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Author: Capital Region BOCES

  • Life Science – Growth, Development & Reproduction of Organisms

    Students explore how organisms reproduce and transfer their genetic information to their offspring. They learn how traits are inherited, variation of traits, how mutations may result in changes to living things that can be harmful or beneficial, and how humans have the capacity to influence certain characteristics of organisms by selective breeding (natural vs. artificial selection).

    Download the complete Life Science – Growth, Development & Reproduction of Organisms framework to customize for your own planning.

    Standards

    • MS-LS1-4. Use argument based on empirical evidence and scientific reasoning to support an explanation for how characteristic animal behaviors and specialized plant structures affect the probability of successful reproduction of animals and plants, respectively.   
    • MS-LS1-5. Construct a scientific explanation based on evidence for how environmental and genetic factors influence the growth of organisms.
    • MS-LS3-1. Develop and use a model to explain why structural changes to genes (mutations) located on chromosomes may affect proteins and may result in harmful, beneficial, or neutral effects to the structure and function of the organism.
    • MS-LS3-2. Develop and use a model to describe how asexual reproduction results in offspring with identical genetic information and sexual reproduction results in offspring with genetic variation. 
    • MS-LS4-5. Gather and synthesize information about the technologies that have changed the way humans influence the inheritance of desired traits in organisms.    

    Essential questions and big ideas of the unit

    • How do plants and animals reproduce and why do some offspring look similar to and/or different from their parents?
      • Organisms reproduce, either sexually or asexually, and transfer their genetic information to their offspring. (secondary to MS-LS3-2)
      • Animals engage in characteristic behaviors that increase the odds of reproduction. (MS-LS1-4)  
      • Plants reproduce in a variety of ways, sometimes depending on animal behavior and specialized features for reproduction. (MS-LS1-4)  
      • Genetic factors as well as local conditions affect the growth of the adult plant. (MS-LS1-5) 
      • Genes are located in the chromosomes of cells, with each chromosome pair containing two variants of each of many distinct genes. Each distinct gene chiefly controls the production of specific proteins, which in turn affects the traits of the individual.  Changes (mutations) to genes can result in changes to proteins, which can affect the structures and functions of the organism and thereby change traits. (MS-LS3-1)  
      • Variations of inherited traits between parent and offspring arise from genetic differences that result from the subset of chromosomes (and therefore genes) inherited. (MS-LS3-2) 
      • In sexually reproducing organisms, each parent contributes half of the genes acquired (at random) by the offspring. Individuals have two of each chromosome and hence two alleles of each gene, one acquired from each parent. These versions may be identical or may differ from each other. (MS-LS3-2) 
    • Why do some plants and/or animals survive better than others?
      • In addition to variations that arise from sexual reproduction, genetic information can be altered because of mutations. Some changes are beneficial, others harmful, and some neutral to the organism. (MS-LS3-1) 
        Mutations may result in changes to the structure and function of proteins. (MS-LS3-1) 
      • In artificial selection, humans have the capacity to influence certain characteristics of organisms by selective breeding. One can choose desired parental traits determined by genes, which are then passed onto offspring. (MS-LS4-5)

    Download the complete Life Science – Growth, Development & Reproduction of Organisms framework to customize for your own planning.

  • Life Science – Natural Selection & Adaptations

    Students explore evidence of common ancestry and diversity of living things, such as the fossil record, anatomical similarities and differences between various organisms living today compared to those in the fossil record, and comparisons of embryological development of different species.  They learn about adaptations and natural selection, and how traits that support successful survival and reproduction in an environment become more common.

    Download the complete Life Science – Natural Selection & Adaptations framework to customize for your own planning.

