Curriculum Connections

Third grade classes should have finished Unit 2: People of Missouri and won't have Unit 3: Missouri and the Civil War until January-February.

Why do offspring look similar to, but not exactly like, their parents? In Topic 3 of Unit 1: Life Science Part 1, Students will analyze and interpret data to provide evidence that plants and animals have traits inherited from parents and that variation of these traits exists.

Explore 1: Random Variation Students produce the offspring of two plants by randomly selecting traits from each parent.

Explore 2: Engineering Solution-Puppy Type: Students work in pairs to help others decide which dogs should be bred. Students will describe and illustrate a possible offspring from two of the types of dog breeds available.

Explore 3: Tuva-Cicadas (Optional) Students will create a dot-plot map to explore the variations of the wing length and body length of the trabecula species of cicada.

Fourth grade students may be finishing up Unit 2: Causes of the American Revolution. In this unit, students will build background knowledge about the causes of the American Revolution, starting with the French and Indian War. Students will also look at the perspectives of different groups involved and will study significant individuals to America prior to 1800. Curriculum writers chose to move this unit from Quarter 3 to Quarter 2 this year, so that students could gain sufficient background knowledge to make their Quarter 3 reading and writing (focused on the American Revolution) easier and more effective.

Unit 2: The Impact of Wars on the United States is a 3-week unit, which should be taught in Quarter 2, in November or December. In this unit students ask How did wars change the United States? and What were the resolutions to the wars? Students learn about the Civil War, World War I, World War II, and the Cold War. Students connect the outcomes of each war to political, social, and cultural changes that still remain in our country today.

If the Sun is an average-sized star, why does it look like the largest? In Topic 2 of Unit 2: Earth and Space Science, Part 1 students are expected to support the argument that differences in the apparent brightness of the sun compared to other stars is due to their relative distances from Earth.

Explore 1: Star Model Students will create a scaled model of the four stars closest to Earth.

Why do objects in the sky appear to move and change so much and how do they stay in orbit? In Topic 3 of Unit 2: Earth and Space Science, Part 1 students represent data in graphical displays 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.

Explore 1: Earth's Forces (From Gravity Scope) Students use a model to observe the effects of gravitational pull.

Explore 1: Scientific Investigation-Moon Phase Experience Students model the phases of the Moon using a Styrofoam ball and a lamp.

Explore 2: Scientific Investigation-Up in the Wonderful Sky Students are "Earth" as they revolve around the "Sun." As they revolve, students take notice of the constellations they can see from certain locations during the year.