4th Grade Science Information

Dear Parents /Guardians,

As a part of the curriculum for fourth grade, your child will be learning fundamental science core ideas, science and engineering practices, and crosscutting concepts that will enhance their understanding of the natural and designed worlds. We hope that at home you will support your child’s curiosity about the worlds around them.

In the first unit, Structure, Function & Information Processing, your child will extend their experiences of the life sciences. Using phenomena associated with the senses, your child will make observations, develop models to explain their thinking. Emphasis will be that animal systems receive different types of information through their senses, process the information in their brain, and respond to the information in different ways. They will learn that plants and animals have internal and external structures that are components of systems that support their survival, growth, behavior and reproduction. They will design a model of a mythical creature, explain reasons for their choice of structures, and argue how the structures provide the functions that are beneficial to their creature’s survival.

In the second unit, Energy, your will your child learn about energy systems. Using hands-on investigations, your child will come to understand the relationship between the speed of an object and the energy of the object, that energy is conserved as it is transferred and/or converted from one form to another, and that changesw in energy occur when objects collide. Your child will explore energy and fuels that are derived from natural resources and how their uses affect the environment, as well as learning about alternative energy sources and the pros and cons that are considered in decision making processes.

In the third unit, Waves: Waves and Information, your child will continue learning about Physical Science topics. Using information from several sources, they will develop models of waves that will help them describe patterns and what causes objcts to move. Students will explored the evolution of patterns and codes used in communication. Also, they will apply what they have learned to solve an engineering challenge by designing and testing devices that convert energy from one form to another to communicate information over a distance. The students will use real world events and phenomena that will encourage them to explored these concepts and the role they play in the 21st century.

In the fourth unit, Earth Systems: Processes that Shape The Earth, your child will learn about Earth systems. Using information from several sources, your child will make observations, prediction and will provide evidence that Earth has pattrn in rock formations and layers. They will continue to study changes that occur in Earth's landscape over time. Students will provide evidence of the effects of weathering over time based on erosion by water, wind, ice or vegetation. Fourth graders will use maps to describe the patterns of Earth's features. They will also generate and compare multiple solutions to reduce the impacts of natural Earth proccesses on humans. 

Developmentally, fourth grade students are working towards becoming abstract thinkers. To support this, your child will be working with and designing many hands-on materials/experiments, recording their findings and experiencing many authentic learning opportunities. A fourth-grade student is much more independent in their thinking and problem solving. They will be making predictions, discussing and elaborating on their experiments and exploring the “why” of each lesson. These science lessons are active and engaging. Your student will become a fourth-grade biologist, and you will be amazed at all their learning!

Thank you for being a partner in your child’s education.

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