Similar to Junior Kindergarten, the Kindergarten Science curriculum includes open-ended units of study that follow students’ natural curiosity about the world around them. It gives students varied opportunities to observe, explore, and investigate using different materials and in different settings (indoors and outdoors). They share and record what they observe and their ideas using science notebooks, as well as talking and listening.
| Unit |
Description |
Essential Questions |
| Introduction to Science and Science Notebooks |
At every grade level (JK-8), Cambridge students begin the year exploring what science is, why science is important to them, who scientists are and what they do, and how they will use science notebooks to record their questions, observations, ideas and explanations throughout the year. These skills build over time as students move from grade to grade.
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What is science? Why is it important to me?
Who are scientists and what do they do?
How and why do scientists use science notebooks?
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Discovering Nature
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Student naturalists explore plants and animals in the classroom and outside. They ask questions and gather information about where animals live and why, the parts of plants and animals and what they do, and the needs of living things. Depending on the questions students have, investigations can lead to life cycles and other topics.
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What do living things need to live and grow?
Why do they live where they do?
How do their parts and behaviors help them?
How do scientists gather and record information about living things?
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Building Structures
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Student engineers and architects have multiple experiences to observe structures, explore what types of materials they are made of (and their properties), and design and build structures using the Engineering Design Process. They are encouraged to use various materials, and compare designs as they think about how materials and the way they are put together affect the stability of structures.
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Why are things made out of certain materials and why is it important for engineers to know about the materials that they use?
How do the materials used and the way they are put together determine if structures fall or stand?
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Earth: Our Big Home
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In this unit of study, which is based on Our Big Home: An Earth Poem by Linda Glaser, kindergarteners learn about water (where it is on Earth, why it’s important, how it changes from liquid to solid and back again), soil and rocks, air, and the sun and other things in the sky. Students then connect to what they learned about plants and animals in the Discovering Nature unit and explore how all living and nonliving things on Earth depend on one another. The learning culminates with a study of various Earth caretakers and subsequent student-generated projects designed to help the Earth.
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What are the things that make up our Earth? How are they connected?
What can we do to help the Earth? |