    Standards

    • MS-LS1-4. Use argument based on empirical evidence and scientific reasoning to support an explanation for how characteristic animal behaviors and specialized plant structures affect the probability of successful reproduction of animals and plants, respectively.   
    • MS-LS1-5. Construct a scientific explanation based on evidence for how environmental and genetic factors influence the growth of organisms.
    • MS-LS3-1. Develop and use a model to explain why structural changes to genes (mutations) located on chromosomes may affect proteins and may result in harmful, beneficial, or neutral effects to the structure and function of the organism.
    • MS-LS3-2. Develop and use a model to describe how asexual reproduction results in offspring with identical genetic information and sexual reproduction results in offspring with genetic variation.  
    • MS-LS4-5. Gather and synthesize information about the technologies that have changed the way humans influence the inheritance of desired traits in organisms.    

    Essential questions and big ideas of the unit

    • Did plants and animals always look the way they do now?
      • The collection of fossils and their placement in chronological order (e.g., through the location of the sedimentary layers in which they are found or through radioactive dating) is known as the fossil record. It documents the existence, diversity, extinction, and change of many life forms throughout the history of life on Earth. (MS-LS4-1) 
      • Anatomical similarities and differences between various organisms living today and between them and organisms in the fossil record, enable the reconstruction of evolutionary history and the inference of lines of evolutionary descent. (MS-LS4-2)  Comparison of the embryological development of different species also reveals similarities that show relationships not evident in the fully-formed anatomy. (MS-LS4-3)
    • Why are some plants and/or animals no longer in existence?
      • Natural selection can lead to an increase in the frequency of some traits and the decrease in the frequency of other traits. (MS-LS4-4)
      • Adaptation by natural selection acting over generations is one important process by which species change over time in response to changes in environmental conditions. Traits that support successful survival and reproduction in the new environment become more common; those that do not become less common. Thus, the distribution of traits in a population changes. (MS-LS4-6)

    Download the complete Life Science – Natural Selection & Adaptations framework to customize for your own planning.

  • Grade 3 ELA Unit 3

    Literature Study and Narrative Writing

    Unit description: Students will analyze literary texts to identify and describe literary elements and text features and how they are used to develop the plot of a story. Students will craft their own narrative piece applying their understanding of literary elements and text features to develop their story.

    Download the complete Grade 3 ELA Unit 3 framework to customize for your own planning.

    Essential Outcomes of the Unit 

    Reading

    • 3R1. Develop and answer questions to locate relevant and specific details in a text to support an answer or inference.
    • 3R2. Determine a theme or central idea and explain how it is supported by key details; summarize portions of a text.
    • 3R3. In literary texts, describe character traits, motivations, or feelings, drawing on specific details from the text. 
    • 3R5. In literary texts, identify parts of stories, dramas, and poems using terms such as chapter, scene, and stanza.
    • 3R7. Explain how specific illustrations or text features contribute to what is conveyed by the words in a text (e.g., create mood, emphasize character or setting, or determine where, when, why, and how key events occur). 

    Reading Foundations: Fluency

    • 3RF4. Read grade-level text with sufficient accuracy and fluency to support comprehension

    Language

    • 3L1. Demonstrate command of the conventions of academic English grammar and usage when writing or speaking.
    • 3L2. Demonstrate command of the conventions of academic English capitalization, punctuation, and spelling when writing
    • 3L4. Determine or clarify the meaning of unknown and multiple-meaning words and phrases, choosing flexibly from a range of strategies.
    • 3L5. Demonstrate understanding of word relationships and nuances in word meanings.
    • 3L6. Acquire and accurately use conversational, general academic, and content-specific words and phrases, including those that signal spatial and temporal relationships (e.g., After dinner that night we went out for dessert).

    Writing

    • 3W3. Write narratives to develop real or imagined experiences or events using effective techniques, descriptive details, and clear event sequences.
    • 3W4. Create a response to a text, author, theme, or personal experience (e.g., poem, play, story, artwork, or other).

    Speaking and Listening

    3SL1. Participate and engage effectively in a range of collaborative discussions with diverse peers and adults, expressing ideas clearly, and building on those of others.

