Search the California Content Standards

Title: K-PS2 Motion and Stability: Forces and Interactions

Performance Expectation: Plan and conduct an investigation to compare the effects of different strengths or different directions of pushes and pulls on the motion of an object. [Clarification Statement: Examples of pushes or pulls could include a string attached to an object being pulled, a person pushing an object, a person stopping a rolling ball, and two objects colliding and pushing on each other.] [Assessment Boundary: Assessment is limited to different relative strengths or different directions, but not both at the same time. Assessment does not include non-contact pushes or pulls such as those produced by magnets.]

Disciplinary Core Idea(s):
PS2.A: Forces and Motion Pushes and pulls can have different strengths and directions. Pushing or pulling on an object can change the speed or direction of its motion and can start or stop it. PS2.B: Types of Interactions When objects touch or collide, they push on one another and can change motion. PS3.C: Relationship Between Energy and Forces A bigger push or pull makes things speed up or slow down more quickly. (secondary to K-PS2-1)

Science & Engineering Practices: Planning and Carrying Out Investigations With guidance, plan and conduct an investigation in collaboration with peers. Connections to Nature of Science: Scientific Investigations Use a Variety of Methods Scientists use different ways to study the world.

Crosscutting Concepts: Cause and Effect Simple tests can be designed to gather evidence to support or refute student ideas about causes.

California Environmental Principles and Concepts:
N/A

California Common Core State Standards Connections:
ELA/Literacy W.K.7: Participate in shared research and writing projects (e.g., explore a number of books by a favorite author and express opinions about them). Mathematics MP.2: Reason abstractly and quantitatively. K.MD.1-2: Describe and compare measurable attributes.

DCI Connections:
Connections to other DCIs in kindergarten: N/A Articulation across grade-levels: 3.PS2.A; 3.PS2.B; 4.PS3.A

Title: 1-PS4 Waves and their Applications in Technologies for Information Transfer

Performance Expectation: Plan and conduct an investigation to determine the effect of placing objects made with different materials in the path of a beam of light. [Clarification Statement: Examples of materials could include those that are transparent (such as clear plastic), translucent (such as wax paper), opaque (such as cardboard), and reflective (such as a mirror).] [Assessment Boundary: Assessment does not include the speed of light.]

Disciplinary Core Idea(s):
PS4.B: Electromagnetic Radiation Some materials allow light to pass through them, others allow only some light through and others block all the light and create a dark shadow on any surface beyond them, where the light cannot reach. Mirrors can be used to redirect a light beam. (Boundary: The idea that light travels from place to place is developed through experiences with light sources, mirrors, and shadows, but no attempt is made to discuss the speed of light.)

Science & Engineering Practices: Planning and Carrying Out Investigations Plan and conduct investigations collaboratively to produce data to serve as the basis for evidence to answer a question.

Crosscutting Concepts: Cause and Effect Simple tests can be designed to gather evidence to support or refute student ideas about causes.

California Environmental Principles and Concepts:
N/A

California Common Core State Standards Connections:
ELA/Literacy W.1.7: Participate in shared research and writing projects (e.g., explore a number of “how-to” books on a given topic and use them to write a sequence of instructions). W.1.8: With guidance and support from adults, recall information from experiences or gather information from provided sources to answer a question. SL.1.1.a–c: Participate in collaborative conversations with diverse partners about grade 1 topics and texts with peers and adults in small and larger groups.

DCI Connections:
Connections to other DCIs in first grade: N/A Articulation across grade-levels: 2.PS1.A

Title: 2-ESS2 Earth’s Systems

Performance Expectation: Develop a model to represent the shapes and kinds of land and bodies of water in an area. [Assessment Boundary: Assessment does not include quantitative scaling in models.]

Disciplinary Core Idea(s):
ESS2.B: Plate Tectonics and Large-Scale System Interactions Maps show where things are located. One can map the shapes and kinds of land and water in any area.

Science & Engineering Practices: Developing and Using Models Develop a model to represent patterns in the natural world.

Crosscutting Concepts: Patterns Patterns in the natural world can be observed.

California Environmental Principles and Concepts:
N/A

California Common Core State Standards Connections:
ELA/Literacy SL.2.5: Create audio recordings of stories or poems; add drawings or other visual displays to stories or recounts of experiences when appropriate to clarify ideas, thoughts, and feelings. Mathematics MP.2: Reason abstractly and quantitatively. MP.4: Model with mathematics. 2.NBT.3: Read and write numbers to 1000 using base-ten numerals, number names, and expanded form.

