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  • Connecticut Standards
  • Science: 4th Grade

Connecticut - Science: 4th Grade

Grade Level Concepts | Adopted: 2010

This correlation lists the recommended Gizmos for this state's curriculum standards. Click any Gizmo title below for more information.

4.1: : The position and motion of objects can be changed by pushing or pulling.


4.1.a: : The size of the change in an object’s motion is related to the strength of the push or pull.

4.1.a.5: : When an object does not move in response to a push or a pull, it is because another equal-sized force is counteracting the push or pull. Gravity (the earth’s pulling force) and friction are common forces that affect motion. Friction and air resistance are forces that oppose motion.

Screenshot of Force and Fan Carts

Force and Fan Carts

Explore the laws of motion using a simple fan cart. Use the buttons to select the speed of the fan and the surface, and press Play to begin. You can drag up to three objects onto the fan cart. The speed of the cart is displayed with a speedometer and recorded in a table and a graph. 5 Minute Preview


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4.1.b: : The more massive an object is, the less effect a given force will have on its motion.

4.1.b.2: : The greater the object’s mass, the greater the force needed to move it, stop it or change its speed or direction.

Screenshot of Weight and Mass

Weight and Mass

Use a balance to measure mass and a spring scale to measure the weight of objects. Compare the masses and weights of objects on Earth, Mars, Jupiter, and the Moon. 5 Minute Preview


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4.2: : All organisms depend on the living and nonliving features of the environment for survival.


4.2.a: : When the environment changes, some organisms survive and reproduce, and others die or move to new locations.

4.2.a.3: : Plants use energy from the sun to produce their own food from air and water. The type of soil, amount of water and temperature range in an area determine the plants that grow there.

Screenshot of Energy Conversions

Energy Conversions

Where does energy come from? How does energy get from one place to another? Find out how electrical current is generated and how living things get energy to move and grow. Trace the path of energy and see how energy is converted from one form to another. 5 Minute Preview


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4.2.a.4: : Animals that live in an area get their energy and nutrients either directly or indirectly from plants that grow there: herbivores consume only plants, carnivores consume animals, and omnivores consume both animals and plants. Decomposers consume plant and animal waste and remains, returning nutrients to the soil where they are used again by plants.

Screenshot of Forest Ecosystem

Forest Ecosystem

Observe and manipulate the populations of four creatures (trees, deer, bears, and mushrooms) in a forest. Investigate the feeding relationships (food web) in the forest. Determine which creatures are producers, consumers, and decomposers. Pictographs and line graphs show changes in populations over time. 5 Minute Preview


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Screenshot of Prairie Ecosystem

Prairie Ecosystem

Observe the populations of grass, prairie dogs, ferrets and foxes in a prairie ecosystem. Investigate feeding relationships and determine the food chain. Bar graphs and line graphs show changes in populations over time. 5 Minute Preview


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4.2.a.5: : Some of the sun’s energy is transferred from one organism to another when a plant or animal is consumed by another animal. A food chain is a simple model that illustrates the passage of energy from one organism to another. Food webs are more realistic models that show the varied energy-passing relationships among plants and animals in an ecosystem.

Screenshot of Forest Ecosystem

Forest Ecosystem

Observe and manipulate the populations of four creatures (trees, deer, bears, and mushrooms) in a forest. Investigate the feeding relationships (food web) in the forest. Determine which creatures are producers, consumers, and decomposers. Pictographs and line graphs show changes in populations over time. 5 Minute Preview


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Screenshot of Prairie Ecosystem

Prairie Ecosystem

Observe the populations of grass, prairie dogs, ferrets and foxes in a prairie ecosystem. Investigate feeding relationships and determine the food chain. Bar graphs and line graphs show changes in populations over time. 5 Minute Preview


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4.3: : Water has a major role in shaping the earth's surface.


4.3.a: : Water circulates through the earth's crust, oceans and atmosphere.

4.3.a.1: : Water is continuously moving between Earth’s surface and the atmosphere in a process called the water cycle. Heat energy from the sun causes water on Earth to change to a gas and rise into the atmosphere, where it cools, condenses into tiny droplets in clouds, and eventually falls to Earth as precipitation.

Screenshot of Water Cycle

Water Cycle

Control the path of a drop of water as it travels through the water cycle. Many alternatives are presented at each stage. Determine how the water moves from one location to another, and learn how water resources are distributed in these locations. 5 Minute Preview


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4.4: : Electrical and magnetic energy can be transferred and transformed.


4.4.a: : Electricity in circuits can be transformed into light, heat, sound and magnetic effects.

