Scope and sequence · Science
Grade 4 Life Science: Classification
A year of true stories about naming and sorting the living world, from Carl Linnaeus and his little book of 1735 and John James Audubon’s life-size birds to Richard Owen’s new word “Dinosauria” and the men who saved the last American bison, each one followed outdoors with a hand lens, a ruler and a nature notebook until the student can key out a leaf, read a skull’s teeth and write a field guide to the creatures in his or her own backyard.
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What to cover
32 of 36 lessons are MUST COVER. They are tested on the unit tests and exams, or are skills the SAT/ACT relies on. OPTIONAL lessons are enrichment. Do them if time allows. The course is complete when the MUST COVER lessons are done.
Unit 1: Linnaeus
- MUST COVER 1.1 Carl Linnaeus, Systema Naturae (1735) ★ · unit test
- MUST COVER 1.2 Kingdom to Species · unit test
- MUST COVER 1.3 Two-Part Names · unit test
- MUST COVER 1.4 Dichotomous Keys ★ · unit test
Unit 2: Vertebrates
- MUST COVER 2.1 The Five Classes of Vertebrates ★ · unit test
- MUST COVER 2.2 Backbone Models · unit test
- MUST COVER 2.3 Warm-Blooded and Cold-Blooded Animals · unit test
- MUST COVER 2.4 The Vertebrate Sorting Game · unit test
Unit 3: Invertebrates
- MUST COVER 3.1 Spiders ★ · unit test
- MUST COVER 3.2 Crabs and Lobsters ★ · unit test
- MUST COVER 3.3 Snails · unit test
- MUST COVER 3.4 Starfish (Sea Stars) · unit test
Unit 4: Birds in Depth
- MUST COVER 4.1 Audubon’s Birds of America (1827–1838) ★ · unit test
- MUST COVER 4.2 Beaks and Feet · unit test
- MUST COVER 4.3 Backyard Bird Count · unit test
- MUST COVER 4.4 Drawing a Bird · unit test
Unit 5: Mammals in Depth
- MUST COVER 5.1 Teeth Tell Diet ★ · unit test
- MUST COVER 5.2 Marsupials: Mammals with Pouches · unit test
- MUST COVER 5.3 Primates: Hands That Grasp · unit test
- MUST COVER 5.4 The Bison Saved (1880s–1900s) · unit test
Unit 6: Plants Classified
- MUST COVER 6.1 Mosses and Ferns: Plants with Spores ★ · unit test
- MUST COVER 6.2 Conifers: Seeds on Cones · unit test
- MUST COVER 6.3 Flowering Plants: Seeds Inside Fruit · unit test
- MUST COVER 6.4 Pressing Plants: Making a Herbarium · unit test
Unit 7: Dinosaur Classification
- MUST COVER 7.1 Owen Names “Dinosauria” (1842) ★ · unit test
- MUST COVER 7.2 Theropods · unit test
- MUST COVER 7.3 Sauropods · unit test
- MUST COVER 7.4 Ornithischians: The Bird-Hipped Plant Eaters · unit test
Unit 8: Field Guide Project
- MUST COVER 8.1 Choosing Twelve Local Species · unit test
- MUST COVER 8.2 Field Notes and Photos · unit test
- MUST COVER 8.3 Writing the Species Pages · unit test
- MUST COVER 8.4 Finishing and Presenting My Field Guide ★ · unit test
Unit 9: Bonus: Nature Lab OPTIONAL unit
- OPTIONAL 9.1 Nature Journal Walk
- OPTIONAL 9.2 Backyard Survey
- OPTIONAL 9.3 Zoo, Farm or Museum Visit
- OPTIONAL 9.4 Specimen Collection
36-week pacing calendar
From the course’s own 36-week pacing guide, with catch-up and review weeks added to fill a 36-week (180-day) year.
