Science & Math
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Alabama Standards Alignment
Science Lessons
Math Lessons
| Generation Genius Lesson | Standards Document | Grade | State ID | Standard Category | Standards | Sort |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Pushes and Pulls; | AL Course of Study | Kindergarten | 1 | Motion and Stability: Forces and Interactions | Investigate the resulting motion of objects when forces of different strengths and directions act upon them (e.g., object being pushed, object being pulled, two objects colliding). | 1 |
| Pushes and Pulls; | AL Course of Study | Kindergarten | 2 | Motion and Stability: Forces and Interactions | Use observations and data from investigations to determine if a design solution (e.g., designing a ramp to increase the speed of an object in order to move a stationary object) solves the problem of using force to change the speed or direction of an object. | 1 |
| Living vs. Non-Living Things; | AL Course of Study | Kindergarten | 3 | Ecosystems: Interactions, Energy, and Dynamics | Distinguish between living and nonliving things and verify what living things need to survive (e.g., animals needing food, water, and air; plants needing nutrients, water, sunlight, and air). | 1 |
| Living Things Change Their Environment; | AL Course of Study | Kindergarten | 4 | Ecosystems: Interactions, Energy, and Dynamics | Gather evidence to support how plants and animals provide for their needs by altering their environment (e.g., tree roots breaking a sidewalk to provide space, red fox burrowing to create a den to raise young, humans growing gardens for food and building roads for transportation). | 1 |
| Habitats; | AL Course of Study | Kindergarten | 5 | Ecosystems: Interactions, Energy, and Dynamics | Construct a model of a natural habitat (e.g., terrarium, ant farm, diorama) conducive to meeting the needs of plants and animals native to Alabama. | 1 |
| Reducing Our Impact on Earth; Natural Resources; | AL Course of Study | Kindergarten | 6 | Ecosystems: Interactions, Energy, and Dynamics | Identify and plan possible solutions (e.g., reducing, reusing, recycling) to lessen the human impact on the local environment. | 1 |
| Sunlight Warms the Earth; | AL Course of Study | Kindergarten | 7 | Earth’s Systems | Observe and describe the effects of sunlight on Earth’s surface (e.g., heat from the sun causing evaporation of water or increased temperature of soil, rocks, sand, and water). | 1 |
| Sunlight Warms the Earth; | AL Course of Study | Kindergarten | 8 | Earth’s Systems | Design and construct a device (e.g., hat, canopy, umbrella, tent) to reduce the effects of sunlight. | 1 |
| Introduction to Weather; | AL Course of Study | Kindergarten | 9 | Earth’s Systems | Observe, record, and share findings of local weather patterns over a period of time (e.g., increase in daily temperature from morning to afternoon, typical rain and storm patterns from season to season). | 1 |
| Introduction to Weather; | AL Course of Study | Kindergarten | 10 | Earth and Human Activity | Ask questions to obtain information about the purpose of weather forecasts in planning for, preparing for, and responding to severe weather. | 1 |
| Introduction to Sound; | AL Course of Study | Grade 1 | 1 | Waves and Their Applications in Technologies for Information Transfer | Conduct experiments to provide evidence that vibrations of matter can create sound (e.g., striking a tuning fork, plucking a guitar string) and sound can make matter vibrate (e.g., holding a piece of paper near a sound system speaker, touching your throat while speaking). | 1 |
| Introduction to Light; | AL Course of Study | Grade 1 | 2 | Waves and Their Applications in Technologies for Information Transfer | Construct explanations from observations that objects can be seen only when light is available to illuminate them (e.g., moon being illuminated by the sun, colors and patterns in a kaleidoscope being illuminated when held toward a light). | 1 |
| Introduction to Light; | AL Course of Study | Grade 1 | 3 | Waves and Their Applications in Technologies for Information Transfer | Investigate materials to determine which types allow light to pass through (e.g., transparent materials such as clear plastic wrap), allow only partial light to pass through (e.g., translucent materials such as wax paper), block light (e.g., opaque materials such as construction paper), or reflect light (e.g., shiny materials such as aluminum foil). | 1 |
| Communication Over Distances; | AL Course of Study | Grade 1 | 4 | Waves and Their Applications in Technologies for Information Transfer | Design and construct a device that uses light or sound to send a communication signal over a distance (e.g., using a flashlight and a piece of cardboard to simulate a signal lamp for sending a coded message to a classmate, using a paper cup and string to simulate a telephone for talking to a classmate). | 1 |
| Inspired by Nature (Biomimicry); | AL Course of Study | Grade 1 | 5 | From Molecules to Organisms: Structures and Processes | Design a solution to a human problem by using materials to imitate how plants and/or animals use their external parts to help them survive, grow, and meet their needs (e.g., outerwear imitating animal furs for insulation, gear mimicking tree bark or shells for protection). | 1 |
| Animals Help Their Babies Survive; | AL Course of Study | Grade 1 | 6 | From Molecules to Organisms: Structures and Processes | Obtain information to provide evidence that parents and their offspring engage in patterns of behavior that help the offspring survive (e.g., crying of offspring indicating need for feeding, quacking or barking by parents indicating protection of young). | 1 |
| Introduction to Traits; | AL Course of Study | Grade 1 | 7 | Heredity: Inheritance and Variation of Traits | Make observations to identify the similarities and differences of offspring to their parents and to other members of the same species (e.g., flowers from the same kind of plant being the same shape, but differing in size; dog being same breed as parent, but differing in fur color or pattern). | 1 |
