All resources in Oregon Science

Flipping Pennies - Grade 3

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Elementary school lessons utilize local phenomenon and are organized by grade level. By organizing instruction around local phenomenon, students are provided with a reason to learn shifting the focus from learning about a disconnected topic to figuring out why or how something happens. #Going 3D with GRC

Material Type: Activity/Lab, Lesson Plan

Author: Jamie Rumage

Structure and Function - Grade 4

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Elementary school lessons utilize local phenomenon and are organized by grade level. By organizing instruction around local phenomenon, students are provided with a reason to learn shifting the focus from learning about a disconnected topic to figuring out why or how something happens. #Going 3D with GRC

Material Type: Activity/Lab, Lesson Plan

Author: Jamie Rumage

Patterns in Weather - Grade 3

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Elementary school lessons utilize local phenomenon and are organized by grade level. By organizing instruction around local phenomenon, students are provided with a reason to learn shifting the focus from learning about a disconnected topic to figuring out why or how something happens. #Going 3D with GRC

Material Type: Activity/Lab, Lesson Plan

Author: Jamie Rumage

Large Scale System Interactions - Grade 4

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Elementary school lessons utilize local phenomenon and are organized by grade level. By organizing instruction around local phenomenon, students are provided with a reason to learn shifting the focus from learning about a disconnected topic to figuring out why or how something happens. #Going 3D with GRC

Material Type: Activity/Lab, Lesson Plan

Author: Jamie Rumage

Earth Systems - Grade 5

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Elementary school lessons utilize local phenomenon and are organized by grade level. By organizing instruction around local phenomenon, students are provided with a reason to learn shifting the focus from learning about a disconnected topic to figuring out why or how something happens. #Going 3D with GRC

Material Type: Activity/Lab, Lesson Plan

Author: Jamie Rumage

Anchoring Phenomenon Routine for Third Grade Weather and Climate

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The Anchoring Phenomenon Routine is the launch to student investigation around the anchoring phenomenon. This phenomenon will be the one that students will describe and explain, using disciplinary core ideas, science and engineering practices and crosscutting concepts in investigations. The Anchoring Phenomenon Routine will encourage thoughtful consideration of the phenomenon, initial models, connections to related phenomenon, discussions about the phenomenon and the creation of the KLEWS chart used for documenting student learning. In an Anchoring Phenomenon Routine, ​students​: ● Are presented with a phenomenon or design problem ● Write and discuss what they notice and wonder about from the initial presentation ● Create and compare initial models of the phenomenon or problem ● Identify related experiences and knowledge that they could draw upon to explain the phenomenon or solve the problem ● Construct a KLEWS Chart ● Identify potential investigations to answer the questions on the KLEWS Chart, adding the questions to the chart

Material Type: Activity/Lab, Homework/Assignment

Authors: Michigan Mathematics & Science Leadership Network, Michigan Science Teachers Association

Anchoring Phenomenon Routine for Grade 4 - Structure, Function, and Information Processing

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The Anchoring Phenomenon Routine is the launch to student investigation around the anchoring phenomenon. This phenomenon will be the one that students will describe and explain, using disciplinary core ideas, science and engineering practices and crosscutting concepts in investigations. The Anchoring Phenomenon Routine will encourage thoughtful consideration of the phenomenon, initial models, connections to related phenomenon, discussions about the phenomenon and the creation of the KLEWS chart used for documenting student learning. In an Anchoring Phenomenon Routine, ​students​: ● ​Are presented with a phenomenon or design problem ● ​Write and discuss what they notice and wonder about from the initial presentation ● ​Create and compare initial models of the phenomenon or problem ● ​Identify related experiences and knowledge that they could draw upon to explain the phenomenon or solve the problem ● ​Construct a KLEWS Chart ● ​Identify potential investigations to answer the questions on the KLEWS Chart, adding the questions to the chart

Material Type: Activity/Lab, Homework/Assignment

Authors: Michigan Mathematics & Science Leadership, Michigan Science Teachers Association

Anchoring Phenomenon Routine for Grade 5 - Space Systems Systems, Stars and the Solar System