4.4.a.1: : Electric current flows (is transferred) from an energy source (battery) through a continuous loop (circuit) and back to the source. A complete circuit (also called a closed circuit) forms a closed loop that allows electric current to flow; an incomplete circuit (also called an open circuit) has a break in the loop that prevents the flow of electric current.

Screenshot of Circuit Builder

Circuit Builder

Create circuits using batteries, light bulbs, switches, fuses, and a variety of materials. Examine series and parallel circuits, conductors and insulators, and the effects of battery voltage. Thousands of different circuits can be built with this Gizmo. 5 Minute Preview


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4.4.a.2: : Complete circuits can be made by connecting wires, batteries and bulbs in certain sequences. Circuits are completed only when certain parts of a battery, a bulb or a wire are touching (making contact). Circuit diagrams show the relative positions of batteries, bulbs and wires in complete circuits.

Screenshot of Circuit Builder

Circuit Builder

Create circuits using batteries, light bulbs, switches, fuses, and a variety of materials. Examine series and parallel circuits, conductors and insulators, and the effects of battery voltage. Thousands of different circuits can be built with this Gizmo. 5 Minute Preview


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4.4.a.3: : Conductors are materials that allow electric current to flow through them in an electric circuit. An open circuit can be completed by inserting a conductive material. If a bulb stays lit when an object is added to an electric circuit, the material is a conductor.

Screenshot of Circuit Builder

Circuit Builder

Create circuits using batteries, light bulbs, switches, fuses, and a variety of materials. Examine series and parallel circuits, conductors and insulators, and the effects of battery voltage. Thousands of different circuits can be built with this Gizmo. 5 Minute Preview


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4.4.a.4: : Insulators are materials that do not allow electric current to flow through them in an electric circuit. If a bulb does not stay lit when an object is added to an electric circuit, the material is an insulator.

Screenshot of Circuit Builder

Circuit Builder

Create circuits using batteries, light bulbs, switches, fuses, and a variety of materials. Examine series and parallel circuits, conductors and insulators, and the effects of battery voltage. Thousands of different circuits can be built with this Gizmo. 5 Minute Preview


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4.4.a.5: : Conductors can be tested to compare how easily they allow electricity to flow through them.

Screenshot of Circuit Builder

Circuit Builder

Create circuits using batteries, light bulbs, switches, fuses, and a variety of materials. Examine series and parallel circuits, conductors and insulators, and the effects of battery voltage. Thousands of different circuits can be built with this Gizmo. 5 Minute Preview


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4.4.a.7: : Adding batteries or bulbs to a circuit can produce observable changes.

Screenshot of Circuit Builder

Circuit Builder

Create circuits using batteries, light bulbs, switches, fuses, and a variety of materials. Examine series and parallel circuits, conductors and insulators, and the effects of battery voltage. Thousands of different circuits can be built with this Gizmo. 5 Minute Preview


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4.4.b: : Magnets can make objects move without direct contact between the object and the magnet.

4.4.b.2: : Some areas of a magnet have stronger magnetic attraction than other areas.

Screenshot of Magnetism

Magnetism

Drag bar magnets and a variety of other objects onto a piece of paper. Click Play to release the objects to see if they are attracted together, repelled apart, or unaffected. You can also sprinkle iron filings over the magnets and other objects to view the magnetic field lines that are produced. 5 Minute Preview


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4.4.b.3: : Magnets can pull (attract) or push (repel) other magnets.

Screenshot of Magnetism

Magnetism

Drag bar magnets and a variety of other objects onto a piece of paper. Click Play to release the objects to see if they are attracted together, repelled apart, or unaffected. You can also sprinkle iron filings over the magnets and other objects to view the magnetic field lines that are produced. 5 Minute Preview


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4.4.b.6: : When a magnet, or a magnetized object such as a compass needle, is allowed to swing freely, its ends will point toward the earth’s magnetic north and south poles.

Screenshot of Magnetism

Magnetism

Drag bar magnets and a variety of other objects onto a piece of paper. Click Play to release the objects to see if they are attracted together, repelled apart, or unaffected. You can also sprinkle iron filings over the magnets and other objects to view the magnetic field lines that are produced. 5 Minute Preview


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4.4.b.7: : Magnets and electromagnets have many uses in everyday life. Examples may include paper clip containers, refrigerator door seals, shower curtain weights, or a compass.

Screenshot of Magnetism

Magnetism

Drag bar magnets and a variety of other objects onto a piece of paper. Click Play to release the objects to see if they are attracted together, repelled apart, or unaffected. You can also sprinkle iron filings over the magnets and other objects to view the magnetic field lines that are produced. 5 Minute Preview


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Correlation last revised: 9/16/2020

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