DCI Connections:
Connections to other DCIs in second grade: N/A Articulation across grade-levels: 4.ESS2.B; 5.ESS2.C

Title: 2-PS1 Matter and Its Interactions

Performance Expectation: Plan and conduct an investigation to describe and classify different kinds of materials by their observable properties. [Clarification Statement: Observations could include color, texture, hardness, and flexibility. Patterns could include the similar properties that different materials share.]

Disciplinary Core Idea(s):
PS1.A: Structure and Properties of Matter Different kinds of matter exist and many of them can be either solid or liquid, depending on temperature. Matter can be described and classified by its observable properties.

Science & Engineering Practices: Planning and Carrying Out Investigations Plan and conduct an investigation collaboratively to produce data to serve as the basis for evidence to answer a question.

Crosscutting Concepts: Patterns Patterns in the natural and human designed world can be observed.

California Environmental Principles and Concepts:
N/A

California Common Core State Standards Connections:
ELA/Literacy W.2.7: Participate in shared research and writing projects (e.g., read a number of books on a single topic to produce a report; record science observations). W.2.8: Recall information from experiences or gather information from provided sources to answer a question. Mathematics MP.4: Model with mathematics. 2.MD.10: Draw a picture graph and a bar graph (with single-unit scale) to represent a data set with up to four categories. Solve simple put-together, take-apart, and compare problems using information presented in a bar graph.

DCI Connections:
Connections to other DCIs in second grade: N/A Articulation across grade-levels: 5.PS1.A

Title: 4-ESS2 Earth’s Systems

Performance Expectation: Make observations and/or measurements to provide evidence of the effects of weathering or the rate of erosion by water, ice, wind, or vegetation. [Clarification Statement: Examples of variables to test could include angle of slope in the downhill movement of water, amount of vegetation, speed of wind, relative rate of deposition, cycles of freezing and thawing of water, cycles of heating and cooling, and volume of water flow.] [Assessment Boundary: Assessment is limited to a single form of weathering or erosion.]

Disciplinary Core Idea(s):
ESS2.A: Earth Materials and Systems Rainfall helps to shape the land and affects the types of living things found in a region. Water, ice, wind, living organisms, and gravity break rocks, soils, and sediments into smaller particles and move them around. ESS2.E: Biogeology Living things affect the physical characteristics of their regions.

Science & Engineering Practices: Planning and Carrying Out Investigations Make observations and/or measurements to produce data to serve as the basis for evidence for an explanation of a phenomenon.

Crosscutting Concepts: Cause and Effect Cause and effect relationships are routinely identified, tested, and used to explain change.

California Environmental Principles and Concepts:
N/A

California Common Core State Standards Connections:
ELA/Literacy W4.7: Conduct short research projects that build knowledge through investigation of different aspects of a topic. W.4.8: Recall relevant information from experiences or gather relevant information from print and digital sources; take notes, paraphrase, and categorize information, and provide a list of sources. Mathematics MP.2: Reason abstractly and quantitatively. MP.4: Model with mathematics. MP.5: Use appropriate tools strategically. 4.MD.A.1: Know relative sizes of measurement units within one system of units including km, m, cm; kg, g; lb, oz.; l, ml; hr, min, sec. Within a single system of measurement, express measurements in a larger unit in terms of a smaller unit. Record measurement equivalents in a two-column table. For example, know that 1 ft is 12 times as long as 1 in. Express the length of a 4 ft snake as 48 in. Generate a conversion table for feet and inches listing the number pairs (1,12), (2, 24), (3,36),... 4.MD.2: Use the four operations to solve word problems involving distances, intervals of time, liquid volumes, masses of objects, and money, including problems involving simple fractions or decimals, and problems that require expressing measurements given in a larger unit in terms of a smaller unit. Represent measurement quantities using diagrams such as number line diagrams that feature a measurement scale.

DCI Connections:
Connections to other DCIs in fourth grade: N/A Articulation across grade-levels: 2.ESS1.C; 2.ESS2.A; 5.ESS2.A

Title: 4-PS4 Waves and Their Applications in Technologies for Information Transfer

Performance Expectation: Develop a model to describe that light reflecting from objects and entering the eye allows objects to be seen. [Assessment Boundary: Assessment does not include knowledge of specific colors reflected and seen, the cellular mechanisms of vision, or how the retina works.]

Disciplinary Core Idea(s):
PS4.B: Electromagnetic Radiation An object can be seen when light reflected from its surface enters the eyes.