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The Anchoring Phenomenon Routine is the launch to student investigation around the anchoring phenomenon. This phenomenon will be the one that students will describe and explain, using disciplinary core ideas, science and engineering practices and crosscutting concepts in investigations. The Anchoring Phenomenon Routine will encourage thoughtful consideration of the phenomenon, initial models, connections to related phenomenon, discussions about the phenomenon and the creation of the KLEWS chart used for documenting student learning. In an Anchoring Phenomenon Routine, ​students​: ● ​Are presented with a phenomenon or design problem ● ​Write and discuss what they notice and wonder about from the initial presentation ● ​Create and compare initial models of the phenomenon or problem ● ​Identify related experiences and knowledge that they could draw upon to explain the phenomenon or solve the problem ● ​Construct a KLEWS Chart ● ​Identify potential investigations to answer the questions on the KLEWS Chart, adding the questions to the chart

Material Type: Activity/Lab, Homework/Assignment

Authors: Michigan Mathematics & Science Leadership Network, Michigan Science Teachers Association

Three I's of a Scientist - Explore Science Club Lesson Plan

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Let's practice thinking like a scientist! Check out the video from Dr. Tavis Forrester, Research Wildlife Biologist for the Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife. Then, in the Discovery Challenge video, we'll unlock mysteries that surround us by using the 3 I's of Scientist - I Notice, I Wonder, It Reminds Me Of. Lesson Credit: BEETLESproject.org. This lesson introduces NGSS standards, and those standards are listed in the lesson. Videos are part of the Explore Science Club series, an asynchronous online learning program using YouTube videos that connects elementary and middle school students to STEM professionals through hands-on lessons where students explore science and engineering practices related to the highlighted careers. There is an option to use FlipGrid, an online video recording platform for students to share their discoveries

Material Type: Activity/Lab, Lesson, Lesson Plan

Author: Carrie Caselton Lowe

Crash Force Bang! Explore Science Club Lesson Plan

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Let's explore some science and math around why seatbelts work. Check out the career video from Billie Jo Deal, Transportation Safety Coordinator from the Oregon Department of Transportation, about how she works to keep people safe on the roads. Then, in the Discovery Challenge, we build crash models and calculate restraining forces. This lesson introduces NGSS standards, and those standards are listed in the lesson. Videos are part of the Explore Science Club series, an asynchronous online learning program using YouTube videos that connects elementary and middle school students to STEM professionals through hands-on lessons where students explore science and engineering practices related to the highlighted careers. There is an option to use FlipGrid, an online video recording platform for students to share their discoveries More info: www.go-stem.org

Material Type: Activity/Lab

Author: Carrie Caselton Lowe

PEI SOLS 4th Grade Natural Hazards: Erosion

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What we see on Earth’s surface is a complex and dynamic set of interconnected systems that include the geosphere, hydrosphere, atmosphere, cryosphere and biosphere. Earth’s processes are the result of energy flow and matter cycling within and among these systems. Understanding Earth’s systems is important for many decisions made in communities today such as where to build a road, where a salmon can successfully build a redd to lay eggs, and how to ensure air quality. Erosion involves all five spheres giving students an excellent example of the interconnectedness of these large systems.  Students may begin the storyline by hearing a story about the relationship between the land and plants from an Indigenous perspective, a local tribe elder or expert if possible. This perspective can be woven throughout the storyline while students explore different types of erosion: wind, water and ice in sand and soil. For real life experiences, students visit their schoolyard or nearby area to find examples of erosion. They may find examples from very small to larger examples of places where soil has eroded. They may find places where human foot traffic has made pathways through a previously planted area.  

Material Type: Unit of Study

Author: Pacific Education Institute

Grade 5 - Elementary Science and Integrated Subjects: Where Do Plants Get What They Need to Grow?

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Elementary Science and Integrated Subjects is a statewide Clime Time collaboration among ESD 123, ESD 105, and the Office of Superintendent of Public Instruction. Development of the resources is in response to a need for research- based science lessons for elementary teachers that are integrated with English language arts, mathematics and other subjects such as social studies. The template for Elementary integration can serve as an organized, coherent and research-based roadmap for teachers in the development of their own NGSS aligned science lessons.  Lessons can also be useful for classrooms that have no adopted curriculum as well as to serve as enhancements for  current science curriculum. The EFSIS project brings together grade level teams of teachers to develop lessons or suites of lessons that are 1) focused on grade level Performance Expectations, and 2) leverage ELA and Mathematics Washington State Learning Standards.