    3SL2. Determine the central ideas and supporting details or information presented in diverse texts and formats (e.g., including visual, quantitative, and oral). 

    Other Standards Addressed in the Unit

    See Reading Foundations Units: 3RF3 a-d
    3R1, 3R2, 3R3, 3R4, 3R5, 3R7
    3RF4
    3L1, 3L2, 3L3, 3L4, 3L5, 3L6
    3W3, 3W4
    3SL1, 3SL2, 3SL3, 3SL6

    Essential Questions and Big Ideas

    • What is a plot, and why is it important?
      • A plot is the sequence of events in a story or text 
      • Without a plot, there would be no events in a story 
    • How do authors develop their plot?
      • Authors use text features and literary elements to develop plot
      • Certain text features and literary elements can have different impacts on plot development 
    • What makes a quality narrative?
      • Good writers organize their writing before they begin their first draft 
      • Quality narratives include a clear plot structure, using text features and literary elements to develop it

    Download the complete Grade 3 ELA Unit 3 framework to customize for your own planning.

  • Grade 5 Life Science Unit 3

    Matter & Energy in Organisms & Ecosystems

    Unit description: Students explore how energy from the sun is captured and used by plants to survive and to provide food for other living things.  They learn how energy from food is used to help animals grow and survive. Students investigate food chains and food webs to learn of the interdependent relationships in ecosystems, how matter cycles, and how energy transfer occurs in an ecosystem.

    Download the complete Grade 5 Science Unit 3 framework to customize for your own planning.

    Essential Questions and Big Ideas

    • How do plants use the sun’s energy to grow and survive?
      • The energy released [from] food was once energy from the sun that was captured by plants in the chemical process that forms plant matter (from air and water). (5-PS3-1)
    • How do plants and animals use food once it is inside their body?
      • Food provides animals with the materials they need for body repair and growth and the energy they need to maintain body warmth and for motion. (secondary to 5-PS3-1)
      • Plants acquire their material for growth chiefly from air and water. (5-LS1-1)
    • How does an ecosystem stay healthy?
      • The food of almost any kind of animal can be traced back to plants. Organisms are related in food webs in which some animals eat plants for food and other animals eat the animals that eat plants. Some organisms, such as fungi and bacteria, break down dead organisms (both plants or plants parts and animals) and therefore operate as “decomposers.” Decomposition eventually restores (recycles) some materials back to the soil. Organisms can survive only in environments in which their particular needs are met. A healthy ecosystem is one in which multiple species of different types are each able to meet their needs in a relatively stable web of life. Newly introduced species can damage the balance of an ecosystem. (5-LS2-1)
      • Matter cycles between the air and soil and among plants, animals, and microbes as these organisms live and die. Organisms obtain gases, and water, from the environment, and release waste matter (gas, liquid, or solid) back into the environment. (5-LS2-1)

  • Grade 8 Social Studies Unit 3

    Expansion and Imperialism

    Unit description:  Beginning in the second half of the 19th century, economic, political, and cultural factors contributed to a push for westward expansion and more aggressive United States foreign policy. In this unit, students will explore continued conflicts with Native Americans and the effect the Spanish-American war had on the rise of the United States as an imperial power. In addition, students will study Pacific trade and increased United States foreign interactions.

    Standards 

    Standards: 1, 2, 3, 5; Themes: GEO, GOV, CIV, ECO

    Essential Questions and Big Ideas

    Big idea of the Unit:  Economic, political, and cultural factors contributed to a push for westward expansion and more aggressive United States foreign policy.

    How did the transcontinental railroad affect westward expansion? 

    • Continued westward expansion contributed to increased conflicts with Native Americans.

    What are United States and New York policies that were imposed upon Native Americans? 

    • Examples of the policies imposed upon Native Americans from United States and New York State, were the displacement of Native Americans from traditional lands, creation of reservations, efforts to assimilate Native Americans through the creation of boarding schools, the Dawes Act, and the Indian Reorganization Act and the Native Americans’ various responses to these policies. 