Science & Engineering Practices: Developing and Using Models Develop a model to describe phenomena.

Crosscutting Concepts: Cause and Effect Cause and effect relationships are routinely identified.

California Environmental Principles and Concepts:
N/A

California Common Core State Standards Connections:
ELA/Literacy SL.4.5: Add audio recordings and visual displays to presentations when appropriate to enhance the development of main ideas or themes. Mathematics MP.4: Model with mathematics. 4.G.1: Draw points, lines, line segments, rays, angles (right, acute, obtuse), and perpendicular and parallel lines. Identify these in two-dimensional figures.

DCI Connections:
Connections to other DCIs in fourth grade: N/A Articulation across grade-levels: 1.PS4.B; MS.PS4.B; MS.LS1.D

Title: 5-PS1 Matter and Its Interactions

Performance Expectation: Conduct an investigation to determine whether the mixing of two or more substances results in new substances. [Clarification statement: Examples of combinations that do not produce new substances could include sand and water. Examples of combinations that do produce new substances could include baking soda and vinegar or milk and vinegar.]

Disciplinary Core Idea(s):
PS1.B: Chemical Reactions When two or more different substances are mixed, a new substance with different properties may be formed.

Science & Engineering Practices: Planning and Carrying Out Investigations Conduct an investigation collaboratively to produce data to serve as the basis for evidence, using fair tests in which variables are controlled and the number of trials considered.

Crosscutting Concepts: Cause and Effect Cause and effect relationships are routinely identified, tested, and used to explain change.

California Environmental Principles and Concepts:
N/A

California Common Core State Standards Connections:
ELA/Literacy W.5.7: Conduct short research projects that use several sources to build knowledge through investigation of different aspects of a topic. W.5.8: Recall relevant information from experiences or gather relevant information from print and digital sources; summarize or paraphrase information in notes and finished work, and provide a list of sources. W.5.9.a-b: Draw evidence from literary or informational texts to support analysis, reflection, and research.

DCI Connections:
Connections to other DCIs in fifth grade: N/A Articulation across grade-levels: 2.PS1.B; MS.PS1.A; MS.PS1.B

Title: MS-ESS1 Earth’s Place in the Universe

Performance Expectation: Develop and use a model of the Earth-sun-moon system to describe the cyclic patterns of lunar phases, eclipses of the sun and moon, and seasons. [Clarification Statement: Examples of models can be physical, graphical, or conceptual.]

Disciplinary Core Idea(s):
ESS1.A: The Universe and its Stars Patterns of the apparent motion of the sun, the moon, and stars in the sky can be observed, described, predicted, and explained with models. ESS1.B: Earth and the Solar System This model of the solar system can explain eclipses of the sun and the moon. Earth’s spin axis is fixed in direction over the short-term but tilted relative to its orbit around the sun. The seasons are a result of that tilt and are caused by the differential intensity of sunlight on different areas of Earth across the year.

Science & Engineering Practices: Developing and Using Models Develop and use a model to describe phenomena.

Crosscutting Concepts: Patterns Patterns can be used to identify cause-and-effect relationships. Connections to Nature of Science: Scientific Knowledge Assumes an Order and Consistency in Natural Systems Science assumes that objects and events in natural systems occur in consistent patterns that are understandable through measurement and observation.

California Environmental Principles and Concepts:
N/A

California Common Core State Standards Connections:
ELA/Literacy SL.8.5: Integrate multimedia and visual displays into presentations to clarify information, strengthen claims and evidence, and add interest. Mathematics MP.4: Model with mathematics. 6.RP.1: Understand the concept of a ratio and use ratio language to describe a ratio relationship between two quantities. 7.RP.2.a-d: Recognize and represent proportional relationships between quantities.

DCI Connections:
Connections to other DCIs in this grade-band: MS.PS2.A; MS.PS2.B Articulation across grade-bands: 3.PS2.A; 5.PS2.B; 5.ESS1.B; HS.PS2.A; HS.PS2.B; HS.ESS1.B

Title: MS-LS3 Heredity: Inheritance and Variation of Traits

Performance Expectation: Develop and use a model to describe why asexual reproduction results in offspring with identical genetic information and sexual reproduction results in offspring with genetic variation. [Clarification Statement: Emphasis is on using models such as Punnett squares, diagrams, and simulations to describe the cause and effect relationship of gene transmission from parent(s) to offspring and resulting genetic variation.]

