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In Grade 4, learners continue to explore science and build science literacy in more sophisticated ways. They use their expanding scientific skills to investigate light and sound, find evidence of energy, examine soil, and look at ecosystems. The knowledge areas of fields, energy, Earth science, and life systems provide a foundation for study. An active and practical approach to learning and doing science continues in Grade 4. This includes conducting scientific investigations, expanding tool and measurement skills, exploring science in everyday life, and examining how science interacts with society and the environment. Learners develop their agency and sense of belonging in science, and explore Indigenous ways of knowing, being, and doing, including through interacting with the local community and learning in nature. The Grades 3 to 6 Nature of Science learning outcomes continue with purpose, methods, applications, and implications of science.
Inquiry questions to help guide learning and planning for the year may include the following:
Please see documents in the curriculum implementation resources section for more information on how to use this curriculum.
The Guiding Principles for the Design of Learning Experiences and Assessment Practices provide guidance to all Manitoba educators as they design learning experiences and classroom assessments to strengthen, extend, and expand student learning.
Please note, this website continues to evolve, so please visit regularly to keep current with what’s new in the Learning Experiences and Assessment Practices section.
The Guiding Principles for the Evaluation and Communication of Student Learning build shared understandings of what is needed to ensure equity, reliability, validity, and transparency in judgment and communication of student learning.
Please note, this website continues to evolve, so please visit regularly to keep current with what’s new in the Evaluation and Communication of Student Learning section.
Science learning outcomes are organized into five strands. These strands and learning outcomes are intended to be woven together throughout all learning experiences while supporting the development of global competencies. All strands equally and cohesively build scientific literacy, skills, and attitudes, inclusive of Indigenous ways and knowledge. Teachers can tailor curriculum implementation to the learners’ specific interests and needs.
Legend
Include the following = compulsory content
Examples/e.g.,= suggestions for learning
Learning Outcome Key
[SCI] Subject
[K] Grade level
[A] Strand
[1] Learning Outcome
SCI.4.A.1
Demonstrate an understanding of different First Nations, Métis, and Inuit ways of knowing, being, and doing in relationship with the land and the natural world by exploring Indigenous methods of observing and interpreting the world, applying scientific principles, and creating technologies within local traditional and contemporary cultural contexts (e.g., wholistic, reciprocal, interconnected, and sustainable ways; land-based learning; outdoor learning; intersections with Western science).
SCI.4.B.1
Develop a sense of agency, identity, and belonging in science by
Science, Technology, Society, and Environment (STSE) Contexts
SCI.4.C.1
Demonstrate an awareness of the dynamic interplay between science, technology, society, and the environment (STSE), thereby being empowered to critically evaluate the impacts of scientific and technological advancements on individuals, communities, and ecosystems, and to make informed decisions for a sustainable future.
Examples: producing, recording, and transmitting sound; light sources and light pollution; production and consumption of energy by humans; advantages and disadvantages of various sources of energy; energy production in Manitoba and globally; soil types and distribution in Manitoba and globally; soil erosion and mitigation measures; Indigenous uses of rocks and minerals; conservation and protection of land, water, and ecosystems; teachings related to the land in Indigenous communities; sustainable resource management; local and global biodiversity hotspots; wildlife-human interactions and coexistence; urban ecosystems; sustainable agricultural practices
Scientific Measurement
SCI.4.C.2
Demonstrate an understanding of units, measuring tools, and the nature of measurement in science. (Bold indicates items introduced for the first time at this grade level.)
Include the following:
Tools: clock, thermometer, ruler, pan balance, balance, volumetric vessels
Attributes: length, mass, volume, time, temperature, speed
Units: length (km, m, cm, mm), mass (kg, g), volume (L, mL), time (h, min, s), temperature (°C), speed (km/h, m/s)
Skills: measure and estimate using standard SI tools and units, select measurement tools, display data, recognize importance of standard units, convert between basic SI length and time units
Action and Practice
SCI.4.C.3
Demonstrate practical scientific skills through safely and actively participating in a variety of scientific practices such as inquiry-based learning experiences, experimentation, scientific observation, data analysis, measurement, debate and scientific argumentation, communicating scientific information, and designing and building.
Examples:
Scientific Instruments
SCI.4.C.4
Demonstrate an understanding of the purpose and functioning of various scientific instruments and materials (considering availability and appropriateness), as well as competence in using them safely.
Examples: magnifying glass, binoculars, prism, tuning fork, light source, craft and recycled materials, classroom materials, materials from nature, labelled diagrams, charts, safety procedures
Careers, Hobbies, and Activities
SCI.4.C.5
Demonstrate an understanding of the connections between the scientific ideas studied and a range of careers, hobbies, and activities.
