School Improvement in Maryland

Using the VSC: Science, Grade 5

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Chemistry:

Science:

VSC Toolkit

Tools aligned to VSC indicators and/or objectives.

  • Introduction for Standard or Indicator
  • Public Release Items
    Actual MSA items and annotated student responses as appropriate
Chemistry

Standard 4.0 Chemistry

Students will use scientific skills and processes to explain the composition, structure, and interactions of matter in order to support the predictability of structure and energy transformations.

Topic

B. Conservation of Matter

Indicator

  • 1. Cite evidence to support the statement that, "No matter how many parts of an object are assembled, the mass of the whole object made is always the same as the sum of the parts."
Objectives
  1. Use magnifying instruments to investigate samples of matter, such as a leaf, sugar cube, color photograph, and granite to describe the minute parts from which they are made.
  2. Use evidence from investigations with a variety of materials, such as water to describe how matter can change from one form to another without the loss of any mass.
  3. Describe the relationship between the masses of whole objects to the sum of the mass of their parts using appropriate tools to gather supporting data.

Topic

C. States of Matter

Indicator

  • 1. Provide evidence from investigations to identify the processes that can be used to change materials from one state of matter to another.
Objectives
  1. Observe and describe the changes heating and cooling cause to the different states in which water exists.
    • Heating causes: ice (solid) to melt forming liquid water; liquid water to evaporate forming water vapor (gas).
    • Cooling causes: liquid water to freeze forming ice (solid); water vapor (gas) to form liquid water.
  2. Based on data explain the importance of water's ability to exist in all three states within the temperatures normally found on Earth.
  3. Analyze data from observations to support the idea that when materials change from one state to another the amount of material stays the same.

Topic

D. Physical and Chemical Changes

Indicator

  • 1. Provide evidence to illustrate that when a new material is made by combining two or more materials, its properties are different from the original materials.
Objectives
  1. Investigate and describe what happens to the properties of materials when several materials are combined to make a mixture, such as table salt and pepper; various kinds of nuts, chocolate pieces, and coconut; sugar dissolved in milk
  2. Based on observations from investigations and video technology, describe what happens to the observable properties of materials when several materials are combined to make a new material, such as baking soda combined with vinegar
  3. Share data gathered and construct a reasonable explanation of the results.

Note: Highlighting identifies assessment limits. All highlighted Indicators will be tested on the Grades 5 and 8 MSA. The highlighted Objectives under each highlighted Indicator identify the limit to which MSA items can be written. Although all content standards are tested on MSA, not all Indicators and Objectives are tested. Objectives that are not highlighted will not be tested on MSA, however are an integral part of Instruction.

January 2008