K-2 Science Topics*
KG
NON-LIVING THINGS
- Big rocks break down into small rocks
-Water and wind move non‐living things
- Earth materials can be sorted, grouped, and
classified based on their properties
1st
EARTH SCIENCE
INVESTIGATE NATURAL WORLD
-Components of soil have texture, size, and color
-Natural sources of water: streams, lakes, oceans
-Uses of rocks, water, soils
Terms: wind, rivers, soil, change
Terms: clay, compare, contrast, data, evidence, silt, similarity,
soil, sort, texture
DAY & NIGHT
- Light and dark in a day‐night cycle form a pattern
-Shadows, temperature change
SUN & MOON
- S. and M. changes location and appearance. M.
can be seen during the day
Terms: pattern, change, heat, light, temperature, shadow
Terms: identify, record, shadow
WEATHER
-Changes from day to day, patterns from season to
season
-Changes affect individuals differently
-Predict/discuss daily weather changes
WEATHER
-Characteristics of seasons
-Characteristics of weather, e.g., types of
precipitation, sunny, foggy, and cloudy
-Observe/record weather info for each season
Terms: weather, partly cloudy, foggy, clear, fall, autumn,
summer, spring, winter, predict, forecast
Terms: data, foggy, globe, identify, map, models, precipitation,
record, season, weather
2nd
ROCKS
-Smaller rocks created by breakage/weathering of
larger rocks
-Parts of rocks (e.g. crystals, grains, cement)
-Rocks sorted by: color, hardness, texture, layering,
and particle size (i.e. igneous, metamorphic,
sedimentary)
Terms: characteristics, weathering, texture, layering, particle,
data, conclusions, properties
MOON & STARS
-Patterns in appearance and motion of the moon in
night sky.
-Amount, arrangement, color/brightness of stars in
night sky
Terms: arrangements, patterns, location, variations,
constellations, moon phases
WEATHER
-Season patterns during the school year
-Analyze/interpret data such as temp changes in
different locations and at different times
Terms: seasonal, variations, analyze, interpret, temperature,
precipitation, thermometer, rain gauge, weather vane,
conclusions, locations, patterns
PHYSICAL SCIENCE
MOVEMENT
-Objects move in different ways (see terms below)
-Physical properties of objects affect movement
(e.g. hard, soft, feathered, round, square, cone,
geometric shapes)
Terms: fast, slow, zigzag, round and round, up, down, straight
line, back, forth, slide, roll, bounce, spin, swing, float, glide, push,
pull
MATTER
- Parts are used to build things and things can be
taken apart
- Things may not work the same if some of the parts
are missing
Terms: part, whole
MOVEMENT
-Describe motion of objects (e.g. straight, zigzag,
circular, curved, back and forth, fast and slow)
-Compare/contrast movement of objects using
drawings, graphs, and numbers
-How push and pull affect movement
Terms: motion, zigzag, bar graph, observe, describe
MATTER
-Sort, classify, and chart observable properties (e.g.
size, shape, color, texture)
-Predict measurable properties e.g. weight, temp, or
if it will float/sink test and record data
-Changes in matter when: heated, cooled, mixed
with water
Terms: sort, predict, classify, solid, liquid, dissolve, matter,
property, mix
MOVEMENT (FALLING)
-Observe falling objects, things that prevent them
from reaching the ground
-Objects of varying masses fall at the same weight
Terms: communicate, observations, identify, demonstrate,
investigate, data, conclusions, motion, weightlessness, prevent,
various
MATTER
-Physical changes of materials
-Matter is not created or destroyed through changes.
Terms: demonstrate, physical, matter, data, conclusions,
investigate, mass
LIFE SCIENCE
LIVING THINGS
-Compare/contrast young plants and animals with
their parents
-Fast or slow changes in plants and animals that
are hard to see
LIVING THINGS
-Plants and animals resemble their parents
-Similarities and differences within/across larger
groups
Terms: populations, similarities, differences
Terms: living vs. non-living things, change, grow
PARTS OF LIVING THINGS
-Difference between body parts and the five senses
-Main parts of plants, e.g., roots, stem, leaf, flower,
trunk, branches
-Parts of different animals, e.g., skin, fur, feathers,
scales, hand, winds, flippers, fins
LIVING THINGS & THEIR ENVIRONMENT
-Observe living things and environment with the five
senses
-Earth materials sustain plant and animal life (e.g.