    How did the outcomes of the Spanish-American War contribute to the shift to imperialism in United States foreign policy?

    • The events and outcomes of the Spanish-American War contributed to the shift to imperialism in United States foreign policy.

    What effect did the Roosevelt Corollary have on relationships between the United States and Latin American nations?

    •  The Roosevelt Corollary expanded the Monroe Doctrine and increased United States involvement in the affairs of Latin America. This led to resentment of the United States among many in Latin America.

    Download the complete Grade 8 Social Studies Unit 3 framework to customize for your own planning.

  • Physical Science – Chemical Reactions

    Students apply their understanding of physical and chemical properties of matter to explore chemical reactions, how substances react chemically in characteristic ways and how mass is conserved

    Download the complete Physical Science – Chemical Reactions framework to customize for your own planning.

    Standards

    • MS-PS1-2. Analyze and interpret data on the properties of substances before and after the substances interact to determine if a chemical reaction has occurred.  
    • MS-PS1-5. Develop and use a model to describe how the total number of atoms does not change in a chemical reaction and thus mass is conserved.
    • MS-PS1-6. Undertake a design project to construct, test, and modify a device that either releases or absorbs thermal energy during a chemical and/or physical process.

    Essential questions and big ideas of the unit

    • How can you identify substances?
      • Each substance has characteristic physical and chemical properties (for any bulk quantity under given conditions) that can be used to identify it. (MS-PS1-2) 
    • What happens during a chemical reaction?
      • Substances react chemically in characteristic ways.  In a chemical process, the atoms that make up the original substances are regrouped into different particles and these new substances have different properties from those of the reactants. (MS-PS1-2),(MS-PS1-5) 
      • The total number of each type of atom is conserved, and thus the mass does not change. (MS-PS1-5)  
      • Some chemical reactions release energy, others absorb energy. (MS-PS1-6)
      • A solution needs to be tested, and then modified on the basis of the test results, in order to improve it. (secondary to MS-PS1-6) 
      • Although one design may not perform the best across all tests, identifying the characteristics of the design that performed the best in each test can provide useful information for the redesign process—that is, some of the characteristics may be incorporated into the new design. (secondary to MS-PS1-6)
      • The iterative process of testing the most promising solutions and modifying what is proposed on the basis of the test results leads to greater refinement and ultimately to an optimal solution. (secondary to MS-PS1-6)

    Download the complete Physical Science – Chemical Reactions framework to customize for your own planning.

  • Grade 7 ELA Unit 3

    Comparative Literature

    Unit description: Students will compare and contrast the same text in various formats (audio, filmed, staged, etc.) to determine the impact and effectiveness of each. Students will look deeply within one text to identify elements of plot, and analyze how they are related. Students will also work on the diction level to analyze the impact that specific words have on the development of the plot, mood, tone, and theme of each story. Students will continue to create strong arguments about a text(s) and support them with relevant and sufficient evidence.

    These learning progressions were developed using Next Generation Learning Standards and were crosswalked with the Common Core Standards.

    Essential Outcomes

    Reading

    • 7R1: Cite textual evidence to support an analysis of what the text says explicitly/implicitly and make logical inferences.
    • 7R2: Determine a theme or central idea of a text and analyze its development over the course of the text; summarize a text.
    • 7R3: In literary texts, analyze how elements of plot are related, affect one another, and contribute to meaning. In informational texts, analyze how individuals, events, and ideas are introduced, relate to each other, and are developed.
    • 7R7: Compare and contrast a written text with audio, filmed, staged, or digital versions in order to analyze the effects of techniques unique to each media and each format’s portrayal of a subject.

    Language

    • 7L3: Use knowledge of language and its conventions when writing, speaking, reading, or listening.
    • 7L4: Determine or clarify the meaning of unknown and multiple-meaning words and phrases, choosing flexibly from a range of strategies.
    • 7L5: Demonstrate understanding of figurative language, word relationships, and nuances in word meanings.

