3^rd Grade Earth Changes Unit Blueprint

How does the model show how the real thing works?

11B(3-5)#1: Seeing how a model works after changes are made to it may suggest how the real thing would work if the same were done to it.

Class discussions and Student Journal entries comparing the movement of sand to the movement of rocks and soil on hillsides (See Step 6 in Sand Castles on page 43 in Student Guide.)

Note: The benchmark is not directly addressed through the questions in Step 6. If students don't raise the idea of the sand piles serving as models, the teacher will need to do so.

• Do students understand that the sand piles are models of hillsides/mountains? Do they make this connection and understand why the experiment was conducted?

• Do students understand that by modeling different wind strengths, they can see how this might work in nature?

What happens to earth materials on steep slopes?

Introduce 4B(3-5)#1: Things on or near the earth are pulled toward it by the earth's gravity.

• Ideas to Think About (specifically bullet 3) on page 44 in Student Guide (See page 75 in Teacher's Edition.)

• Checking Understanding Activity on pages 44-48 in Student Guide (See pages 76-77 in Teacher's Edition.)

Ideas to Think About

• Are students able to explain why the sand piles decrease in height? (The dry, unsupported sand grains on the sides are pulled down toward earth by gravity.)

• Are students able to generalize from the sand pile experiment to earth materials outdoors, such as the movement of rocks down hillsides?

Checking Understanding

• Do students understand that loose/unstable earth materials will fall or roll down a hillside?

• Do students know that earth's gravity pulls material down?

12D(3-5)#3: Use numerical data in describing and comparing objects and events.

12C(3-5)#3: Keep a notebook that describes observations made, carefully distinguishes actual observations from ideas and speculations about what was observed, and is understandable weeks or months later. (Also, see benchmarks listed at beginning of blueprint that are addressed throughout the experiments.)

Class discussions and Student Journal recordings of observations and descriptions about what happens over time to sand grains in piles of sand (See #3 and #4 on page 75 in Teacher's Edition.)

• Are students able to measure their sand piles accurately?

• Are students able to use their measurements to describe and compare sand piles?

• Are students able to organize the data in some meaningful way so that it's understandable weeks later? (Teachers should see improvement in this area.)

How have humans changed the surface of the earth? Why have humans made some of these changes?

Introduce 3A(3-5)#4: Technology extends the ability of people to change the world: to cut, shape or put together materials; to move things from one place to another; and to reach farther with their hands, voices, senses, and minds. The changes can be for survival needs such as food, shelter, and defense, for communication and transportation, or to gain knowledge and express ideas.

Class discussion about scenario in Checking Understanding

(Note: The Teacher's Guide does not direct teachers to focus on human-made changes to the hill. To address the benchmark, a deliberate conversation about humans' impact on the earth is necessary. See Checking Understanding on page 164 in the Teacher's Guide for some questions to use during a class discussion. While the activity on page 164 is designed as an independent activity, it can be used as a basis for a conversation about changes humans make to the environment.)

• Do students recognize that in addition to nature, humans also change the surface of the earth?

• Can students identify some reasons changes to the earth are made (survival, shelter, transportation...)?