Unit Plan 35 (Grade 1 Science): STEM Capstone — Light, Traits & Seasons

Focus: Combine models of light, sound, traits, and sky/daylight patterns into an integrated capstone project that shows how patterns help us predict and explain the natural world.

Grade Level: 1

Subject Area: Science (Physical Science • Life Science • Earth & Space Science • Engineering Design)

Total Unit Duration: 5 sessions (one week), 45–60 minutes per session

I. Introduction

Students bring together the year’s biggest science ideas by creating a “Patterns in Nature Showcase.” They revisit how vibrations make sound, how light helps us see and creates shadows, how plants/animals use external parts and behaviors to survive, and how the sun, moon, stars, and daylight follow predictable patterns across days and seasons. Across the week, students plan and build a capstone display with simple demonstrations (light, sound, and/or communication), labeled diagrams, and short explanations that connect evidence from investigations to big ideas about patterns, survival, and seasons.

Essential Questions

• How do patterns in light, sound, and the sky help us predict what will happen?
• How do animal/plant parts and parent/offspring behaviors help living things meet their needs?
• How does the amount of daylight change across the year, and how can we show that with observations?
• How can we design a simple tool that uses light or sound to solve a communication problem?

II. Objectives and Standards

Learning Objectives — Students will be able to:

1. Use investigation evidence to explain that vibrations make sound and sound can make materials vibrate (1-PS4-1).
2. Explain that objects can be seen only when illuminated, and describe how light direction affects shadows (1-PS4-2).
3. Test materials (transparent/translucent/opaque/reflective) and describe how they change a beam of light (1-PS4-3).
4. Design and build a device that uses light or sound to solve a communication problem, then improve it using test results (1-PS4-4).
5. Explain how external parts help plants/animals survive and connect this to a human problem solution (1-LS1-1).
6. Describe patterns in parent/offspring behaviors that help offspring survive, using texts/media evidence (1-LS1-2).
7. Use observations to explain that young plants/animals are like, but not exactly like, their parents (1-LS3-1).
8. Use sky observations (sun, moon, stars) and daylight data to describe predictable patterns and relate daylight amount to time of year (1-ESS1-1, 1-ESS1-2).

Standards Alignment — Grade 1 (NGSS-Aligned)

• 1-PS4-1 — Plan and conduct investigations to provide evidence that vibrating materials can make sound and that sound can make materials vibrate.
• 1-PS4-2 — Make observations to construct an evidence-based account that objects can be seen only when illuminated.
• 1-PS4-3 — Plan and conduct an investigation to determine the effect of placing objects made with different materials in the path of a beam of light.
• 1-PS4-4 — Use tools and materials to design and build a device that uses light or sound to solve a communication problem.
• 1-LS1-1 — Use materials to design a solution to a human problem by mimicking how plants/animals use external parts to help them survive, grow, and meet their needs.
• 1-LS1-2 — Read texts and use media to determine patterns in behavior of parents and offspring that help offspring survive.
• 1-LS3-1 — Make observations to construct an evidence-based account that young plants and animals are like, but not exactly like, their parents.
• 1-ESS1-1 — Use observations of the sun, moon, and stars to describe patterns that can be predicted.
• 1-ESS1-2 — Make observations at different times of year to relate the amount of daylight to the time of year.

Success Criteria — Student Language

• I can show that vibrations make sound and sound can make things move.
• I can explain that we can only see objects when there is light on them, and I can describe shadows.
• I can test materials and tell if they let light pass through, block it, or reflect it.
• I can build a device that uses light or sound to send a message, and I can improve it after testing.
• I can explain how animal/plant parts and family behaviors help living things survive.
• I can use sky and daylight observations to describe patterns that repeat and can be predicted.