    Writing

    • 7W1: Write arguments to support claims with clear reasons and relevant evidence.
    • 7W5: Draw evidence from literary or informational texts to support analysis, reflection, and research. Apply the grade 7 Reading Standards to both literary and informational text, where applicable.

    Speaking and Listening

    • 7SL1: Engage effectively in a range of collaborative discussions with diverse partners; express ideas clearly and persuasively, and build on those of others.
    • 7SL4: Present claims and findings, emphasizing salient points in a focused, coherent manner with relevant descriptions, facts, details, and examples; use appropriate eye contact, adequate volume, and clear enunciation.

    All Standards Addressed in this Unit

    • R1, R2, R3, R5, R6, R7, R9
    • L3, L4, L5, L6
    • W1, W3, W4, W5
    • SL1, SL4, SL6

    Essential Questions and Big Ideas

    • How do elements that are unique to a medium or genre impact a story’s meaning?
      • Authors make deliberate choices about the medium and literary devices that they use in their writing, including mood, tone, and diction.
      • These choices affect the meaning that is conveyed in a story.
    • Why do we compare and evaluate literature within and across mediums?
      • Good readers look for trends across genres and mediums to determine which is most effective at conveying a message or purpose.
      • Good readers create or use an established criteria to evaluate a text or text set.
      • Readers can synthesize their findings in many formats, including written and verbal forms.

    Prerequisite Skills

    • Engage effectively in a range of collaborative discussions with diverse partners; express ideas clearly and persuasively, and build on those of others.
    • Cite explicit and implicit evidence in a text (literary.)
    • Determine a theme or central idea and explain how it is supported by key details; summarize a text.
    • Draw evidence from literary or informational texts to respond and support analysis, reflection, and research.
    • Create a poem, story, play, artwork, or other response to a text, author, theme, or personal experience.

    Download the complete Grade 7 ELA Unit 3 framework to customize for your own planning.

  • Grade 4 Science Unit 3

    Structure, Function, and Information Processing

    Unit description: In this unit, students will spend time observing plants and animals to gather evidence that organisms are living systems. They will develop an understanding that plants and animals have external and internal structures that function to support survival, growth, behavior and reproduction.  Students use the concept of systems to understand that every animal has internal and external structures that allow it to take in information from the environment in which it lives, process that information, and respond in ways that increase its chances to grow, reproduce, and survive.

    Download the complete Grade 4 Science Unit 3 framework to customize for your own planning.

    Standards

    4-PS4-2. Develop a model to describe that light reflecting from objects and entering the eye allows objects to be seen.

    4-LS1-1. Construct an argument that plants and animals have internal and external structures that function to support survival, growth, behavior, and reproduction

    4-LS1-2. Use a model to describe that animals receive different types of information through their senses, process the information in their brain, and respond to the information in different ways.

    Essential Questions and Big Ideas

    How do we see objects?

    • An object can be seen when light reflected from its surface enters the eyes. (4-PS4-2)

    How do plants and animals process information and respond to things?

    • Plants and animals have both internal and external structures that serve various functions in growth, survival, behavior, and reproduction. (4-LS1-1)
    • Different sense receptors are specialized for particular kinds of information, which may be then processed by the animal’s brain. Animals are able to use their perceptions and memories to guide their actions. (4-LS1-2)

  • Life Science – Interdependent Relationships in Ecosystems

    Students explore how relationships are interdependent in ecosystems, the dynamics, functioning, and resilience of an ecosystem, how changes in biodiversity can influence human’s resources, how humans impact the biodiversity of an ecosystem, and ways we can develop solutions to preserve the ecosystem services humans rely on.

    Download the complete Life Science – Interdependent Relationships in Ecosystems framework to customize for your own planning.

    Standards

    • MS-LS2-2. Construct an explanation that predicts patterns of interactions among organisms in a variety of ecosystems.
    • MS-LS2-5. Evaluate competing design solutions for maintaining biodiversity and protecting ecosystem stability.   