Material Type: Activity/Lab, Lesson Plan, Module, Reading

Authors: Georgia Boatman, Barbara Soots, Ellen Ebert, Kimberley Astle, Washington OSPI OER Project

5th Science OSAS Practice 2021

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Help your students explore the Oregon Statewide Assessment System Grade 5 Science Sample Test in this slideshow with imbedded videos. The OSAS page has been updated, but all of the basics are still there. Each question is broken down in its own section - "Session 1 The Beach House." Before doing the question, we look at the objective and task by thinking like a scientist using CCC & SEP. Then we explore how to navigate the question. We break down the key elements of the question relating to the task. Students work the problem on their own. "Let's check out the answers" goes over strategies used to solve the task and the reasoning behind the answers. The video was made in the spring of 2021 to support distance learning.

Material Type: Assessment

Author: Larry Zurcher

Why Do Dead Things Disappear Over Time? — Next Generation science storylines

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In this fifth-grade unit on interrelationships in ecosystems, students investigate the apparent disappearance of the body of a dead raccoon over time. Their findings lead them to uncover the role of decomposers in this process, as well as the role of decomposers in the disappearance of plant debris over time. Students ultimately track down where the materials come from that all living things need for repair and growth and where the energy comes from that they use to move and stay warm. Resource from: NextGenStoryline.org

Material Type: Activity/Lab, Lesson Plan

Authors: Jamie Rumage, NextGenStorylines

Grade 3 - Forces and Interactions

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Portland Public Schools has developed this unit. Their hope is that ALL K-5 students will be able to access rigorous, standards-aligned science instruction that engages them in hands-on experiences and sense-making through student discourse. They want to encourage all students to be critical thinkers and lifelong learners. To that end, the science and ESL departments at Portland Public Schools, in consultation with NGSS writer Rita Januszyk, have developed units that are aligned with both Next Generation Science Standards and Oregon’s English Language Proficiency standards. In this unit, students investigate how to protect a passenger in a mock car crash. Students learn about forces, including magnetic forces, and how they interact with objects. Students engineer a solution to protect a play-dough model based on what they have learned. Language focus is on describing movement, patterns, and supporting claims with evidence.

Material Type: Activity/Lab, Lesson

Authors: Geoff Stonecipher, Jamie Rumage, Jennifer Mayo, Jennifer Scherzinger, Kate Yocum, Rita Januszkyk, Susan Holveck

Think Before You Eat: How Can We Reduce Plastic Pollution?

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The lessons in this project were developed as part of a collaborative effort between the Oregon Department of Education - Oregon Healthy Schools grant, and Multnomah ESD. Educators designed projects that integrated health or physical education standards with either math or science standards.  Project Summary:The project, “Think Before You Eat” is designed to provide students with a voice to be a change agent for their future environment and community. The motto for this unit, “If we know better, we do better.”Students will learn how plastic not only affects our earth's environment but also the harm it can have on us as individuals through the food chain. Students will identify these issues and develop new ways to create healthier alternatives for everyone by reducing plastic pollution. If we use less plastic, we eat less plastic. Students will create awareness in order to impact their communities.

Material Type: Lesson, Lesson Plan, Unit of Study

Author: Suzanne Hidde

Ecosystem Invasion! (3rd Grade Life Science Unit)

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This integrated 3rd grade unit addresses the NGSS Life Science bundles for Interdependent Relationships in Ecosystems (3-LS2-1, 3-LS4-3, and 3-LS4-4) and Inheritance and Variation of Traits: Life Cycles and Traits (3-LS1-1, 3-LS3-1, 3-LS3-2, and 3-LS4-2). Students embark on a mission to protect their native plants and animals by devising a plan to regulate and prevent the spread of invasive species in the area. Through a series of FOSS investigations and other OER (open educational resource) lessons and activities, students learn about how an organism’s traits aid in survival, how parents pass on traits to their offspring, and how the environment influences plant and animal traits and behaviors.

Material Type: Activity/Lab

Author: Pranjali Upadhyay