| Week | Plan | Done | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Wk 1 | Session 1: Lesson 1.1 Carl Linnaeus, Systema Naturae (1735): warm-up, video, teaching and picture study Session 2: Lesson 1.1 experiment, worked examples, practice and notebook | ||
| Wk 2 | Session 1: Lesson 1.2 Kingdom to Species: warm-up, video, teaching and picture study Session 2: Lesson 1.2 experiment, worked examples, practice and notebook | ||
| Wk 3 | Session 1: Lesson 1.3 Two-Part Names: warm-up, video, teaching and picture study Session 2: Lesson 1.3 experiment, worked examples, practice and notebook | ||
| Wk 4 | Session 1: Lesson 1.4 Dichotomous Keys: warm-up, video, teaching and picture study Session 2: Lesson 1.4 experiment, worked examples, practice and notebook Session 3: Unit 1 review and unit project | ||
| Wk 5 | Session 1: Lesson 2.1 The Five Classes of Vertebrates: warm-up, video, teaching and picture study Session 2: Lesson 2.1 experiment, worked examples, practice and notebook | ||
| Wk 6 | Session 1: Lesson 2.2 Backbone Models: warm-up, video, teaching and picture study Session 2: Lesson 2.2 experiment, worked examples, practice and notebook | ||
| Wk 7 | Session 1: Lesson 2.3 Warm-Blooded and Cold-Blooded Animals: warm-up, video, teaching and picture study Session 2: Lesson 2.3 experiment, worked examples, practice and notebook | ||
| Wk 8 | Session 1: Lesson 2.4 The Vertebrate Sorting Game: warm-up, video, teaching and picture study Session 2: Lesson 2.4 experiment, worked examples, practice and notebook Session 3: Unit 2 review and unit project | ||
| Wk 9 | Session 1: Lesson 3.1 Spiders: warm-up, video, teaching and picture study Session 2: Lesson 3.1 experiment, worked examples, practice and notebook | ||
| Wk 10 | Session 1: Lesson 3.2 Crabs and Lobsters: warm-up, video, teaching and picture study Session 2: Lesson 3.2 experiment, worked examples, practice and notebook | ||
| Wk 11 | Session 1: Lesson 3.3 Snails: warm-up, video, teaching and picture study Session 2: Lesson 3.3 experiment, worked examples, practice and notebook | ||
| Wk 12 | Session 1: Lesson 3.4 Starfish (Sea Stars): warm-up, video, teaching and picture study Session 2: Lesson 3.4 experiment, worked examples, practice and notebook Session 3: Unit 3 review and unit project | ||
| Wk 13 | Session 1: Lesson 4.1 Audubon’s Birds of America (1827–1838): warm-up, video, teaching and picture study Session 2: Lesson 4.1 experiment, worked examples, practice and notebook | ||
| Wk 14 | Session 1: Lesson 4.2 Beaks and Feet: warm-up, video, teaching and picture study Session 2: Lesson 4.2 experiment, worked examples, practice and notebook | ||
| Wk 15 | Session 1: Lesson 4.3 Backyard Bird Count: warm-up, video, teaching and picture study Session 2: Lesson 4.3 experiment, worked examples, practice and notebook | ||
| Wk 16 | Session 1: Lesson 4.4 Drawing a Bird: warm-up, video, teaching and picture study Session 2: Lesson 4.4 experiment, worked examples, practice and notebook Session 3: Unit 4 review and unit project | ||
| Wk 17 | Session 1: Lesson 5.1 Teeth Tell Diet: warm-up, video, teaching and picture study Session 2: Lesson 5.1 experiment, worked examples, practice and notebook | ||
| Wk 18 | Session 1: Lesson 5.2 Marsupials: Mammals with Pouches: warm-up, video, teaching and picture study Session 2: Lesson 5.2 experiment, worked examples, practice and notebook | ||
| Wk 19 | Session 1: Lesson 5.3 Primates: Hands That Grasp: warm-up, video, teaching and picture study Session 2: Lesson 5.3 experiment, worked examples, practice and notebook | ||