Examples: optometrist, ophthalmologist, audiologist, sound engineer, musician, teacher, materials transportation, agronomist, farmer, ecologist, hydro worker, geologist, DJing, gardening, Indigenous teachings related to life interconnectedness, making art, playing an instrument, table tennis, outdoor play and learning
Purpose: Science is about finding the cause or causes of phenomena in the natural world.
SCI.4.D.1
Demonstrate the understanding that science attempts to develop explanations for phenomena in nature.
Method: Scientific explanations, theories, and models are those that best fit the evidence available at a particular time.
SCI.4.D.2
Demonstrate the understanding that developing scientific explanations involves systematically collecting data through observations and measurements or using data from other sources.
SCI.4.D.3
Demonstrate the understanding that a hypothesis is a prediction about what is happening, or what might happen, based upon theory, research, past experience, observations, or other evidence.
SCI.4.D.4
Demonstrate the understanding that the data that scientists look for is guided by a theory or a hypothesis, and the evidence they find supports or refutes their predictions.
Application: The knowledge produced by science is used in engineering and technologies to create products or processes.
SCI.4.D.5
Demonstrate the understanding that engineering is the application of scientific principles and approaches to solving problems, often resulting in new technology that furthers scientific discovery.
SCI.4.D.6
Demonstrate the understanding that when solving problems, there may be many possible solutions, each with associated implications, requiring both critical and creative thinking in choosing the best solution.
Examples: functionality, sustainability, economic considerations, ethics, impacts on all living things and all parts of the ecosystems
Implication: Applications of science often have ethical, environmental, social, economic, and political implications.
SCI.4.D.7
Demonstrate the understanding that technologies may have both beneficial and detrimental social and environmental consequences.
Fields: Objects can affect other objects at a distance.
SCI.4.E.1
Demonstrate the understanding that light and sound are examples of energy that transmits from a source and that can cause effects on objects at a distance.
Examples: light transmitting to the eye, sound transmitting to the ear, heat transmitting from an element
SCI.4.E.2
Demonstrate the understanding that light and sound transmissions can interact in various ways with matter. Examples: reflection, absorption, transmission, scattering
SCI.4.E.3
Demonstrate the understanding that sound is created by an energized source and is transmitted in all directions as vibrations in air (or other material) to the ears.
Include the following: sense, vibrating source, ear, ear drum, loudness, pitch.
SCI.4.E.4
Demonstrate the understanding that light is emitted in all directions by an energized source, and transmits through empty space or transparent matter to the eyes.
Include the following: sense, light source, eye, retina.
SCI.4.E.5
Demonstrate the understanding that visible objects either emit light or reflect light into the eye.
Include the following: luminous, illuminated, source, reflection, light source.
Energy: The total amount of energy in the universe is always the same but can be transferred from one energy store to another during an event.
SCI.4.E.6
Demonstrate the understanding that energy can transfer from a source (e.g., Sun, fuel, motor, electrical outlet) to objects or organisms to cause actions (e.g., living, heating, moving, charging).
SCI.4.E.7
Demonstrate an understanding of the varied ways that humans use senses to detect energy in action.
Examples: heat (touch), light (sight), sound (hearing), electrical devices (various), combustion (various), observing motion
SCI.4.E.8
Demonstrate an understanding of the differences among renewable and non-renewable energy sources.
Include the following: hydroelectric, fossil fuels, nuclear, wood, wind, solar.
Earth Science: The composition of Earth and its atmosphere and the processes occurring within them shape Earth’s surface and its climate.
SCI.4.E.9
Demonstrate an understanding of the nature and types of soil. Examples: sandy, silty, loamy, clay
SCI.4.E.10
Demonstrate an understanding of the properties of fertile soil.
Include the following: air, water, nutrients, worms, insects, microbes, organic matter.
SCI.4.E.11
Demonstrate an understanding of the types of rock, rock formation, and geographic location of rock types.
Include the following: igneous, sedimentary, metamorphic.
SCI.4.E.12
Demonstrate an understanding of weathering and the erosion of rock, and its relation to soil formation.
Include the following: bedrock, boulders, gravel, sand, silt, clay.
Life Systems: Organisms require a supply of energy and materials for which they often depend on, or compete with, other organisms.
SCI.4.E.13
Demonstrate the understanding that every living thing has adapted to survive in a specific habitat.
Examples: food, water, climate, camouflage, survival strategies, shelter
SCI.4.E.14
Demonstrate an understanding of the cycling of matter and flow of energy among living and non-living parts of an ecosystem.
Include the following: food chains, food webs.
SCI.4.E.15
Demonstrate an understanding of how plants and animals (including humans) rely on each other and the environment for survival.
Include the following: soil nutrients, water, food, shelter, fuel, clothing, pollination, seed dispersal.
Curriculum implementation resources will include supplementary documents to support implementation. This section and the support documents will continue to be updated, so you are encouraged to visit the site regularly.
