistry, or physics.

Standard #4:  Students understand how humans use technology and the design process to respond to the natural world and to solve everyday problems. 

Standard #5:  Students understand humankind's interactions with nature over time, the technologies we have developed, the benefits and consequences of our actions, and the impact of science. 

Standard #6:  Students connect the study of science and technology to a variety of career opportunities.
 

Standard #1: Students ask appropriate scientific questions, recognize experimental approaches to answering such questions, and develop their own answers to many questions through personal observation and experimentation.

Standard #2: Students gather scientific information through observation and experimentation in the laboratory and in the field; through questioning and interviewing; and through library work and other information-gathering activities.

Standard #3: Students organize the results obtained by observation, experimentation, questioning, interviewing, and library work, differentiating between evidence, inference, and opinion; they check and revise their explanations against scientific knowledge, experiences, and the observations of others.

Standard #4: Students communicate the results obtained by observation, experimentation, questioning, interviewing, and library work, through models, illustrations, narratives, and oral presentations.

Standard #5: Students research, analyze, and evaluate social, environmental, and personal challenges, problems and concerns, through observation, experimentation, research, and the application of the unifying concepts of science.

Standard #6: Students utilize appropriate technologies (including calculator-based laboratories, micro-computer based laboratories, CD-ROM, laser discs, and telecommunications), to expand their own capacity to obtain, utilize, and present information effectively, and to apply science principles to the solution of design/ engineering problems.
 
 
 
 
 
 

The Curriculum Frameworks for each grade are arranged according to three categories: 
       Student Requirements, Content Objectives (Topics), and Skill Objectives.  Below are brief descriptions of each category.

1.  Student Requirements:  These are tasks students must complete as a condition of course completion.

2.  Content Objectives:  Each topic is described in five sections:

a. Key Questions:  These are open ended, non-judgmental, inquiry-promoting questions that invite exploration of concrete, yet wide-ranging issues and problems.  They do not address generic issues, such as ôpatternsö or ôchange,ö nor do they ask for answers to specific queries, such as, ôWhat is the speed of light?ö  To answer these questions well students must:

  1.engage in disciplined inquiry, emphasizing the use of evidence, inference, and model building.
  2.deeply understand key concepts and principles.
  3.reference key people, events, phenomena, discoveries, documents, etc.
  4.make connections between the content, their experiences, and the world outside of school.
  5.communicate their findings clearly and precisely.

b. Key Concepts, Principles, Lessons, and Phenomena:  These are the concepts, and lessons students must understand.  Students will be able to clearly explain them, using real-world examples, apply them to the solution of real-world problems, and reference them when answering Key Questions.

c. Entry Points and Applications:  These are people, events, objects, ideas, and themes that are especially provocative, illustrative, or accessible.  They serve as entry points for, or examples/applications of, the content of each topic.  Students will use these to enter, illuminate, or apply their knowledge of the topic, and to answer Key Questions.

3.  Skill Objectives:

      a. Skills and Processes:  These are skills students must develop to conduct scientific inquiry.

      b. Technologies and Instruments:  These are items students will learn to use.

4. The Science Domains: Grade Level Content Connections

 The topics of each grade are aligned with the Massachusetts Curriculum Frameworks Science and Technology Curriculum Content Chapter: Owning the Questions.  Each Framework Strand has been woven into the BPS Curriculum Framework.  Inquiry appears in the Key and Sub-Questions of each topic.  The Technology and Human Affairs Strands are woven throughout the Key Questions; the Key Concepts, Principles, Lessons, and Phenomena; the Entry Points and Applications; and the Technologies and Instruments sections of the BPS Curriculum Framework. 
 In the section entitled "The Science Domains: Grade Level Content Connections", the Key Concepts, Principles, Lessons, and Phenomena from the BPS Curriculum Frameworks have been arranged in the appropriate Domains of Science (Life, Physical, and Earth and Space Sciences), as defined by the Massachusetts Curriculum Frameworks, to illustrate the connections between the Massachusetts and the BPS curriculum frameworks.