Kentucky Department of Education

LaRue County Schools shared their primary science curriculum map and the description below. 

 

LaRue County Schools

Primary Science

 

LaRue County Schools decided to develop curriculum maps and other documents to help teachers intentionally plan and deliver instruction with core content as a basis.  The process began in the fall of 2002.  We arbitrarily chose the core area of math as a starting point.  Each semester and over the summers a different core content area was addressed. 

 

During the development and alignment process, a vertical team of K—12 teachers in each core area was assembled.  First, the teachers gathered input from teachers at the building level.  Second, a day or two was designated for the vertical team to meet.  The team worked in elementary, middle, and high school grade ranges.  After the grade range specific work was done, the team reassembled to address transition issues from elementary to middle school and middle to high school. 

 

As of June 2004, LaRue County Schools have completed the curriculum alignment/mapping in all the core content areas.  The next steps for the district will be to emphasize the use of the documents for intentional planning of standards-based units of instruction and for the delivery of classroom instruction grounded in core content.  The LaRue County curriculum documents are "works in progress."  As teachers begin to use the core content documents, questions will arise and adjustments will undoubtedly need to be made.  These questions and adjustments provide opportunities for colleagues to reflect on practices, to make mid-course corrections, and to enhance student achievement at all levels.

 

For more information about this map, please contact Karen Downs at LaRue County Schools.

LaRue County Schools
Primary Science

TimeLine	Content	Concepts	Processes	Assessments
	Characteristics of Organisms The learner will recognize must meet basic needs to survive. S-P-LS-1 The learner will identify various structures and functions of plants and animals used in growth and animals used in growth, survival and reproduction and classify these accordingly. S-P-LS-3 The learner will describe how behavior is influenced by stimuli. S-P-LS-2	Flowering/non-flowering (flowers, cones, fruit) Amphibians Human Birds Mammals Insects Spiders	Recognize flowering plants produce seed in a fruit Recognize some plants don't have flowers Classify animals according to their characteristics Plant and animal behavior results from internal and external stimuli	TTP Relationship Report for Life Science POS 1 TTP Relationship Report for Life Science POS 3 TTP Relationship Report for Life Science POS 2
	Life Cycles of Organisms The learner will identify and illustrate life cycles of given organisms. S-P-LS-5 The learner will recognize offspring resemble their parents. S-P-LS-4	Stages of flowering plant (seed, embryo, seedling, adult) Plant seeds Life cycle of non-flowering (moss, fern) (seed/spore, seedling, adult) Life cycle of insect (3 stage: egg, nymph, adult) (4 stage: egg, larva, pupa, adult) Amphibian Bird Mammal	Sequence—draw stages of growth in flowering/non-flowing plants Identify how plants make seeds Compare/contrast flowering and non-flowing plants Illustrate life cycle of a given organism Identify amphibian as a 3 stage (egg, larva, adult) Observe and identify stages of life cycle for amphibian, bird (egg, baby, adult), mammal (embryo, baby, young, adult) Define gestation and recognize different animals have different gestation periods	TTP Relationship Report for Life Science POS 5 TTP Relationship Results for Life Science POS 4
	Organisms and Their Environment The learner will demonstrate changes in the environment that effect changes in plant and animal life. S-P-AC-5	Habitats Pollution Reproduction Natural and constructed environments Rain forest habitat	Identify cause/effect of environment on reproduction Compare/contrast natural vs. constructed environments Identify some plants and animals in a chosen habitat.

If you'd like to use this map or amend it to suit your needs, please check below for a handy Microsoft Word version. Just click on the Word icon to open it on your computer, then choose Word's Save As command to save it locally.