| Wk 20 | Session 1: Lesson 5.4 The Bison Saved (1880s–1900s): warm-up, video, teaching and picture study Session 2: Lesson 5.4 experiment, worked examples, practice and notebook Session 3: Unit 5 review and unit project | ||
| Wk 21 | Session 1: Lesson 6.1 Mosses and Ferns: Plants with Spores: warm-up, video, teaching and picture study Session 2: Lesson 6.1 experiment, worked examples, practice and notebook | ||
| Wk 22 | Session 1: Lesson 6.2 Conifers: Seeds on Cones: warm-up, video, teaching and picture study Session 2: Lesson 6.2 experiment, worked examples, practice and notebook | ||
| Wk 23 | Session 1: Lesson 6.3 Flowering Plants: Seeds Inside Fruit: warm-up, video, teaching and picture study Session 2: Lesson 6.3 experiment, worked examples, practice and notebook | ||
| Wk 24 | Session 1: Lesson 6.4 Pressing Plants: Making a Herbarium: warm-up, video, teaching and picture study Session 2: Lesson 6.4 experiment, worked examples, practice and notebook Session 3: Unit 6 review and unit project | ||
| Wk 25 | Session 1: Lesson 7.1 Owen Names “Dinosauria” (1842): warm-up, video, teaching and picture study Session 2: Lesson 7.1 experiment, worked examples, practice and notebook | ||
| Wk 26 | Session 1: Lesson 7.2 Theropods: warm-up, video, teaching and picture study Session 2: Lesson 7.2 experiment, worked examples, practice and notebook | ||
| Wk 27 | Session 1: Lesson 7.3 Sauropods: warm-up, video, teaching and picture study Session 2: Lesson 7.3 experiment, worked examples, practice and notebook | ||
| Wk 28 | Session 1: Lesson 7.4 Ornithischians: The Bird-Hipped Plant Eaters: warm-up, video, teaching and picture study Session 2: Lesson 7.4 experiment, worked examples, practice and notebook Session 3: Unit 7 review and unit project | ||
| Wk 29 | Session 1: Lesson 8.1 Choosing Twelve Local Species: warm-up, video, teaching and picture study Session 2: Lesson 8.1 experiment, worked examples, practice and notebook | ||
| Wk 30 | Session 1: Lesson 8.2 Field Notes and Photos: warm-up, video, teaching and picture study Session 2: Lesson 8.2 experiment, worked examples, practice and notebook | ||
| Wk 31 | Session 1: Lesson 8.3 Writing the Species Pages: warm-up, video, teaching and picture study Session 2: Lesson 8.3 experiment, worked examples, practice and notebook | ||
| Wk 32 | Session 1: Lesson 8.4 Finishing and Presenting My Field Guide: warm-up, video, teaching and picture study Session 2: Lesson 8.4 experiment, worked examples, practice and notebook Session 3: Unit 8 review and unit project | ||
| Wk 33 | Session 1: Lesson 9.1 Nature Journal Walk: warm-up, video, teaching and picture study Session 2: Lesson 9.1 experiment, worked examples, practice and notebook | ||
| Wk 34 | Session 1: Lesson 9.2 Backyard Survey: warm-up, video, teaching and picture study Session 2: Lesson 9.2 experiment, worked examples, practice and notebook | ||
| Wk 35 | Session 1: Lesson 9.3 Zoo, Farm or Museum Visit: warm-up, video, teaching and picture study Session 2: Lesson 9.3 experiment, worked examples, practice and notebook | ||
| Wk 36 | Session 1: Lesson 9.4 Specimen Collection: warm-up, video, teaching and picture study Session 2: Lesson 9.4 experiment, worked examples, practice and notebook Session 3: Unit 9 review and unit project |
Grading: Unit quizzes (8 quizzes, 50 points each) 30%, Nature notebook (dated pages, labeled drawings, careful measurements) 25%, Experiments (prediction, variable and control, measurements, conclusion) 20%, Unit projects and the Unit 8 field guide 25%. Scale: A 90–100, B 80–89, C 70–79, D 60–69. Below 60: redo the quiz or project with help.