food, water, air, light, space)
-Life cycles
Terms: life cycle, offspring, need, environment, investigate
Term: living vs. non-living things, senses, sight, taste, touch,
smell, sound, bitter, sweet, salty
LIVING THINGS
-Characteristics of living things in different habitats
-Why a habitat is/isn’t suitable for a specific
organism
-Why some animals extinct and similar ones not
Terms: characteristics, environments, habitats, justify, compare,
contrast, extinct, desert, ocean, rainforest, tundra
BASIC NEEDS OF LIVING THINGS
-Physical characteristics, behaviors, and reactions of
living things help them meet their basic needs
-Behaviors and reactions of living things in response
to changes in the environment including seasonal
changes in temp and precipitation
Terms: physical characteristics, behaviors, reaction, environment,
seasonal, temperature, precipitation, migration, hibernation,
dormancy
3-6 Science Topics*
3rd
EARTH & MOON
-Spherical shape
-Sun is source of light that lights
moon
-Physical appearance of Earth and
moon from space
-Motions of earth (i.e. rotation
[spinning] of Earth on its axis,
revolution [orbit] of Earth around
sun)
-Lunar cycle chart
-Earth rotates on axis every 24 hrs
creating night and day
-Use model to show why it appears
that sun, planets, and stars move
across the sky
Terms: model, orbit, sphere, moon, axis,
rotation, revolution, appearance
LIVING/NONLIVING
-Organisms depend on living and
nonliving things
-Characteristics of both living and
nonliving
-Describe interactions between living
4th
WATER CYCLE
-Relationship between heat energy,
evaporation, and condensation
-Describe the water cycle
-Locations of water during the
cycle, e.g., oceans, atmosphere
-Water cycle in relation to your
community water supply
Terms: vapor, precipitation, evaporation,
clouds, dew, condensation, temperature,
water cycles
WEATHER
-Observing elements of weather
-Predicting weather based on
recorded observation and
measurement
-Cloud types (i.e. cumulus, cirrus,
stratus)
-Evidence that air is substance
-Weather patterns
-Wind affects on weather
-Weather prediction and tools of
meteorology
5th
6th
MATTER
-Chemical and physical changes
-Matter not created or destroyed just
changed
-Weight of matter before and after change
-Physical properties of matter (hard, soft),
appearance before and after physical
change
-Evidence of chemical reactions, chemical
reactions in daily life
-Chemical reaction vs. physical change
LUNAR CYCLE
-Changes in appearance and pattern
of the moon
-Movement of moon around Earth
-Positions of Earth, moon, and sun
create appearance of moon phases
-Rotating on an axis vs. revolving in
orbit
-Objects in the sky change in relative
position over course of day or night
Terms: heat, substance, chemical change, dissolve,
physical change, matter, product, reactants, solid,
liquid, weight
SEASONS
-Tilt of Earth’s axis and revolution
around the sun
-Earth’s position to the sun during
each season
-How the angle of the sun’s rays
strike the Earth’s surface in the
Northern Hemisphere during:
summer, fall, winter, spring
-Seasons reversed in Northern and
Southern Hemispheres.
EARTH’S CHANGING SURFACE
-Processes/forces that weather and erode
-Relationship of time and geological
changes
-Volcanoes, earthquakes, and uplift
-Landforms related to above
-Process of building up and breaking down
of Earth’s surface over time
-Appearance of Earth’s surface if there was
no uplift, weathering, or erosion
Terms: Earth’s tilt, seasons, axis of rotation,
orbits, phases of the moon, revolution,
reflection
and nonliving in a small environment
-Predict effects of changes in an
environment on a living organism
-Small-scale vs larger environment
Terms: environment, interaction, living,
nonliving, organism, survive, observe,
terrarium, aquarium, temperature, moisture,
small-scale
FORCE & MOTION and GRAVITY
-Forces cause change in speed or
direction of objects
-Objects at rest stay at rest……
-Pushing vs. pulling
-Simple machines and forces
-Compare effects of forces on
objects (varying strength of force and
varying the objects)
-Objects near Earth are pulled to it
by gravity
-Describe effects of gravity on the
motion of an object
Terms: distance, force, gravity, weight,
motion, speed, direction, simple machine
SUN/HEAT
-Main source of heat and light for
living things
-Rubbing objects together can
produce heat
-Demonstrate mechanical and
electrical machines produce heat
and sometimes light
Terms: mechanical, electrical, temperature,
degrees, lubricated, misconception, heat
source, machine
Terms: atmosphere, meteorologist, freezing,
cumulus, stratus, cirrus, air pressure,
thermometer, air temperature, wind speed,
forecast, severe phenomena, precipitation,
seasonal, accuracy, barometer, rain gauge,
components
ROCKS/SOILS
-Basic properties of rocks and
minerals (differences)
-Sort by appearance the 3 basic
types of rock: igneous,
sedimentary, metamorphic
-Utah rocks
-Weathering vs. erosion
-Basic components of soil
-Relationship between plants and
soil
Terms: mineral, weathering, erosion,
sedimentary, igneous, metamorphic, topsoil,
subsoil, bedrock, organism, freeze, thaw,
profile, nonliving, structural support,
nutrients
FOSSILS
-Formation
-Where found in Utah
-How they can be used to infer
Terms: infer, environments, climate,
dinosaur, preserved, extinct, extinction,
impression, fossil, prehistoric, mineral,
organism, replacement, trilobite,
sedimentary, tropical
UTAH HABITATS
-Physical characteristics of
wetlands, forests, and deserts
-Plants and animals in Utah, how
they adapt to their environment
-Effect of elevation on habitats
-Endangered Utah plants and
animals
-Classify Utah plants and animals
-Utah spiders and insects
Terms: wetland, forest, desert, adaptation,
deciduous, coniferous, invertebrate,
vertebrate, bird, amphibian, reptile, fish,
mammal, insect, hibernation, migration
Common plants: sagebrush, pinyon pine,
Utah juniper, spruce, fir, oak brush, quaking
aspen, cottonwood, cattail, bulrush, prickly
Terms: earthquakes, erode, erosion, faults, uplift,
volcanoes, weathering, buttes, arches, glaciers,
geological, deposition
MAGNETISM/ELECTRICITY
-Types of magnets
-Attract/repel, permanent magnets vs.
