What does a student learn in StateMassachusetts,GradeGrade 3,SubjectScience?

Students come up with questions about the world around them that a real test or experiment could answer. They also describe problems clearly enough that an engineer or scientist could start working on a solution.

Students draw or build a simple model, like a diagram of the water cycle or a sketch of a bridge design, to show how something works or explain why something happens.

Students plan a test or experiment, carry it out, and record what they find. The point is to gather real information that helps answer a question or check whether an idea holds up.

Students look at data from an experiment, spot patterns in the numbers or results, and explain what those patterns mean.

Students use counting, measuring, and simple math to back up what they observe in science. Instead of just saying something is "bigger" or "faster," they put a number to it.

Students take what they observed or measured and write an explanation that uses that evidence to show why something happened or how something works.

Students look at two possible explanations or solutions, then use evidence from their investigations to argue which one holds up better.

Students read simple science texts, decide whether the information makes sense, and share what they learned in words or pictures.

Students explore what everyday materials are made of and why they behave the way they do. They investigate how tiny particles interact to explain physical changes they can observe and measure.

Students test how pushes and pulls change the way objects move, and explore why some things stay still while others speed up, slow down, or change direction.

Students explore how energy shows up in different forms, like heat, light, and sound, and track where it goes when it moves from one object to another. They learn that energy is never lost, just changed or passed along.

Students explore how waves (like sound and light) carry energy and send information from one place to another. They investigate real examples, such as how a phone call travels or how a drum sends vibrations through the air.

Students look at how living things are built and how they work, from the tiny cells inside a leaf or a finger to the larger body systems those cells form together.

Students trace how food energy moves from plants to animals and back into the soil, and look at how living things in one place depend on and affect each other.

Students look at how traits like eye color or height get passed from parents to offspring, and why siblings can look similar but not identical.

Students compare living things to find what they have in common and what makes each one different. They explore how those differences help some plants and animals survive better than others.

Students learn where Earth fits in the solar system and how the planets move in predictable patterns. They also look at how Earth itself has changed over a very long time.

Students learn that land, water, air, and living things are each part of Earth and affect one another. A rainstorm filling a river, or roots breaking apart rock, are the kinds of connections students explore.

Students look at how people change the land, water, and air around them, and what happens when earthquakes, floods, or storms hit a community.

Students spot a real problem, sketch out ways to fix it, then test their ideas and improve them until the design works better.

Students explore how inventions shape daily life and how everyday needs push engineers to build new things. A new tool changes how people live, and how people live pushes engineers to create new tools.