Disciplinary Core Idea(s):
LS1.B: Growth and Development of Organisms Organisms reproduce, either sexually or asexually, and transfer their genetic information to their offspring. (secondary to MS-LS3-2) LS3.A: Inheritance of Traits Variations of inherited traits between parent and offspring arise from genetic differences that result from the subset of chromosomes (and therefore genes) inherited. LS3.B: Variation of Traits In sexually reproducing organisms, each parent contributes half of the genes acquired (at random) by the offspring. Individuals have two of each chromosome and hence two alleles of each gene, one acquired from each parent. These versions may be identical or may differ from each other.

Science & Engineering Practices: Developing and Using Models Develop and use a model to describe phenomena.

Crosscutting Concepts: Cause and Effect Cause and effect relationships may be used to predict phenomena in natural systems.

California Environmental Principles and Concepts:
N/A

California Common Core State Standards Connections:
ELA/Literacy RST.6-8.1: Cite specific textual evidence to support analysis of science and technical texts. RST.6-8.4: Determine the meaning of symbols, key terms, and other domain-specific words and phrases as they are used in a specific scientific or technical context relevant to grades 6-8 texts and topics. RST.6-8.7: Integrate quantitative or technical information expressed in words in a text with a version of that information expressed visually (e.g., in a flowchart, diagram, model, graph, or table). SL.8.5: Integrate multimedia and visual displays into presentations to clarify information, strengthen claims and evidence, and add interest. Mathematics MP.4: Model with mathematics. 6.SP.5.a-d: Summarize numerical data sets in relation to their context.

DCI Connections:
Connections to other DCIs in this grade-band: N/A Articulation across grade-bands: 3.LS3.A; 3.LS3.B; HS.LS1.B; HS.LS3.A; HS.LS3.B

Title: MS-PS1 Matter and Its Interactions

Performance Expectation: Develop a model that predicts and describes changes in particle motion, temperature, and state of a pure substance when thermal energy is added or removed. [Clarification Statement: Emphasis is on qualitative molecular-level models of solids, liquids, and gases to show that adding or removing thermal energy increases or decreases kinetic energy of the particles until a change of state occurs. Examples of models could include drawings and diagrams. Examples of particles could include molecules or inert atoms. Examples of pure substances could include water, carbon dioxide, and helium.]

Disciplinary Core Idea(s):
PS1.A: Structure and Properties of Matter Gases and liquids are made of molecules or inert atoms that are moving about relative to each other. In a liquid, the molecules are constantly in contact with others; in a gas, they are widely spaced except when they happen to collide. In a solid, atoms are closely spaced and may vibrate in position but do not change relative locations. The changes of state that occur with variations in temperature or pressure can be described and predicted using these models of matter. PS3.A: Definitions of Energy The term “heat” as used in everyday language refers both to thermal energy (the motion of atoms or molecules within a substance) and the transfer of that thermal energy from one object to another. In science, heat is used only for this second meaning; it refers to the energy transferred due to the temperature difference between two objects. (secondary to MS-PS1-4) The temperature of a system is proportional to the average internal kinetic energy and potential energy per atom or molecule (whichever is the appropriate building block for the system’s material). The details of that relationship depend on the type of atom or molecule and the interactions among the atoms in the material. Temperature is not a direct measure of a system's total thermal energy. The total thermal energy (sometimes called the total internal energy) of a system depends jointly on the temperature, the total number of atoms in the system, and the state of the material. (secondary to MS-PS1-4)

Science & Engineering Practices: Developing and Using Models Develop a model to predict and/or describe phenomena.

Crosscutting Concepts: Cause and Effect Cause and effect relationships may be used to predict phenomena in natural or designed systems.

California Environmental Principles and Concepts:
Principle II The long-term functioning and health of terrestrial, freshwater, coastal, and marine ecosystems are influenced by their relationships with human societies.

California Common Core State Standards Connections:
ELA/Literacy RST.6-8.7: Integrate quantitative or technical information expressed in words in a text with a version of that information expressed visually (e.g., in a flowchart, diagram, model, graph, or table). Mathematics 6.NS.5: Understand that positive and negative numbers are used together to describe quantities having opposite directions or values (e.g., temperature above/below zero, elevation above/below sea level, credits/debits, positive/negative electric charge); use positive and negative numbers to represent quantities in real-world contexts, explaining the meaning of 0 in each situation.

DCI Connections:
Connections to other DCIs in this grade-band: MS.ESS2.C Articulation across grade-bands: HS.PS1.A; HS.PS1.B; HS.PS3.A