    Essential questions and big ideas of the unit

    • What happens when an ecosystem is disrupted and what are some things humans can do to protect ecosystems?
      • Similarly, predatory interactions may reduce the number of organisms or eliminate whole populations of organisms. Mutually beneficial interactions, in contrast, may become so interdependent that each organism requires the other for survival. Although the species involved in these competitive, predatory, and mutually beneficial interactions vary across ecosystems, the patterns of interactions of organisms with their environments, both living and nonliving, are shared. (MS-LS2-2) 
      • Biodiversity describes the variety of species found in Earth’s ecosystems. The completeness or integrity of an ecosystem’s biodiversity is often used as a measure of its health. (MS-LS2-5) 
      • Changes in biodiversity can influence humans’ resources, such as food, energy, and medicines, as well as ecosystem services that humans rely on—for example, water purification and recycling. (secondary to MS-LS2-5)
      • Humans impact biodiversity both positively and negatively. (secondary to MS-LS2-5)
      • There are systematic processes for evaluating solutions with respect to how well they meet the criteria and constraints of a problem. (secondary to MS-LS2-5) 

    Download the complete Life Science – Interdependent Relationships in Ecosystems framework to customize for your own planning.

  • Grade 2 ELA Unit 3

    Read, Write & Learn from Fiction/Traditional Literature

    This unit should be paired with the Reading Foundations which focus on the acquisition of phonological awareness and phonics which are essential foundations for reading and writing. It is essential that these skills are not taught in isolation, but applied within students reading and writing.

    Unit description: Students will be reading traditional literature from around the world. They will be learning about important story events, examining how a character responds to challenges, studying the features of literary text, and determining the central idea. They will use the knowledge that they have acquired to help them write their own personal narratives.

    Download the complete Grade 2 ELA Unit 3 framework to customize for your own planning.

    Essential Outcomes

    Reading

    • 2R2: Identify a main topic or central idea and retell key details in a text; summarize portions of a text.
    • 2R3: In literary texts, describe how characters respond to major events and challenges.

    Reading Foundations- Fluency

    • 2L3: Use knowledge of language and its conventions when writing, speaking, reading, or listening
    • 2L5: Demonstrate understanding of word relationships and nuances in word meanings

    Language

    • 2W3: Write narratives which recount real or imagined experiences or a short sequence of events, including details to describe actions, thoughts, and feelings; use temporal words to signal event order, and provide a sense of closure.

    Writing

    • 2W4: Create a response to a text, author, theme or personal experience (e.g., poem, play, story, artwork, or other).

    Speaking and Listening

    • 2SL6: Express thoughts, feelings, and ideas clearly, adapting language according to context.

    All Standards Addressed in this Unit

    • See Reading Foundations Units: RF3, 2RF3a, 2RF3b, 2RF3c, 2RF3d, 2RF3e
    • 2R1, 2R2, 2R3, 2R5, 2R9
    • 2RF4
    • 2L1, 2L2, 2L3, 2L4, 2L4b, 2L4c, 2L5, 2L5a, 2L5b, 2L5c, 2L6
    • 2W3, 2W4
    • 2SL1, 2SL4, 2SL6

    Essential Questions and Big Ideas

    • How do readers understand traditional literature?
      • Readers use strategies to summarize story events in sequence to determine the central idea.
      • Readers identify how a character changes according to events in a story.
    • How is a text organized?
      • Texts have a beginning, middle, and end.
      • Stories follow the main character through a sequence of events, engaging the reader through these experiences and through the characters emotions.
    • How do readers make connections to texts?
      • Readers and writers make connections between stories, to their own lives and the to the world around them.
    • How do writers create personal narratives to tell a story?
      • Writers will write narratives with a beginning, middle, and end.

    Download the complete Grade 2 ELA Unit 3 framework to customize for your own planning.