| Patterns in the Sky; | AL Course of Study | Grade 1 | 8 | Earth’s Place in the Universe | Observe, describe, and predict patterns of the sun, moon, and stars as they appear in the sky (e.g., sun and moon appearing to rise in one part of the sky, move across the sky, and set; stars other than our sun being visible at night, but not during the day). | 1 |
| Four Seasons and Day Length; | AL Course of Study | Grade 1 | 9 | Earth’s Place in the Universe | Observe seasonal patterns of sunrise and sunset to describe the relationship between the number of hours of daylight and the time of year (e.g., more hours of daylight during summer as compared to winter). | 1 |
| Classification of Materials; Material Properties and Purposes; | AL Course of Study | Grade 2 | 1 | Matter and Its Interactions | Conduct an investigation to describe and classify various substances according to physical properties (e.g., milk being a liquid, not clear in color, assuming shape of its container, mixing with water; mineral oil being a liquid, clear in color, taking shape of its container, floating in water; a brick being a solid, not clear in color, rough in texture, not taking the shape of its container, sinking in water). | 1 |
| Material Properties and Purposes; | AL Course of Study | Grade 2 | 2 | Matter and Its Interactions | Collect and evaluate data to determine appropriate uses of materials based on their properties (e.g., strength, flexibility, hardness, texture, absorbency). | 1 |
| What is Engineering?; | AL Course of Study | Grade 2 | 3 | Matter and Its Interactions | Demonstrate and explain how structures made from small pieces (e.g., linking cubes, blocks, building bricks, creative construction toys) can be disassembled and then rearranged to make new and different structures. | 1 |
| Heating and Cooling; | AL Course of Study | Grade 2 | 4 | Matter and Its Interactions | Provide evidence that some changes in matter caused by heating or cooling can be reversed (e.g., heating or freezing of water) and some changes are irreversible (e.g., baking a cake, boiling an egg). | 1 |
| Plant Growth Conditions; | AL Course of Study | Grade 2 | 5 | Ecosystems: Interactions, Energy, and Dynamics | Plan and carry out an investigation, using one variable at a time (e.g., water, light, soil, air), to determine the growth needs of plants. | 1 |
| Pollination and Seed Dispersal; | AL Course of Study | Grade 2 | 6 | Ecosystems: Interactions, Energy, and Dynamics | Design and construct models to simulate how animals disperse seeds or pollinate plants (e.g., animals brushing fur against seed pods and seeds falling off in other areas, birds and bees extracting nectar from flowers and transferring pollen from one plant to another). | 1 |
| Oceans, Lakes and Rivers; Biodiversity of Life on Earth; | AL Course of Study | Grade 2 | 7 | Ecosystems: Interactions, Energy, and Dynamics | Obtain information from literature and other media to illustrate that there are many different kinds of living things and that they exist in different places on land and in water (e.g., woodland, tundra, desert, rainforest, ocean, river). | 1 |
| Timescale of Earth's Events; Changing the Shape of Land; | AL Course of Study | Grade 2 | 8 | Earth’s Systems | Make observations from media to obtain information about Earth events that happen over a short period of time (e.g., tornadoes, volcanic explosions, earthquakes) or over a time period longer than one can observe (e.g., erosion of rocks, melting of glaciers). | 1 |
| Maps of Landforms; Oceans, Lakes and Rivers; | AL Course of Study | Grade 2 | 9 | Earth’s Systems | Create models to identify physical features of Earth (e.g., mountains, valleys, plains, deserts, lakes, rivers, oceans). | 1 |
| Oceans, Lakes and Rivers; | AL Course of Study | Grade 2 | 10 | Earth’s Systems | Collect and evaluate data to identify water found on Earth and determine whether it is a solid or a liquid (e.g., glaciers as solid forms of water; oceans, lakes, rivers, streams as liquid forms of water). | 1 |
| Changing the Shape of Land; | AL Course of Study | Grade 2 | 11 | Earth and Human Activity | Examine and test solutions that address changes caused by Earth’s events (e.g., dams for minimizing flooding, plants for controlling erosion). | 1 |
| Animal Group Behavior; | AL Course of Study | Grade 3 | 11.a | Unity and Diversity | Construct explanations that forming groups helps some organisms survive. | 2 |
| Animal & Plant Life Cycles; | AL Course of Study | Grade 3 | 6 | From Molecules to Organisms: Structures and Processes | Create representations to explain the unique and diverse life cycles of organisms other than humans (e.g., flowering plants, frogs, butterflies), including commonalities such as birth, growth, reproduction, and death. | 2 |
| Balanced & Unbalanced Forces; | AL Course of Study | Grade 3 | 1 | Motion and Stability: Forces and Interactions | Plan and carry out an experiment to determine the effects of balanced and unbalanced forces on the motion of an object using one variable at a time, including number, size, direction, speed, position, friction, or air resistance (e.g., balanced forces pushing from both sides on an object, such as a box, producing no motion; unbalanced force on one side of an object, such as a ball, producing motion), and communicate these findings graphically. | 2 |
| Brain Processing of Senses; | AL Course of Study | Grade 4 | 11 | From Molecules to Organisms: Structures and Processes | Investigate different ways animals receive information through the senses, process that information, and respond to it in different ways (e.g., skunks lifting tails and spraying an odor when threatened, dogs moving ears when reacting to sound, snakes coiling or striking when sensing vibrations). | 2 |
| Brain Processing of Senses; Human Body Systems; Structure of Living Things; Adaptations and the Environment; | AL Course of Study | Grade 4 | 9 | From Molecules to Organisms: Structures and Processes | Examine evidence to support an argument that the internal and external structures of plants (e.g., thorns, leaves, stems, roots, colored petals, xylem, phloem) and animals (e.g., heart, stomach, lung, brain, skin) function to support survival, growth, behavior, and reproduction. | 2 |
