Constructing explanations and designing solutions

In this unit, students analyze the science phenomena of connections between energy, forces, and motion. In this lesson, students use data to construct an explanation about phenomena that occur because of the relationships between an object’s kinetic energy, its mass, and its speed. This page provides an overview of this lesson.

In this unit, students explore the relationship between the phenomena of forces and motion and how energy is converted from one form to another in an energy system. In this lesson, students design a vehicle that can travel over a surface on a cushion of air. This page highlights key parts of this lesson.

In this unit, students explore technological systems, focusing on the phenomena of how information is transmitted in a communication system. This page is a high-level extract of the first lesson in this unit.

In this unit, students connect their explorations of Earth and life sciences with physical sciences with an exploration into the relationship between magnetism and electricity. In this lesson, they explore the interactions between magnets and electricity. This page is a high-level extract of this lesson.

In this unit, students explore how communication systems transmit information from one person or place to another. In this lesson, students use what they know about the science phenomena of electromagnets and magnetic fields to design a speaker, a common decoding device in many audio technologies. This page highlights key components of this lesson.

In this unit, students are introduced to the phenomena of magnetic and electric fields as they explore how objects can interact with other objects without coming into contact with them. For this lesson, students apply scientific concepts to engineer wind turbines that use a generator to produce electricity. This page provides an overview of this lesson.

In this unit, students explore the science phenomena of waves and information transfer. For the first lesson of this unit, students identify the properties of different kinds of waves. This page is a high-level extract of this lesson. 

In this unit, students build on what they know about the science phenomena of energy transfer to focus on information transfer and how different technologies use patterns of sound, light, or numbers to transmit information. This page showcases key components of this lesson. 

In this unit, students focus on the properties of different kinds of waves and the relationship between waves and energy. In this lesson, students design a simple seismograph using what they know about the properties of seismic waves produced by earthquakes. This page is a high-level extract of this lesson.

In kindergarten, students begin to develop the practices that scientists and engineers use to help them answer questions and solve problems. This page is a high level extract from lesson 3, where students carry out an experiment to determine how heat affects water in a solid form (ice).

This page is a high level extract from lesson 4 where kindergarten students develop a model to show how water is cycled between the Earth’s surface and atmosphere.

In kindergarten, students work towards developing routines and practices that scientists use to investigate phenomena and solve problems. This page is an extract from lesson 5 where students build on their weather observation skills as they observe and record local weather data to analyze weather patterns in their geographic area. Students continue to collect weather data over several months as they move onto the next lessons to build on their weather patterns analysis.

In this unit, students explore the properties of different kinds of waves and the relationship between waves and energy. In this lesson, students investigate how waves can be used to communicate and transmit information. This page highlights key components of this lesson.

Kindergarten students start to develop the practices that scientists use to gather data, make and test hypotheses, and share their findings. During this unit, students will ask questions and make observations as they explore weather patterns and investigate how the sun heats different Earth materials. This page is an extract from lesson 9 where students conduct an experiment to analyze how materials are warmed differently in the sunlight than they are in the shade.

In Kindergarten, students begin to develop practices that scientists and engineers use to gather data, make and test hypotheses, and design prototypes based on evidence to solve problems. During this lesson students will ask questions, engage in Socratic dialogue, gather evidence through experimentation, and solve problems as they explore how the sun heats different Earth materials. This page is a high-level extract from lesson 10 where students build on their understanding of the sun’s energy to heat objects by conducting an experiment to investigate how color affects heat absorption.