Lessons

Proposed Lesson Plan

  1. Organizing things into categories
  2. Solids, liquids and gases
  3. Air is a substance
  4. Matter I: particles
  5. Distinguishing materials
  6. Magnets and magnetic fields
  7. Matter II: air pressure and the Earth’s atmosphere
  8. Air: a mixture of gases (mixtures and chemical reactions)
  9. Matter III: evaporation and condensation
  10. Matter IV: dissolving, solutions, and crystallization
  11. Rocks, minerals, crystals, dirt and soil
  12. Distinguishing living, natural non-living, and human-made things
  13. Distinguishing between plants and animals: the plant and animal kingdoms
  14. Life cycles
  15. Identification of living things
  16. What is a species?
  17. Food chains and adaptations
  18. How animals move I: the skeleton and muscle system
  19. How animals move II: different body designs; major animal phyla
  20. How animals move III: coordinating body movements; the nervous system
  21. How animals move IV: energy to run the body
  22. Plant science I: basic plant structure
  23. Plant science II: germination, seedling growth, and responses
  24. Plants, soil, and water
  25. Concepts of energy I: making things go!
  26. Sound, vibrations and energy
  27. Concepts of energy II: kinetic and potential energy
  28. Concepts of energy III: distinguishing matter and energy
  29. Inertia
  30. Friction
  31. Push pushes back
  32. Gravity I: Earth’s gravity; horizontal and vertical
  33. Day and night; the Earth’s rotation
  34. Reading and drawing maps
  35. North, south, east and west
  36. Land forms and major biomes of the Earth
  37. Time and the Earth’s turning
  38. Seasonal changes and the Earth’s orbit
  39. Gravity II: rate of fall; weightlessness in space, the distinction between mass and weight
  40. Rocks and fossils
  41. Atomic/molecular motion I: Brownian motion and diffusion
  42. Atomic/molecular motion II: relationship to temperature
  43. Atomic/molecular motion I: heat and pressure
  44. Chemical elements and compounds
  45. Will it sink or float? The concept of density
  46. How metal ships float; making a hydrometer
  47. Heat, volume and density
  48. Convection currents
  49. Cells I: microscopes, observations of tissues, and cell theory
  50. Cells II: cell growth, division, and diffferentiation
  51. Cells III: integrating cells and whole-body functions
  52. Microscopic organisms I: their multitude and diversity
  53. Microscopic organisms II: single-celled organisms
  54. Fungi and bacteria I: their role as decomposers in nature
  55. Fungi and bacteria II: decomposers vs. food storage and preparation
  56. Fungi and bacteria III: decomposers vs. disease and health
  57. The life of plants I: gardening for food, fun and learning
  58. The life of plants II: how a plant grows its parts
  59. How things fly
  60. Center of gravity, balance and wobbling wheels
  61. Movement, energy, and momentum
  62. Mechanics I: levers and discovery of the underlying principle
  63. Mechanics II: inclined planes, pulleys, gears, and hydraulic lifts
  64. Electricity I: electric circuits, switches, conductors, and non-conductors
  65. Electricity II: static electricity, sparks, and lightning
  66. Electricity III: parallel and series circuits, short circuits, fuses, and ground wires
  67. Light: the basics of seeing
  68. Cause of seasonal changes
  69. Mapping the Earth: latitude and longitude
  70. The water cycle and its ramifications
  71. Earthquakes, volcanoes, and the movements of tectonic plates
  72. Climate and weather: wet tropics and dry deserts
  73. Carbon dioxide and regulation of climate

This curriculum is based on Dr. Bernard J. Nebel’s excellent “Building Foundations of Scientific Understanding”, volumes 1 and 2, for grades K-5.

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