| Collisions; | AL Course of Study | Grade 4 | 1 | Energy | Use evidence to explain the relationship of the speed of an object to the energy of that object. | 2 |
| Collisions; | AL Course of Study | Grade 4 | 3 | Energy | Investigate to determine changes in energy resulting from increases or decreases in speed that occur when objects collide. | 2 |
| Collisions; Energy Transfer | AL Course of Study | Grade 4 | 2.b | Energy | Demonstrate that different objects can absorb, reflect, and/or conduct energy. | 2 |
| Conservation of Matter; | AL Course of Study | Grade 5 | 2 | Matter and Its Interactions | Investigate matter to provide mathematical evidence, including graphs, to show that regardless of the type of reaction (e.g., new substance forming due to dissolving or mixing) or change (e.g., phase change) that occurs when heating, cooling, or mixing substances, the total weight of the matter is conserved. | 2 |
| Earth’s Orbit and Rotation; | AL Course of Study | Grade 5 | 13 | Earth’s Place in the Universe | Analyze data and represent with graphs to reveal patterns of daily changes in length and direction of shadows, day and night, and the seasonal appearance of some stars in the night sky (e.g., shadows and the position and motion of Earth with respect to the sun, visibility of select stars only in particular months). | 2 |
| Ecosystems; | AL Course of Study | Grade 3 | 11.c | Unity and Diversity | Categorize resources in various habitats as basic materials (e.g., sunlight, air, freshwater, soil), produced materials (e.g., food, fuel, shelter), or as nonmaterial (e.g., safety, instinct, nature-learned behaviors). | 2 |
| Ecosystems; | AL Course of Study | Grade 3 | 12 | Unity and Diversity | Evaluate engineered solutions to a problem created by environmental changes and any resulting impacts on the types and density of plant and animal populations living in the environment (e.g., replanting of sea oats in coastal areas due to destruction by hurricanes, creating property development restrictions in vacation areas to reduce displacement and loss of native animal populations). | 2 |
| Ecosystems; Food Webs; | AL Course of Study | Grade 3 | 11.b | Unity and Diversity | Create models that illustrate how organisms and their habitats make up a system in which the parts depend on each other. | 2 |
| Energy Transfer | AL Course of Study | Grade 4 | 2.c | Energy | Demonstrate that electric circuits require a complete loop through which an electric current can pass. | 2 |
| Extreme Weather Solutions; | AL Course of Study | Grade 3 | 15 | Earth and Human Activity | Evaluate a design solution (e.g., flood barriers, wind resistant roofs, lightning rods) that reduces the impact of a weather-related hazard. | 2 |
| Extreme Weather Solutions; Natural Disasters; | AL Course of Study | Grade 4 | 17 | Earth’s Systems | Formulate and evaluate solutions to limit the effects of natural Earth processes on humans (e.g., designing earthquake, tornado, or hurricane-resistant buildings; improving monitoring of volcanic activity). | 2 |
| Food Webs; | AL Course of Study | Grade 5 | 11 | Ecosystems: Interactions, Energy, and Dynamics | Create a model to illustrate the transfer of matter among producers; consumers, including scavengers and decomposers; and the environment. | 2 |
| Fossils & Extinction; Earth's Landscapes; | AL Course of Study | Grade 3 | 9 | Unity and Diversity | Analyze and interpret data from fossils (e.g., type, size, distribution) to provide evidence of organisms and the environments in which they lived long ago (e.g., marine fossils on dry land, tropical plant fossils in arctic areas, fossils of extinct organisms in any environment). | 2 |
| How Do We Use Food; | AL Course of Study | Grade 5 | 8 | Ecosystems: Interactions, Energy, and Dynamics | Defend the position that plants obtain materials needed for growth primarily from air and water. | 2 |
| How Do We Use Food; Food Webs; | AL Course of Study | Grade 5 | 9 | Ecosystems: Interactions, Energy, and Dynamics | Construct an illustration to explain how plants use light energy to convert carbon dioxide and water into a storable fuel, carbohydrates, and a waste product, oxygen, during the process of photosynthesis. | 2 |
| How Do We Use Food; Food Webs; | AL Course of Study | Grade 5 | 10 | Ecosystems: Interactions, Energy, and Dynamics | Construct and interpret models (e.g., diagrams, flow charts) to explain that energy in animals’ food is used for body repair, growth, motion, and maintenance of body warmth and was once energy from the sun. | 2 |
| Human Body Systems; | AL Course of Study | Grade 4 | 10 | From Molecules to Organisms: Structures and Processes | Obtain and communicate information explaining that humans have systems that interact with one another for digestion, respiration, circulation, excretion, movement, control, coordination, and protection from disease. | 2 |
| Information Transfer; | AL Course of Study | Grade 4 | 7 | Waves and Their Applications in Technologies for Information Transfer | Develop and use models to show multiple solutions in which patterns are used to transfer information (e.g., using a grid of 1s and 0s representing black and white to send information about a picture, using drums to send coded information through sound waves, using Morse code to send a message). | 2 |
| Light Reflection & Vision; | AL Course of Study | Grade 4 | 8 | Waves and Their Applications in Technologies for Information Transfer | Construct a model to explain that an object can be seen when light reflected from its surface enters the eyes. | 2 |
