1st Grade Science Skills
Prior Standards Implementation

(Kindergarten) 1st Grade Science Skills (2nd Grade)

Sections:

Life Science | Earth Science | Physical Science |
For other resources, refer to our Elementary Science page
Page last edited 2/27/2009

Please go to Current 1st Grade Science Standards for current resources.

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Science Toy Maker - A non-commercial, teacher-created site for people who like to roll up their sleeves and make fun, mysterious science toys and projects that entice scientific investigation.
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a site for teachers | a PowerPoint show | Adobe Acrobat document | a Word document sound | video format | interactive lesson | a quiz | lesson plan | to print

Life Science Standards
Interactions Between Living Things and Their Environment 1.2.2 | 1.2.3 | 1.2.4
Accomplishments ( based on Tennessee Curriculum Standards )	Internet Resources
Use the senses to explore the environment. 1.2.2	Amazing Animal Senses - let your students compare animal senses to human senses Christmas Bear and his Five Senses - [ this link opens in a new window ] Students teach Christmas Bear how to use his five senses to learn about his surroundings. ( Author - Sandi King ) Five Senses - A very complete online unit plan (bilingual - Spanish) that integrates all subject areas based around learning the 5 senses. Five Senses and Four Seasons Quilt - Students will help make a Five Senses and Four Seasons quilt and cinquain poem. Learning to Look - five activities in one, introducing students to sensory investigation Seeing, Hearing, and Smelling the World - reading level is too high for your students, but this site is packed full of great information for their teacher Stick Out Your Tongue and Say Aah - full of good information to help a teacher plan a unit Teaching Children About the Five Senses - from Nibbles ... Ideas for Families presented by University of Illinois Extension The Senses - experiments and activities for kindergarten and above Touching - presented by The Franklin Institute
Collect information about organisms that occupy specific environments. 1.2.3	Critter Craze - [ this link opens on a new page ] This lesson introduces the concepts of basic needs, grouping, and habitats. ( Author - Laurie Ayers ) Match Animals to their Habitat - [ this link opens on a new page ] select one of the twelve habitats at Animal Universe and choose animals that live in that habitat (select Maybe Later on the registration screen) Snuffy's Safari (Sesame Street) - [ this link opens on a new page ] travel to one of three environments and search for animals that live there using Sunffy's binoculars. Squish the Fish - [ Reading skills required ] Help Squish travel out across the reef to find his lunch. He needs to find friends who will help him hide from his nemesis, Big Tooth Blob. Learn about shape, color, and behavioral adaptations for survival.
Provide examples of pollutants in a specific environment. 1.2.4	How bad is the air you breathe ? Learn how the air becomes dirty. (a quiz is included) Learn about pesticides . Are they good? What are they used for? (a quiz is included) Take a test about how you use water ! Twenty five questions that will help you be a better user of water. What is a hazardous waste ? How does garbage effect you? (a quiz is included)
Food Production and Energy for Life 1.3.1
Recognize the basic needs of living things (e.g., food, water, sunlight, and air). 1.3.1	Critter Craze - [ this link opens on a new page ] introduces the concepts of basic needs, grouping, and habitats ( Author - Laurie Ayers ) Growing Plants - give water to the plants in this interactive game from the BBC Identify Basic Needs of Living Things - You may want to remove some slides from this show before using it.
Diversity and Adaptation Among Living Things 1.5.1 | 1.5.2
Observe and note differences among plants and animals of the same kind. 1.5.1	Ants are not all alike - take a look at some of them Frogs - See how differently from each other these frogs look and sound
Recognize the environment in which an organism is typically found. 1.5.2	The Farm - [ Reading skills required ] Visit several areas of the farm and notice the different types of things which live there. This is an excellent beginning site that teaches your students about the farm in addition to practicing beginning computer skills such as clicking once and using arrow keys.
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Earth Science Standards
Earth and Its Place in the Universe 1.7.1a | 1.7.1b | 1.7.1c | 1.7.2a | 1.7.2b
Distinguish between objects that appear in the day and nighttime sky. 1.7.1 a	As the Earth Turns - [ this link opens on a new page ] Students learn that day and night are caused by the rotation of the Earth. ( Author - Sandi King ) Sunrise Sunset - [ this link opens on a new page ] Students learn about the apparent movement of the sun across the day sky. Students then learn to relate time of day to the location of the sun. ( Author - Sandi King ) The Night Sky Live - best as a whole class activity - click on an asterisk on the map to see the night sky live from someplace around the world.
Recognize that the moon is the closest object in the sky. 1.7.1 b	How Can the Little Moon Hide the Giant Sun ? - Students compare two objects at different distances. Students explore the concept that distance affects how we perceive the size of objects.
Recognize that there are tools for observing objects in the day and nighttime sky. 1.7.1 c	A Venn Diagram for recording things seen in the day and nighttime sky (a worksheet from Science NetLinks )
