2nd+Grade+STEM

toc Consideration is being given to incorporating fairy tales and other stories into the curriculum. The basal in 2nd grade and the leveled readers are also conducive to Science teaching.

Calendar throughout the year could be used to teach weather, moon phases, etc. Information could be charted in their scientist notebooks and used for graphing. Embed Google spreadsheet into their scientist notebooks and have a scribe so different students are responsible each day. This increases student participation.

We will introduce Solar System at the beginning of the year (small unit) and build on it throughout the year.

__Life Science__
1st 2 nine weeks (1st semester) Habitats, how they get their food, cells, heredity, and change over time- this can be combined into one unit. This is a good time to tie in calendar and time. For heredity you should begin with animals then move to humans. You should have some predictable and unpredictable situations for students to examine. For humans you could do a Shutter-fly family page and compare/contrast traits of family members- you might want to use the teacher's family to avoid embarrassing situations with step-siblings, etc. (Jane could put a folder of pictures together that could be used for comparison.) Could discuss the difference between environmental and hereditary traits- (muscle builders having muscles vs. eye color)

Student could create their own lineage as an example of heredity.

Students could create their own organism and build a habitat that would suit that organism based on it's characteristics. Two classes could do habitats and two could do organisms, then put the organisms into their best environments. Classes may need to have periodic meetings to ensure that organisms and habitats are matching up appropriately.

For the butterfly unit we could order two types of butterflies- one white and one that we normally order. One type could be placed in one classroom and one in another.

At the end of this unit we will begin physical science and this will occur before the first semester is over.

__Physcial Science__
3rd nine weeks Matter- temperature changes- measurement in math Energy/Motion Sound- can be taught in class then reinforced in music Magnets

For the engineering piece, students could make a hot air balloon. You could provide different materials and have students decide which materials will make the best balloon. You could have students place things (a few drops of water, etc.) in the basket to determine the impact this has on the balloon's functioning. You could also apply magnets and put iron filings in the basket to see how they impact movement.

__Earth Science__
4th nine weeks Weather Rocks, soil types, fossils Atmosphere could be taught all year.

CJ (Helen Gooch's son can get samples of soil for us)- students could create soil/sock/pollutant combinations to determine which combination grows the best plants- this leads to a discussion about renewable/nonrenewable resources, physical properties of rocks and soil, and pollutants to the environment. The teacher needs to choose fast growing seeds (rye grass, lima beans, radishes, etc.) You could get teenagers from Mission Clarksville (Janet Haase) to come and discuss their project. (Jane Weakley is a POC for her)

We also need to tie fossils in with the unit on rocks. There need to be some rocks with fossils included in the materials for their garden. Students need to explain why they choose those materials. We need to get clear plastic cups for students to plant their seeds in so they can see the layers and the growth. This is a good time to teach the process of the scientific method. Teacher could create a "control" soil to compare what it does.

Sound- can be taught in music then reinforced in class via stations, etc. (even though this is a physical science standard, it is placed in the 4th nine weeks to leave room for more focus on the other physical science standards)- students could create their own working instrument and Audrey could have them perform a song on it- Students could research music around the world and compare/contrast cultures