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Science and Technology/Engineering | Grade : 4
Discipline - Life Science
Core Idea - From Molecules to Organisms: Structures and Processes
[4.LS.1.1] - Construct an argument that animals and plants have internal and external structures that support their survival, growth, behavior, and reproduction.
Clarification Statements: Animal structures can include legs, wings, fins, feathers, trunks, claws, horns, antennae, eyes, ears, nose, heart, stomach, lung, brain, and skin. Plant structures can include leaves, roots, stems, bark, branches, flowers, fruit, and seeds. State Assessment Boundary: State assessment will be limited to macroscopic structures.
[SL.4.4] -
Report on a topic, text, procedure, or solution to a mathematical problem, tell a story, or recount an experience in an organized manner, using appropriate facts and relevant, descriptive details to support main ideas or themes; speak clearly at an understandable pace and use appropriate vocabulary (See grade 4 Language Standards 4-6 for specific expectations regarding vocabulary.)
[1.LS.1.2] -
Obtain information to compare ways in which the behavior of different animal parents and their offspring help the offspring to survive.
Clarification Statement: Examples of behaviors could include the signals that offspring make (such as crying, cheeping, and other vocalizations) and the responses of the parents (such as feeding, comforting, and protecting the offspring).
[5.LS.1.1] -
Ask testable questions about the process by which plants use air, water, and energy from sunlight to produce sugars and plant materials needed for growth and reproduction. State Assessment Boundary: The chemical formula or molecular details about the process of photosynthesis are not expected in state assessment.
[6.LS.1.2] -
Develop and use a model to describe how parts of cells contribute to the cellular functions of obtaining food, water, and other nutrients from its environment, disposing of wastes, and providing energy for cellular processes. Clarification Statement: Parts of plant and animal cells include (a) the nucleus, which contains a cell’s genetic material and regulates its activities; (b) chloroplasts, which produce necessary food (sugar) and oxygen through photosynthesis (in plants); (c) mitochondria, which release energy from food through cellular respiration; (d) vacuoles, which store materials, including water, nutrients, and waste; (e) the cell membrane, which is a selective barrier that enables nutrients to enter the cell and wastes to be expelled; and (f) the cell wall, which provides structural support (in plants). State Assessment Boundary: Specific biochemical steps or chemical processes, the role of ATP, active transport processes involving the cell membrane, or identifying or comparing different types of cells are not expected in state assessment.
[6.LS.1.3] -
Construct an argument supported by evidence that the body systems interact to carry out essential functions of life. Clarification Statements: Emphasis is on the functions and interactions of the body systems, not specific body parts or organs. An argument should convey that different types of cells can join together to form specialized tissues, which in turn may form organs that work together as body systems. Body systems to be included are the circulatory, digestive, respiratory, excretory, muscular/skeletal, and nervous systems. Essential functions of life include obtaining food and other nutrients (water, oxygen, minerals), releasing energy from food, removing wastes, responding to stimuli, maintaining internal conditions, and growing/developing. An example of interacting systems could include the respiratory system taking in oxygen from the environment which the circulatory system delivers to cells for cellular respiration, or the digestive system taking in nutrients which the circulatory system transports to cells around the body.State Assessment Boundaries: The mechanism of one body system independent of others or the biochemical processes involved in body systems are not expected in state assessment. Describing the function or comparing different types of cells, tissues, or organs are not expected in state assessment.
[6.LS.4.2] -
Construct an argument using anatomical structures to support evolutionary relationships among and between fossil organisms and modern organisms. Clarification Statement: Evolutionary relationships include (a) some organisms have similar traits with similar functions because they were inherited from a common ancestor, (b) some organisms have similar traits that serve similar functions because they live in similar environments, and (c) some organisms have traits inherited from common ancestors that no longer serve their original function because their environments are different than their ancestors’ environments.
[7.LS.1.4] -
Construct an explanation based on evidence for how characteristic animal behaviors and specialized plant structures increase the probability of successful reproduction of animals and plants. Clarification Statements: Examples of animal behaviors that affect the probability of animal reproduction could include nest building to protect young from cold, herding of animals to protect young from predators, and vocalizations and colorful plumage to attract mates for breeding. Examples of animal behaviors that affect the probability of plant reproduction could include (a) transferring pollen or seeds and (b) creating conditions for seed germination and growth. Examples of plant structures that affect the probability of plant reproduction could include bright flowers attracting butterflies that transfer pollen, flower nectar, and odors that attract insects that transfer pollen, and hard shells on nuts that squirrels bury.State Assessment Boundary: Natural selection is not expected in state assessment.