| Magnets & Static Electricity; | AL Course of Study | Grade 3 | 3 | Motion and Stability: Forces and Interactions | Explore objects that can be manipulated in order to determine cause-and-effect relationships (e.g., distance between objects affecting strength of a force, orientation of magnets affecting direction of a magnetic force) of electric interactions between two objects not in contact with one another (e.g., force on hair from an electrically charged balloon, electrical forces between a charged rod and pieces of paper) or magnetic interactions between two objects not in contact with one another (e.g., force between two permanent magnets or between an electromagnet and steel paperclips, force exerted by one magnet versus the force exerted by two magnets). | 2 |
| Magnets & Static Electricity; | AL Course of Study | Grade 3 | 4 | Motion and Stability: Forces and Interactions | Apply scientific ideas about magnets to solve a problem through an engineering design project (e.g., constructing a latch to keep a door shut, creating a device to keep two moving objects from touching each other such as a maglev system). | 2 |
| Natural Disasters; | AL Course of Study | Grade 4 | 16 | Earth’s Systems | Describe patterns of Earth’s features on land and in the ocean using data from maps (e.g., topographic maps of Earth’s land and ocean floor; maps of locations of mountains, continental boundaries, volcanoes, and earthquakes). | 2 |
| Natural Disasters; Weathering & Erosion; | AL Course of Study | Grade 4 | 14 | Earth’s Systems | Explore information to support the claim that landforms are the result of a combination of constructive forces, including crustal deformation, volcanic eruptions, and sediment deposition as well as a result of destructive forces, including erosion and weathering. | 2 |
| Particle Nature of Matter; | AL Course of Study | Grade 5 | 1 | Matter and Its Interactions | Plan and carry out investigations (e.g., adding air to expand a basketball, compressing air in a syringe, dissolving sugar in water, evaporating salt water) to provide evidence that matter is made of particles too small to be seen. | 2 |
| Patterns of Motion & Friction; | AL Course of Study | Grade 3 | 2 | Motion and Stability: Forces and Interactions | Investigate, measure, and communicate in a graphical format how an observed pattern of motion (e.g., a child swinging in a swing, a ball rolling back and forth in a bowl, two children teetering on a see-saw, a model vehicle rolling down a ramp of varying heights, a pendulum swinging) can be used to predict the future motion of an object. | 2 |
| Patterns of Motion & Friction; | AL Course of Study | Grade 4 | 2.a | Energy | Provide evidence that heat can be produced in many ways (e.g., rubbing hands together, burning leaves) and can move from one object to another by conduction. | 2 |
| Properties of Matter | AL Course of Study | Grade 5 | 5 | Matter and Its Interactions | Construct explanations from observations to determine how the density of an object affects whether the object sinks or floats when placed in a liquid. | 2 |
| Properties of Matter; | AL Course of Study | Grade 5 | 3 | Matter and Its Interactions | Examine matter through observations and measurements to identify materials (e.g., powders, metals, minerals, liquids) based on their properties (e.g., color, hardness, reflectivity, electrical conductivity, thermal conductivity, response to magnetic forces, solubility, density). | 2 |
| Properties of Matter; Chemical vs. Physical Changes; | AL Course of Study | Grade 5 | 4 | Matter and Its Interactions | Investigate whether the mixing of two or more substances results in new substances (e.g., mixing of baking soda and vinegar resulting in the formation of a new substance, gas; mixing of sand and water resulting in no new substance being formed). | 2 |
| Renewable vs. Nonrenewable Resources; | AL Course of Study | Grade 4 | 5 | Energy | Compile information to describe how the use of energy derived from natural renewable and nonrenewable resources affects the environment (e.g., constructing dams to harness energy from water, a renewable resource, while causing a loss of animal habitats; burning of fossil fuels, a nonrenewable resource, while causing an increase in air pollution; installing solar panels to harness energy from the sun, a renewable resource, while requiring specialized materials that necessitate mining). | 2 |
| Renewable vs. Nonrenewable Resources; Energy Transfer; | AL Course of Study | Grade 4 | 4 | Energy | Design, construct, and test a device that changes energy from one form to another (e.g., electric circuits converting electrical energy into motion, light, or sound energy; a passive solar heater converting light energy into heat energy). | 2 |
| Renewable vs. Nonrenewable Resources; Water Quality & Distribution; Interactions of Earth’s Spheres; | AL Course of Study | Grade 5 | 16 | Earth and Human Activity | Collect and organize scientific ideas that individuals and communities can use to protect Earth’s natural resources and its environment (e.g., terracing land to prevent soil erosion, utilizing no-till farming to improve soil fertility, regulating emissions from factories and automobiles to reduce air pollution, recycling to reduce overuse of landfill areas). | 2 |
| Sun and Other Stars; | AL Course of Study | Grade 5 | 12 | Earth’s Place in the Universe | Defend the claim that one factor determining the apparent brightness of the sun compared to other stars is the relative distance from Earth. | 2 |
| Variation of Traits; | AL Course of Study | Grade 3 | 7 | Heredity: Inheritance and Variation of Traits | Examine data to provide evidence that plants and animals, excluding humans, have traits inherited from parents and that variations of these traits exist in groups of similar organisms (e.g., flower colors in pea plants, fur color and pattern in animal offspring). | 2 |
| Variation of Traits; | AL Course of Study | Grade 3 | 8 | Heredity: Inheritance and Variation of Traits | Engage in argument from evidence to justify that traits can be influenced by the environment (e.g., stunted growth in normally tall plants due to insufficient water, change in an arctic fox’s fur color due to light and/or temperature, stunted growth of a normally large animal due to malnourishment). | 2 |
