Grade 5
Overview
Science in grade five focuses on scientific
and technological problem solving and decision making as well as
the skills of scientific inquiry: formulating usable questions
and hypotheses, planning experiments and product design,
conducting systematic observations, interpreting and analyzing
data, drawing conclusions, and communicating the findings to
others. Fifth-grade students actively investigate science
concepts by predicting, observing, and recording the results of
experiments, and they will generate ideas to solve problems.
Specifically, students in the fifth grade learn about the life,
earth, and physical sciences by exploring them within the
framework of the following topics: "Ecosystems: Terrestrial and
Aquatic" (characteristics and interactions); "Landforms and
Oceans" (natural processes and the ocean floor); "Properties of
Matter" (mixtures and solutions); and "Forces and Motion"
(position, direction, and speed). The science standards for
students in grade five provide richness and a wide variety of
learning experiences, materials, and instructional strategies to
accommodate a broad range of students' individual differences.
Students actively engage in learning by observing, interacting
with materials and with people, and asking questions as they
explore new concepts and expand their understanding. The skills
and tools listed in the scientific inquiry sections will be
assessed on statewide tests independently from the content
knowledge in the respective grade or high school core area under
which they are listed. Moreover, scientific inquiry standards
and indicators will be assessed cumulatively. Therefore, as
students progress through the grade levels, they are responsible
for the scientific inquiry indicators-including a knowledge of
the use of tools-in all their earlier grades. A table of the
scientific inquiry standards and indicators for kindergarten
through grade twelve is provided in appendix A, which teachers
are urged to print out and keep as a ready reference. The
science standards in grades three through eight will be the
basis for the development of the science test questions for the
Palmetto Achievement Challenge Tests (PACT). The PACT is based
on the broad standards that address the life, earth, and
physical sciences at each grade level. Individual test questions
will be aligned with the indicators and will not go beyond the
scope and intent of the more specific information in the
indicators. While standards at lower grade levels will not be
directly assessed, they may be used to formulate multiple-choice
distracter items.
Get all Grade 5 indicators by clicking here
GRADE 5
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The skills of scientific inquiry, including a knowledge
of the use of tools, will be assessed cumulatively on
statewide tests. Students will therefore be responsible
for the scientific inquiry indicators from all of their
earlier grade levels. A table of the K-12 scientific
inquiry standards and indicators is provided in appendix
A. |
Standard 5-1:
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The student will demonstrate an understanding of
scientific inquiry, including the foundations of
technological design and the processes, skills, and
mathematical thinking necessary to conduct a controlled
scientific investigation. (click for suggested
aligned resources) (Supporting document available
soon)
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Indicators:
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5-1.1 |
Identify questions suitable for
generating a hypothesis. (Supporting document
available soon) |
| |
5-1.2 |
Identify independent (manipulated),
dependent (responding), and controlled variables in an
experiment. (Supporting document available soon) |
| |
5-1.3 |
Plan and conduct controlled scientific
investigations, manipulating one variable at a time.
(Supporting document available soon) |
| |
5-1.4 |
Use appropriate tools and instruments
(including a timing device and a 10x magnifier) safely
and accurately when conducting a controlled scientific
investigation. (Supporting document available soon) |
| |
5-1.5 |
Construct a line graph from recorded
data with correct placement of independent (manipulated)
and dependent (responding) variables. (Supporting
document available soon) |
| |
5-1.6 |
Evaluate results of an investigation to
formulate a valid conclusion based on evidence and
communicate the findings of the evaluation in oral or
written form. (Supporting document available soon) |
| |
5-1.7 |
Use a simple technological design
process to develop a solution or a product,
communicating the design by using descriptions, models,
and drawings. (Supporting document available soon) |
| |
5-1.8 |
Use appropriate safety procedures when
conducting investigations. (Supporting document
available soon) |
GRADE 5
Indicators:
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5-2.1 |
Recall the cell as the smallest unit of life and
identify its major structures (including cell membrane,
cytoplasm, nucleus, and vacuole). |
| |
5-2.2 |
Summarize the composition of an ecosystem, considering
both biotic factors (including populations to the level
of microorganisms and communities) and abiotic factors. |
| |
5-2.3 |
Compare the characteristics of different ecosystems
(including estuaries/salt marshes, oceans, lakes and
ponds, forests, and grasslands). |
| |
5-2.4 |
Identify the roles of organisms as they interact and
depend on one another through food chains and food webs
in an ecosystem, considering producers and consumers
(herbivores, carnivores, and omnivores), decomposers
(microorganisms, termites, worms, and fungi), predators
and prey, and parasites and hosts. |
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5-2.5 |
Explain how limiting factors (including food, water,
space, and shelter) affect populations in ecosystems. |
| |
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All indicators in Standard 5-2, in a combined document |
GRADE 5
Indicators:
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5-3.1 |
Explain how natural processes (including weathering,
erosion, deposition, landslides, volcanic eruptions,
earthquakes, and floods) affect Earth's oceans and land
in constructive and destructive ways. |
| |
5-3.2 |
Illustrate the geologic landforms of the ocean floor
(including the continental shelf and slope, the
mid-ocean ridge, rift zone, trench, and the ocean
basin). |
| |
5-3.3 |
Compare continental and oceanic landforms. |
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5-3.4 |
Explain how waves, currents, tides, and storms affect
the geologic features of the ocean shore zone (including
beaches, barrier islands, estuaries, and inlets). |
| |
5-3.5 |
Compare the movement of water by waves, currents, and
tides. |
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5-3.6 |
Explain how human activity (including conservation
efforts and pollution) has affected the land and the
oceans of Earth. |
| |
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All indicators in Standard 5-3, in a combined document |
GRADE 5
Indicators:
| |
5-4.1 |
Recall that matter is made up of particles too small to
be seen. |
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5-4.2 |
Compare the physical properties of the states of matter
(including volume, shape, and the movement and spacing
of particles). |
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5-4.3 |
Summarize the characteristics of a mixture, recognizing
a solution as a kind of mixture. |
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5-4.4 |
Use the processes of filtration, sifting, magnetic
attraction, evaporation, chromatography, and floatation
to separate mixtures. |
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5-4.5 |
Explain how the solute and the solvent in a solution
determine the concentration. |
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5-4.6 |
Explain how temperature change, particle size, and
stirring affect the rate of dissolving. |
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5-4.7 |
Illustrate the fact that when some substances are mixed
together, they chemically combine to form a new
substance that cannot easily be separated. |
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5-4.8 |
Explain how the mixing and dissolving of foreign
substances is related to the pollution of the water,
air, and soil. |
| |
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All indicators in Standard 5-4, in a combined document |
GRADE 5
Indicators: