Introduction

Student Activities

For the Teacher

California Science Content Standards

National Science Standards

Resources

Other Standards Addressed in Water Pollution Unit

Grade 3

Physical Sciences

1. Energy and matter have multiple forms and can be changed from one form to another. As a basis for understanding this concept, students know:

e. matter has three forms: solid, liquid, and gas.

f. evaporation and melting are changes that occur when the objects are heated.

Grade 4

Earth Sciences

5. Waves, wind, water, and ice shape and reshape the Earth's land surface. As a basis for understanding this concept, students know:

b. natural processes, including freezing/thawing and growth of roots, cause rocks to break down into smaller pieces.

c. moving water erodes landforms, reshaping the land by taking it away from some places and depositing it as pebbles, sand, silt, and mud in other places (weathering, transport, and deposition).

Grade 5

Earth Sciences

3. Water on Earth moves between the oceans and land through the processes of evaporation and condensation. As a basis for understanding this concept, students know:

a. most of the Earth’s water is present as salt water in the oceans, which cover most of the Earth’s surface.

b. when liquid water evaporates, it turns into water vapor in the air and can reappear as a liquid when cooled, or as a solid if cooled below the freezing point of water.

d. the amount of fresh water, located in rivers, lakes, underground sources, and glaciers, is limited, and its availability can be extended through recycling and decreased use.

e. the origin of water used by their local communities.

4. Energy from the sun heats the Earth unevenly, causing air movements resulting in changing weather patterns. As a basis for understanding this concept, students know:

b. the influence of the ocean on weather, and the role of the water cycle in weather.

 

Grade 6

Focus on Earth Science

Shaping the Earth’s Surface

2. Topography is reshaped by weathering of rock and soil and by the transportation and deposition of sediment. As the basis for understanding this concept, students know:

a. water running downhill is the dominant process in shaping the landscape, including California’s landscape.

b. rivers and streams are dynamic systems that erode and transport sediment, change course, and flood their banks in natural and recurring patterns.

c. beaches are dynamic systems in which sand is supplied by rivers and moved along the coast by wave action.

Grade 7

Focus on Physical Science:

Density and Buoyancy

8. All objects experience a buoyant force when immersed in a fluid. As a basis for understanding this concept, students know:

a. density is mass per unit volume.

b. how to calculate the density of substances (regular and irregular solids, and liquids) from measurements of mass and volume.

c. the buoyant force on an object in a fluid is an upward force equal to the weight of the fluid it has displaced.

d. how to predict whether an object will float or sink.

Where To Next?

The Task	Show Your Stuff
Activities	How'd You Do?
Resources	For the Teacher