| Variation of Traits; | AL Course of Study | Grade 3 | 10 | Unity and Diversity | Investigate how variations in characteristics among individuals of the same species may provide advantages in surviving, finding mates, and reproducing (e.g., plants having larger thorns being less likely to be eaten by predators, animals having better camouflage coloration being more likely to survive and bear offspring). | 2 |
| Water Cycle (3-5 Version); Interactions of Earth’s Spheres; | AL Course of Study | Grade 5 | 14 | Earth’s Systems | Use a model to represent how any two systems, specifically the atmosphere, biosphere, geosphere, and/or hydrosphere, interact and support life (e.g., influence of the ocean on ecosystems, landform shape, and climate; influence of the atmosphere on landforms and ecosystems through weather and climate; influence of mountain ranges on winds and clouds in the atmosphere). | 2 |
| Water Quality & Distribution; | AL Course of Study | Grade 5 | 15 | Earth’s Systems | Identify the distribution of freshwater and salt water on Earth (e.g., oceans, lakes, rivers, glaciers, ground water, polar ice caps) and construct a graphical representation depicting the amounts and percentages found in different reservoirs. | 2 |
| Water Quality & Distribution; | AL Course of Study | Grade 5 | 17 | Earth and Human Activity | Design solutions, test, and revise a process for cleaning a polluted environment (e.g., simulating an oil spill in the ocean or a flood in a city and creating a solution for containment and/or cleanup). | 2 |
| Wave Properties; | AL Course of Study | Grade 4 | 6 | Waves and Their Applications in Technologies for Information Transfer | Develop a model of waves to describe patterns in terms of amplitude and wavelength, and including that waves can cause objects to move. | 2 |
| Weather vs. Climate; | AL Course of Study | Grade 3 | 13 | Earth’s Systems | Display data graphically and in tables to describe typical weather conditions expected during a particular season (e.g., average temperature, precipitation, wind direction). | 2 |
| Weather vs. Climate; | AL Course of Study | Grade 3 | 14 | Earth’s Systems | Collect information from a variety of sources to describe climates in different regions of the world. | 2 |
| Weathering & Erosion; Earth's Landscapes; | AL Course of Study | Grade 4 | 12 | Earth’s Systems | Construct explanations by citing evidence found in patterns of rock formations and fossils in rock layers that Earth changes over time through both slow and rapid processes (e.g., rock layers containing shell fossils appearing above rock layers containing plant fossils and no shells indicating a change from land to water over time, a canyon with different rock layers in the walls and a river in the bottom indicating that over time a river cut through the rock). | 2 |
| Weathering & Erosion; Interactions of Earth’s Spheres; | AL Course of Study | Grade 4 | 15 | Earth’s Systems | Analyze and interpret data (e.g., angle of slope in downhill movement of water, volume of water flow, cycles of freezing and thawing of water, cycles of heating and cooling of water, speed of wind, relative rate of soil deposition, amount of vegetation) to determine effects of weathering and rate of erosion by water, ice, wind, and vegetation using one single form of weathering or erosion at a time. | 2 |
| Classification of Living Things; Living vs. Non-Living; | AL Course of Study | Grade 3 | 5 | From Molecules to Organisms: Structures and Processes | Obtain and combine information to describe that organisms are classified as living things, rather than nonliving things, based on their ability to obtain and use resources, grow, reproduce, and maintain stable internal conditions while living in a constantly changing external environment. | 2 |
| AL Course of Study | Grade 4 | 13 | Earth’s Systems | Plan and carry out investigations to examine properties of soils and soil types (e.g., color, texture, capacity to retain water, ability to support growth of plants). | 2 | |
| Gravitational Forces Between Objects; | AL Course of Study | Grade 5 | 6 | Motion and Stability: Forces and Interactions | Construct an explanation from evidence to illustrate that the gravitational force exerted by Earth on objects is directed downward towards the center of Earth. | 2 |
| AL Course of Study | Grade 5 | 7 | Motion and Stability: Forces and Interactions | Design and conduct a test to modify the speed of a falling object due to gravity (e.g., constructing a parachute to keep an attached object from breaking). | 2 | |
| Causes of Seasons; Solar & Lunar Eclipses; | AL | Course of Study | Grade 6 | EPU.1 | Create and manipulate models (e.g., physical, graphical, conceptual) to explain the occurrences of day/night cycles, length of year, seasons, tides, eclipses, and lunar phases based on patterns of the observed motions of celestial bodies. | |
| The Solar System; Gravitational Forces Between Objects; | AL | Course of Study | Grade 6 | EPU.2 | Construct models and use simulations (e.g., diagrams of the relationship between Earth and man-made satellites, rocket launch, International Space Station, elliptical orbits, black holes, life cycles of stars, orbital periods of objects within the solar system, astronomical units and light years) to explain the role of gravity in affecting the motions of celestial bodies (e.g., planets, moons, comets, asteroids, meteors) within galaxies and the solar system. | |
| The Solar System; | AL | Course of Study | Grade 6 | EPU.3 | Develop and use models to determine scale properties of objects in the solar system (e.g., scale model representing sizes and distances of the sun, Earth, moon system based on a one-meter diameter sun). | |
| Rock Layers (Geologic Time); | AL | Course of Study | Grade 6 | ES.4 | Construct explanations from geologic evidence (e.g., change or extinction of particular living organisms; field evidence or representations, including models of geologic cross-sections; sedimentary layering) to identify patterns of Earths major historical events (e.g., formation of mountain chains and ocean basins, significant volcanic eruptions, fossilization, folding, faulting, igneous intrusion, erosion). | |