Observe and illustrate the position of the sun at different times of the day. 1.7.2 a	See where the sun and moon are located - this applet allows students to see exactly where the sun and moon are located in relation to Earth.
Recognize that shadows change length and position during the course of a day. 1.7.2 b	What Makes Shadows ? Students learn about shadows as they observe and draw the shadow of a classmate. In the extension activity, students observe and discuss shadows changing over time.
Atmospheric Cycles 1.8.1a | 1.8.1b | 1.8.2a | 1.8.2b
Recognize that weather conditions are constantly changing. 1.8.1 a	Air and Weather - Cold, hot, warm, cool, what does the temperature mean to you? Control the Weather - [ this link opens in a new window ] by clicking on different buttons, you decide what the weather will be that day [click to Skip the Ad]
Describe weather patterns associated with the seasons. 1.8.1 b	Seasonal Changes Lesson Plans From Scholastic - The activities in this theme unit take advantage of opportunities for students to practice observation and description skills, as well as extending students' experience into other curricular areas, such as language arts and art. Winter Wiz Kids - all about winter weather
Associate temperature, precipitation, and wind conditions with various types of weather. 1.8.2 a	Eye on the Sky - [ this link opens in a new window ] the scientist (your student) is asked to enter weather observations. Based on the entries, a summary of conditions is compiled Weather in the Science Lab - Select Weather in the list of labs. The illustration shows a water cycle. Click on The Weather Maker near the top of the weather window. Set temperature of two air masses and the relative humidity. Then see what weather develops. Click on the book in the bottom left corner to read about weather.
Identify the appropriate tool for measuring temperature, precipitation, and wind speed/direction. 1.8.2.b	Make Your Own Weather Station - You can become an amateur meteorologist by building your own weather station and keeping a record of your measurements. Use this as a class project.
Earth Features 1.9.1
Distinguish between land and water environments. 1.9.1
Earth Resources 1.10.1 | 1.10.2
Use observable properties to distinguish among a variety of earth materials. 1.10.1	How Much Soil is There? - using an apple as an analogy Pebbles, Sand, and Silt - find out how earth materials are used all around us Rocks and Minerals - from The Franklin Institute Rocks and Soils - perform virtual experiments at this BBC interactive site Sand - This web site is all about sand. It is a place where you can learn about sand, see a variety of different kinds of sand, and look at sands from different places around the world. Sands of the World - an interactive earth science project Soil Science and Worm Composting - lesson plan Soil Science Basics - links to other resources (some links are to dead pages)
Identify ways that earth resources benefit man. 1.10.2	How Minerals are Used - Move your cursor over each image to see a common item made from that mineral.
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Physical Science Standards
Forces and Motion 1.11.1 | 1.11.2
Observe and describe how the movement of an object can be changed (e.g., push/pull, fast/slow). 1.11.1	Forces and Movement - give the truck various pushes to see how the truck moves Pushes and Pulls - use a hard or soft push or pull to see how the toy horse moves
Recognize objects that are balanced. 1.11.2	Balance and Motion - build your own roller coaster and find out how things balance and how things move Dissolving Substances - investigate the effect of solar energy on a balanced system
Structure and Properties of Matter 1.12.1a | 1.12.1b
Compare objects according to weight, length, and size. 1.12.1 a	Centimeters - [ this link opens on a new page ] to nearest whole number ( from FunBrain ) Centimeters - [ this link opens on a new page ] to half centimeter ( from FunBrain ) Heaviest to Lightest - Look at the figures on each line. Click once on the lightest object. Click twice on the heaviest object. Inches - [ this link opens on a new page ] to nearest whole number ( from FunBrain ) Inches - [ this link opens on a new page ] to quarter inch ( from FunBrain )
Distinguish between solids and liquids. 1.12.1 b	Change It - drag different solid or liquid objects into the freezer or oven to see what happens Solids and Liquids - find out how can you change a liquid into a solid or a solid into a liquid Sort Household Item s - solid, liquid, or gas
Interactions of Matter 1.13.1
Observe and describe changes that can occur when two materials interact. 1.13.1
Energy 1.14.1 | 1.14.2
Describe the effect of the sun’s energy on different materials. 1.14.1	Dissolving Substances - investigate the effect of solar energy on a balanced system
Classify sounds according to their basic characteristics (e.g., loud/soft, natural/man/made). 1.14.2	Sound & Noise: Household Science for Kids - 2 different projects to help demonstrate some of the physics of sound Sound in the Science Lab - Select Sound in the list of labs. The illustration is animated and shows how clapping hands make sound. Next, click on Exploring Pitch and Volume near the top of the sound window. Strike the glasses hard and then gently and observe the difference. Now look at the sound waves as you strike different glasses. Click on the book in the bottom left corner to read about sound. Sounds and Hearing - experiment with sounds with this BBC quiz Changing Sounds - investigate how sounds can be changed

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