3rd Grade Science Course Curriculum
Rose Tree Media School District
Unit: Land and Water
Big Ideas &
Essential
Questions
Students will use
stream table
materials to
investigate the
interactions between
water and land.
Approx. Time Allotment: 4-6 weeks
Concepts & Competencies
Water has an important role in shaping the land
on earth.
Soil is a composite of weathered materials and
organic matter at the earth’s surface. Soil
components include sand, silt, clay, gravel, and
humus. Each soil component has unique
properties.
Analyze the
materials that make
up land and describe
these materials on
the basis of their
properties.
The wearing away and moving of soil and rock is
erosion; the settling of eroded materials is
deposition.
Compare the
changes in land
created by water
flowing over and
through soil in a
stream table.
These processes affect the shape of the land.
Both the flow of water and the slope of the land
affect erosion and deposition.
Design and build
models of landscapes, predicting
how a landscape will
affect the flow of
water, and relating
these modeled
effects to land and
water interactions on
earth
The water cycle includes the processes of
evaporation, condensation, and precipitation and
the passage of water over and through land.
Tributaries are branches of streams that converge
to form the trunk of a larger stream or river.
Together, they act as a system that drains the
land.
Landforms, such as canyons and deltas, result
from the action of flowing water.
Humans can affect erosion and deposition in
various ways, including clearing the land, planting
vegetation, and building dams.
Hills, rocks, plants, and dams may change the
direction and flow of water.
Aerial photographs are views of land or other
surfaces as seen from above.
Standards
& Eligible
Content
3.3.3.A1;
3.3.3.A2;
3.3.3.A7
Key Vocabulary
Water Cycle
Evaporation
Condensation
Precipitation
Ground Water
Runoff
Water Table
Geologist
Land Formations
Water
Surface
Erosion
Weathering
Flow
Deposition
Interaction
Weather
 Atmosphere
 Thermometer
 Celsius
 Fahrenheit
 Barometer
 Water Cycle
 Evaporation
 Precipitation
 Condensation
Materials &
Resources
STC Land and
Water Teacher's
Guide
STC Land and
Water Student
Activity Book
STC Land and
Water kit
Science folders to
record
observations
Lap-Top Cart: Soil
and Water Cycle
Software
Videos from STC,
Discovery Ed,
BrainPop
Suggested
Activities Labs &
Assessments
(formative &
summative)
1. Journal
documentation and
recording of activity
observations.
2. Design and build a
landscape model as
described in STC kit.
Suggested
3. Class discussion
4. Observational check
lists (teacher)
5. Self assessment
(see T. P.205)
6. Oral presentations
7. Teacher made
quizzes and tests
8. Group work
Teacher may use any
and all of the following
strategies to elicit
responses and engage
students:
 Think and wonder
(STC Teacher’s
Guide)
 Find Out for
Yourself Ideas to
explore
 Brainstorming
 Webbing of
concepts and ideas
 Venn diagrams
 Cooperative
learning groups
Rose Tree Media School District
3rd Grade Science Course Curriculum
 Learning centers
3rd Grade Science Course Curriculum
Rose Tree Media School District
Unit: Magnetism and Electricity
Big Ideas &
Essential
Questions
Concepts in
physical
science are
introduced and
reinforced
through
investigations
that provide
students with
opportunities to
observe and
manipulate
materials in
focused
settings using
simple tools.
Concepts & Competencies
1. Students will observe the interaction of
permanent magnets and discover forces of
attraction and repulsion.
2. Students will identify materials that are
conductors and insulators and display an
understanding of circuits.
a. Demonstrate evidence of the flow of
electricity by building simple circuits and
understand the components of a circuit.
b. Draw pictures and diagrams to
represent electrical circuits.
c. Use technology to solve problems.
d. Compare parallel and series circuits
and organize data to show the
advantages of each.
e. Explore trial-and-error experiences in
making circuits work.
f. Use scientific thinking processes to
conduct investigations and build
explanations: observing, communicating,
comparing, and organizing.
3. Students will create an electromagnet.
a. Find the relationship between the
number of winds of wire around a core
and the strength of magnetic force.
b. Investigate other ways to alter the
strength of an electromagnet’s magnetic
force.
c. Organize data on these investigations.
d. Use scientific thinking processes to
conduct investigations and build
explanations: observing, communicating,
comparing, and organizing.
Approx. Time Allotment: 6 weeks
Standards
& Eligible
Content
3.1.4.a
3.1.4.B
3.2.3.B4;
3.2.3.B7
3.2.4. A
3.2.4.C
3.4.3.C
3.4.4.B
3.4.4.C
3.6.4.B
3.8.4.B
Key
Vocabulary
Materials &
Resources
Attract
Battery
Circuit
Circuit base
Closed circuit
Coil
Compass
Conductor
D-cell
Electricity
Electro
magnet
Fahnstock clip
Filament
Force
Induced
magnet
Insulator
Lodestone
Magnet
Magnetic force
Open circuit
Parallel circuit
Pole repel
Series circuit
Static
electricity
Switch
Telegraph
Temporary
magnet
1. Magnetism and
Electricity Teacher's Guide
(FOSS)
2. Teacher Preparation
Video (FOSS)
3. Equipment for students
working in collaborative
groups from Foss kit
7. FOSS Science Stories,
Magnetism and Electricity
8. Student ReadingFiction and Nonfiction
(Magnetism and
Electricity, Resources
section, pp.1-3)
9. Software (Magnetism
and Electricity, Resources
section, p. 4)
10. Videos (Magnetism
and Electricity, Resources
section, p. 4); BrainPop,
Discovery Ed.
11. Teacher Resources
(Magnetism and
Electricity, Resources
section, p. 4)
12. FOSS Website
(Magnetism and
Electricity, FOSS Website
section)
Suggested Activities
Labs & Assessments
(formative &
summative)
1. Inquiry activities
2. Hands-on active learning
3. Multisensory methods
4. Collaborative learning
groups
5. Focused, teacher-led
discussion
6. Question-and-answer
sessions
7. Reflective thinking
8. Reading
9. Research
1. Student Sheets
(Magnetism and Electricity,
several sheets per
investigation)
2. Response sheets
(Magnetism and Electricity, 1
per investigation)
3. Class Assessment Charts
(Magnetism and Electricity, 1
per investigation, teacher
use only)
4. End-Of-Module
Assessment for Magnetism
and Electricity
5. Portfolio Assessment for
Magnetism and Electricity
3rd Grade Science Course Curriculum
Rose Tree Media School District
Unit: Space
Big Ideas &
Essential
Questions
A system is an
organized
group of related
objects that
form a whole.
Our solar
system is a
group of
planets, and
other celestial
objects that
orbit the sun.
Students
develop an
understanding
of the solar
system and our
planet.
Approx. Time Allotment: 4 to 6 weeks
Concepts & Competencies
Benchmark #1. Students will identify and name
parts of the solar system and learn characteristics
of each planet.
a. Draw and diagram planets in order
from the sun.
b. Investigate size, distance from the sun,
atmosphere, moons, and orbits of the
planets.
c. Explore through hands-on activity
ideas about the Earth's rotation and
revolution.
Benchmark #2. Students will learn about the night
sky and constellations.
a. Students will identify simple
constellations from night sky chart.
b. Students create models of
constellations and write their own myths.
Standards
& Eligible
Content
3.3.3.B1;
3.3.3.B3
Key
Vocabulary
Materials &
Resources
Asteroids
Atmosphere
Axis
Comet
Constellation
Crater
Day
Ellipse
Gravity
Meteor
Meteroids
Orbit
Revolution
Rotate
Satellite
Scale
Solar System
Star
Year
Solar System Unit Teacher
Guide from FOSS
FOSS kit materials
Eyewitness videos
Magic School Bus videos
Online Videos from
Discovery Ed and
Brainpop
Websites to support
lessons
Field trip to planetarium
Planetary models
Suggested Activities
Labs & Assessments
(formative &
summative)
1. Inquiry activities
2. Hands-on active learning
3. Multisensory methods
4. Collaborative learning
groups
5. Focused, teacher-led
discussion
6. Question-and-answer
sessions
7. Reflective thinking
8. Reading
9. Research
Assessment:
1. Learning log
2. Written/oral report
3. Student made murals
4. Student made models
5. Student made dioramas
6. Posters
3rd Grade Science Course Curriculum
Rose Tree Media School District
Unit: OPTIONAL Embryology
Big Ideas &
Essential
Questions
Life Cycle of the
Chick: Students
will obtain a better
understanding of
life and embryonic
development by
studying the eggs
of chicks.
Students will
observe chicks
hatching and the
growth of chicks
over several days.
Concepts & Competencies
1. Students will have an understanding of
embryo growth and development.
a. Manipulate eggs in
preparation for hatching.
b. Observe and record growth
process through candling.
c. Compare body systems of
chicks to humans.
d. Nurture embryo and chicks
through temperature monitoring
and hands-on care.
Approx. Time Allotment: 2 weeks
Standards
& Eligible
Content
3.1.3.A3;
3.1.3.A9;
3.1.3.B1
3.1.3.B5;
3.1.3.B6
Key
Vocabulary
Materials &
Resources
Aircell
Albumen
Chalazae
Embryo
Germ spot
Incubator
Membrane
Shell
Yolk
1. Beginning of Life, A
Leader's Manual for Avian
Embryology
2. Embryology Project
Booklets for students
(available from 4-H)
3. Incubators (available
for rent or purchase from
4-H)
4. Fertile eggs (available
from 4-H)
5. Chick food (available
from 4-H)
Suggested Activities
Labs & Assessments
(formative &
summative)
1. Class discussions
2. Brainstorming
3. Cooperative learning
groups
4. Learning centers
5. Observing and Describing
Activities (Chemical Tests,
Appendix E)
6. Safety strategies
7. Teacher demonstrations,
hands-on activities, graphic
organizers, preferential
seating, visual cues,
extended time, wait time,
study guides,
individual/partner/group
work, modified materials,
flash cards
6. Video available from 4H
7. Chick embryology/chick
embryology activities.
8. Website links for chicks
and embryology
9. Discovery Ed and
BrainPop videos
Assessments
1. Completed Incubator
chart
2. Chart of chick care
3. Learning log
4. Teacher observation