| Tectonic Plates; | AL | Course of Study | Grade 6 | ES.5 | Use evidence to explain how different geologic processes shape Earths history over widely varying scales of space and time (e.g., chemical and physical erosion; tectonic plate processes; volcanic eruptions; meteor impacts; regional geographical features, including Alabama fault lines, Rickwood Caverns, and Wetumpka Impact Crater). | |
| Tectonic Plates; | AL | Course of Study | Grade 6 | ES.6 | Provide evidence from data of the distribution of fossils and rocks, continental shapes, and seafloor structures to explain past plate motions. | |
| Rocks & Minerals (Including Rock Cycle); Water Cycle (6-8 Version); | AL | Course of Study | Grade 6 | ES.7 | Use models to construct explanations of the various biogeochemical cycles of Earth (e.g., water, carbon, nitrogen) and the flow of energy that drives these processes. | |
| Rocks & Minerals (Including Rock Cycle); | AL | Course of Study | Grade 6 | ES.8 | Plan and carry out investigations that demonstrate the chemical and physical processes that form rocks and cycle Earth materials (e.g., processes of crystallization, heating and cooling, weathering, deformation, and sedimentation). | |
| Tectonic Plates; | AL | Course of Study | Grade 6 | ES.9 | Use models to explain how the flow of Earths internal energy drives a cycling of matter between Earths surface and deep interior causing plate movements (e.g., mid-ocean ridges, ocean trenches, volcanoes, earthquakes, mountains, rift valleys, volcanic islands). | |
| Natural Resource Distribution; | AL | Course of Study | Grade 6 | ES.10 | Use research-based evidence to propose a scientific explanation regarding how the distribution of Earths resources such as minerals, fossil fuels, and groundwater are the result of ongoing geoscience processes (e.g., past volcanic and hydrothermal activity, burial of organic sediments, active weathering of rock). | |
| AL | Course of Study | Grade 6 | ES.11 | Develop and use models of Earths interior composition to illustrate the resulting magnetic field (e.g., magnetic poles) and to explain its measurable effects (e.g., protection from cosmic radiation). | ||
| Predicting Natural Disasters; | AL | Course of Study | Grade 6 | ES.12.a | Use various instruments (e.g., thermometers, barometers, anemometers, wet bulbs) to monitor local weather and examine weather patterns to predict various weather events, especially the impact of severe weather (e.g., fronts, hurricanes, tornadoes, blizzards, ice storms, droughts). | |
| Climate Zones & Ocean Currents; | AL | Course of Study | Grade 6 | ES.13.a | Use experiments to investigate how energy from the sun is distributed between Earths surface and its atmosphere by convection and radiation (e.g., warmer water in a pan rising as cooler water sinks, warming ones hands by a campfire). | |
| Intro to Climate Change; | AL | Course of Study | Grade 6 | ES.14 | Analyze and interpret data (e.g., tables, graphs, maps of global and regional temperatures; atmospheric levels of gases such as carbon dioxide and methane; rates of human activities) to describe how various human activities (e.g., use of fossil fuels, creation of urban heat islands, agricultural practices) and natural processes (e.g., solar radiation, greenhouse effect, volcanic activity) may cause changes in local and global temperatures over time. | |
| Human Impacts on the Environment; | AL | Course of Study | Grade 6 | EHA.15 | Analyze evidence (e.g., databases on human populations, rates of consumption of food and other natural resources) to explain how changes in human population, per capita consumption of natural resources, and other human activities (e.g., land use, resource development, water and air pollution, urbanization) affect Earths systems. | |
| Maintaining Biodiversity; | AL | Course of Study | Grade 6 | EHA.16 | Implement scientific principles to design processes for monitoring and minimizing human impact on the environment (e.g., water usage, including withdrawal of water from streams and aquifers or construction of dams and levees; land usage, including urban development, agriculture, or removal of wetlands; pollution of air, water, and land). | |
| Plant & Animal Cells; | AL | Course of Study | Grade 7 | MO.1 | Engage in argument from evidence to support claims of the cell theory. | |
| Reproduction of Living Things; Bacteria & Viruses; | AL | Course of Study | Grade 7 | MO.2 | Gather and synthesize information to explain how prokaryotic and eukaryotic cells differ in structure and function, including the methods of asexual and sexual reproduction. | |
| Plant & Animal Cells; | AL | Course of Study | Grade 7 | MO.3 | Construct an explanation of the function (e.g., mitochondria releasing energy during cellular respiration) of specific cell structures (i.e., nucleus, cell membrane, cell wall, ribosomes, mitochondria, chloroplasts, and vacuoles) for maintaining a stable environment. | |
| Multicellular Organisms; | AL | Course of Study | Grade 7 | MO.4 | Construct models and representations of organ systems (e.g., circulatory, digestive, respiratory, muscular, skeletal, nervous) to demonstrate how multiple interacting organs and systems work together to accomplish specific functions. | |
| Food Webs: Cycling of Matter & Flow of Energy; | AL | Course of Study | Grade 7 | ECO.5.a | Obtain, evaluate, and communicate information about how food is broken down through chemical reactions to create new molecules that support growth and/or release energy as it moves through an organism. | |
| Photosynthesis & Respiration; | AL | Course of Study | Grade 7 | ECO.5.b | Generate a scientific explanation based on evidence for the role of photosynthesis and cellular respiration in the cycling of matter and flow of energy into and out of organisms. | |
| Competition in Ecosystems; | AL | Course of Study | Grade 7 | ECO.6 | Analyze and interpret data to provide evidence regarding how resource availability impacts individual organisms as well as populations of organisms within an ecosystem. | |