electromagnetism
-Earth’s magnetic field
-Features of static and current electricity
-Electrical circuit components
-Conductors, insulators
Terms: battery, complete circuit, incomplete circuit,
current, conductor, insulator, pathway, power source,
attract, compass, electromagnetism, magnetic force,
magnetic field, natural magnet, permanent magnet,
properties, repel, static electricity, temporary magnet,
switch, load
HEREDITY/TRAITS
-Parent to offspring
-Inherited traits can help or hinder survival
-Inherited traits vs. traits and behaviors that
are learned or induced by the environment
-Characteristics can give a survival
advantage
Terms: inherited, environment, species, offspring, traits,
variations, survival, instincts, population, specialized
structure, organism, life cycle, parent organism, learned
behavior
SOLAR SYSTEM
-Planet names and locations relative
to the sun
-Physical properties and sizes of
objects in solar system
-Characteristics of comets, asteroids,
and meteors
-Manmade satellites
-Technology used to observe and
explore the solar system
-Forces holding objects in orbit;
mass of objects and gravitational
force
-Role of gravity in the solar system
-Compare size/distance of objects
within the: solar system, galaxy,
universe
-Appearance and motion of stars,
how various cultures have
understood and used them
Terms: asteroids, celestial object, comets,
galaxy, planets, satellites, star, distance, force,
gravity, gravitational force, mass, scale, solar
system, constellation, Milky Way galaxy,
speed of light, telescope, universe, sun, light
years
MICROORGANISMS
-Size, shape, and structure of
organisms
-Common characteristics of
organisms and their function
-Plan/conduct experiments to
determine microorganisms
requirements
-Positive/negative effects of
microorganisms; decomposers, food
production, etc.
-Helpful uses and role of science that
led to positive uses (i.e., Pasteur
established the existence, growth,
and control of bacteria; Fleming
isolated and developed penicillin)
-Diseases caused by
microorganisms (e.g. athlete’s footfungi, streptococcus throat-bacteria,
giardia-protozoa)
-Harmful effects on food (e.g.,
pear cactus
Common animals: jackrabbit, cottontail
rabbit, red fox, coyote, mule deer, elk,
moose, cougar, bobcat, deer mouse,
kangaroo rat, muskrat, beaver, gopher
snake, rattlesnake, lizard, tortoise, frog,
salamander, red-tailed hawk, barn owl, lark,
robin, pinyon jay, magpie, crow, trout,
catfish, carp, grasshopper, ant, moth,
butterfly, housefly, bee, wasp, pill bug,
millipede
causes fruits and vegetables to rot,
destroys food bearing plants, makes
milk sour)
Terms: algae, fungi, microorganism,
decomposer, single-celled, organism, bacteria,
protozoan, producer, hypothesis, experiment,
investigation, variable, control, culture
HEAT, LIGHT, SOUND
-Heat transfer: conduction,
convection, radiation
-Heat from the sun
-Various sources of light
-Light can be produced, reflected,
refracted, and separated
-Sounds and vibrations
-Relationship between size and
shape of object and it’s pitch
-Volume as related to energy used to
create the vibration
Terms: angle of incidence, angle of reflection,
absorption, conduction, conductor, convection,
medium, pitch, prism, radiation, reflection,
refraction, spectrum, vibration
*Information about the core was taken from the uen.org, the topics have been edited and paraphrased but the terms are listed the same as what shows on the
website. http://www.uen.org/core/science/index.shtml