| Competition in Ecosystems; | AL | Course of Study | Grade 7 | ECO.7 | Use empirical evidence from patterns and data to demonstrate how changes to physical or biological components of an ecosystem (e.g., deforestation, succession, drought, fire, disease, human activities, invasive species) can lead to shifts in populations. | |
| Symbiosis (Interactions Between Organisms) | AL | Course of Study | Grade 7 | ECO.8 | Construct an explanation to predict patterns of interactions in different ecosystems in terms of the relationships between and among organisms (e.g., competition, predation, mutualism, commensalism, parasitism). | |
| Maintaining Biodiversity; | AL | Course of Study | Grade 7 | ECO.9 | Engage in argument to defend the effectiveness of a design solution that maintains biodiversity and ecosystem services (e.g., using scientific, economic, and social considerations regarding purifying water, recycling nutrients, preventing soil erosion). | |
| Reproduction of Living Things; | AL | Course of Study | Grade 7 | ECO.10 | Use evidence and scientific reasoning to explain how characteristic animal behaviors (e.g., building nests to protect young from cold, herding to protect young from predators, attracting mates for breeding by producing special sounds and displaying colorful plumage, transferring pollen or seeds, creating conditions for seed germination and growth) and specialized plant structures (e.g., flower brightness, nectar, and odor attracting birds that transfer pollen; hard outer shells on seeds providing protection prior to germination) affect the probability of successful reproduction of both animals and plants. | |
| Competition in Ecosystems; | AL | Course of Study | Grade 7 | ECO.11 | Analyze and interpret data to predict how environmental conditions (e.g., weather, availability of nutrients, location) and genetic factors (e.g., selective breeding of cattle or crops) influence the growth of organisms (e.g., drought decreasing plant growth, adequate supply of nutrients for maintaining normal plant growth, identical plant seeds growing at different rates in different weather conditions, fish growing larger in large ponds than in small ponds). | |
| Reproduction of Living Things; Genes & Mutations; Natural Selection; | AL | Course of Study | Grade 7 | HER.12 | Construct and use models (e.g., monohybrid crosses using Punnett squares, diagrams, simulations) to explain that genetic variations between parent and offspring (e.g., different alleles, mutations) occur as a result of genetic differences in randomly inherited genes located on chromosomes and that additional variations may arise from alteration of genetic information. | |
| Genes & Mutations; | AL | Course of Study | Grade 7 | HER.13 | Construct an explanation from evidence to describe how genetic mutations result in harmful, beneficial, or neutral effects to the structure and function of an organism. | |
| Biotechnology; | AL | Course of Study | Grade 7 | HER.14 | Gather and synthesize information regarding the impact of technologies (e.g., hand pollination, selective breeding, genetic engineering, genetic modification, gene therapy) on the inheritance and/or appearance of desired traits in organisms. | |
| The Fossil Record; | AL | Course of Study | Grade 7 | UD.15 | Analyze and interpret data for patterns of change in anatomical structures of organisms using the fossil record and the chronological order of fossil appearance in rock layers. | |
| Comparative Anatomy; | AL | Course of Study | Grade 7 | UD.16 | Construct an explanation based on evidence (e.g., cladogram, phylogenetic tree) for the anatomical similarities and differences among modern organisms and between modern and fossil organisms, including living fossils (e.g., alligator, horseshoe crab, nautilus, coelacanth). | |
| Comparative Anatomy; | AL | Course of Study | Grade 7 | UD.17 | Obtain and evaluate pictorial data to compare patterns in the embryological development across multiple species to identify relationships not evident in the adult anatomy. | |
| Natural Selection; | AL | Course of Study | Grade 7 | UD.18 | Construct an explanation from evidence that natural selection acting over generations may lead to the predominance of certain traits that support successful survival and reproduction of a population and to the suppression of other traits. | |
| Properties of Elements; | AL | Course of Study | Grade 8 | MII.1 | Analyze patterns within the periodic table to construct models (e.g., molecular-level models, including drawings; computer representations) that illustrate the structure, composition, and characteristics of atoms and molecules. | |
| Properties of Elements; | AL | Course of Study | Grade 8 | MII.2 | Plan and carry out investigations to generate evidence supporting the claim that one pure substance can be distinguished from another based on characteristic properties. | |
| Synthetic Materials; | AL | Course of Study | Grade 8 | MII.3.a | Collect and analyze information to illustrate how synthetic materials (e.g., medicine, food additives, alternative fuels, plastics) are derived from natural resources and how they impact society. | |
| Intro to Thermal Energy; | AL | Course of Study | Grade 8 | MII.4 | Design and conduct an experiment to determine changes in particle motion, temperature, and state of a pure substance when thermal energy is added to or removed from a system. | |
| Chemical Reactions; | AL | Course of Study | Grade 8 | MII.5 | Observe and analyze characteristic properties of substances (e.g., odor, density, solubility, flammability, melting point, boiling point) before and after the substances combine to determine if a chemical reaction has occurred. | |
| Chemical Reactions; | AL | Course of Study | Grade 8 | MII.6 | Create a model, diagram, or digital simulation to describe conservation of mass in a chemical reaction and explain the resulting differences between products and reactants. | |
| Heat: Transfer of Thermal Energy; | AL | Course of Study | Grade 8 | MII.7 | Design, construct, and test a device (e.g., glow stick, hand warmer, hot or cold pack, thermal wrap) that either releases or absorbs thermal energy by chemical reactions (e.g., dissolving ammonium chloride or calcium chloride in water) and modify the device as needed based on criteria (e.g., amount/concentration, time, temperature). | |
| Newton’s Laws of Motion; | AL | Course of Study | Grade 8 | MS.8 | Use Newtons first law to demonstrate and explain that an object is either at rest or moves at a constant velocity unless acted upon by an external force (e.g., model car on a table remaining at rest until pushed). | |
| Newton’s Laws of Motion; | AL | Course of Study | Grade 8 | MS.9 | Use Newtons second law to demonstrate and explain how changes in an objects motion depend on the sum of the external forces on the object and the mass of the object (e.g., billiard balls moving when hit with a cue stick). | |
| Newton’s Laws of Motion; | AL | Course of Study | Grade 8 | MS.10 | Use Newtons third law to design a model to demonstrate and explain the resulting motion of two colliding objects (e.g., two cars bumping into each other, a hammer hitting a nail). | |
| Electric & Magnetic Fields; | AL | Course of Study | Grade 8 | MS.11 | Plan and carry out investigations to evaluate how various factors (e.g., electric force produced between two charged objects at various positions; magnetic force produced by an electromagnet with varying number of wire turns, varying number or size of dry cells, and varying size of iron core) affect the strength of electric and magnetic forces. | |
| Electric & Magnetic Fields; | AL | Course of Study | Grade 8 | MS.12 | Construct an argument from evidence explaining that fields exist between objects exerting forces on each other (e.g., interactions of magnets, electrically charged strips of tape, electrically charged pith balls, gravitational pull of the moon creating tides) even when the objects are not in contact. | |
| Potential vs. Kinetic Energy; | AL | Course of Study | Grade 8 | E.13 | Create and analyze graphical displays of data to illustrate the relationships of kinetic energy to the mass and speed of an object (e.g., riding a bicycle at different speeds, hitting a table tennis ball versus a golf ball, rolling similar toy cars with different masses down an incline). | |
| Potential vs. Kinetic Energy; | AL | Course of Study | Grade 8 | E.14 | Use models to construct an explanation of how a system of objects may contain varying types and amounts of potential energy (e.g., observing the movement of a roller coaster cart at various inclines, changing the tension in a rubber band, varying the number of batteries connected in a series, observing a balloon with static electrical charge being brought closer to a classmates hair). | |
| Heat: Transfer of Thermal Energy; | AL | Course of Study | Grade 8 | E.15 | Analyze and interpret data from experiments to determine how various factors affect energy transfer as measured by temperature (e.g., comparing final water temperatures after different masses of ice melt in the same volume of water with the same initial temperature, observing the temperature change of samples of different materials with the same mass and the same material with different masses when adding a specific amount of energy). | |
| Potential vs. Kinetic Energy; | AL | Course of Study | Grade 8 | E.16 | Apply the law of conservation of energy to develop arguments supporting the claim that when the kinetic energy of an object changes, energy is transferred to or from the object (e.g., bowling ball hitting pins, brakes being applied to a car). | |
| Electromagnetic Spectrum; | AL | Course of Study | Grade 8 | WAT.17.a | Analyze and interpret data to illustrate an electromagnetic spectrum. | |
| Wave Reflection, Absorption & Transmittance | AL | Course of Study | Grade 8 | WAT.18 | Use models to demonstrate how light and sound waves differ in how they are absorbed, reflected, and transmitted through different types of media. | |
| Digital vs. Analog Signals; | AL | Course of Study | Grade 8 | WAT.19 | Integrate qualitative information to explain that common communication devices (e.g., cellular telephones, radios, remote controls, Wi-Fi components, global positioning systems [GPS], wireless technology components) use electromagnetic waves to encode and transmit information. |
Other Standards
- Alaska Science Standards
- Alabama Science Standards
- Alberta Science Standards
- Arkansas Science Standards
- Australia Science Standards
- Arizona Science Standards
- British Columbia Science Standards
- California Science Standards
- Colorado Science Standards
- Connecticut Science Standards
- Washington DC Science Standards
- Delaware Science Standards
- Florida Science Standards
- Georgia Science Standards
- Hawaii Science Standards
- Iowa Science Standards
- Idaho Science Standards
- Illinois Science Standards
- Indiana Science Standards
- Kansas Science Standards
- Kentucky Science Standards
- Louisiana Science Standards
- Massachusetts Science Standards
- Manitoba Science Standards
- Maryland Science Standards
- Maine Science Standards
- Michigan Science Standards
- Minnesota Science Standards
- Missouri Science Standards
- Mississippi Science Standards
- Montana Science Standards
- North Carolina Science Standards
- North Dakota Science Standards
- Nebraska Science Standards
- New Hampshire Science Standards
- New Jersey Science Standards
- New Mexico Science Standards
- Nevada Science Standards
- New York Science Standards
- Ohio Science Standards
- Oklahoma Science Standards
- Ontario Science Standards
- Oregon Science Standards
- Pennsylvania Science Standards
- Quebec Science Standards
- Rhode Island Science Standards
- Saskatchewan Science Standards
- South Carolina Science Standards
- South Dakota Science Standards
- Tennessee Science Standards
- Texas Science Standards
- United Kingdom Science Standards
- Utah Science Standards
- Virginia Science Standards
- Vermont Science Standards
- Washington Science Standards
- Wisconsin Science Standards
- West Virginia Science Standards
- Wyoming Science Standards
