Unit Plan 36 (Grade 2 Science): Cumulative Synthesis & Exhibition

Focus: Students present final projects that connect all Grade 2 science ideas—matter, plants, animals & habitats, Earth events, landforms & water, and engineering solutions—in a STEM Exhibition for classmates and/or families.

Grade Level: 2

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

Total Unit Duration: 5 sessions (one week), 30–45 minutes per session

I. Introduction

In this final synthesis unit, students become science explainers and designers who prepare a Cumulative STEM Exhibition. They revisit big ideas from the year: properties and uses of materials, reversible and irreversible changes, plant needs, seed dispersal and pollination, biodiversity in habitats, fast and slow Earth events, landforms, water locations and states, and engineering solutions that protect land or help living things.

Across the week, students choose or refine a capstone project (model, demo, poster, or “interactive station”) that highlights several Grade 2 science ideas at once. They plan what to show, how to explain it, and how to connect it to real-world problems and solutions. The week ends with a STEM Exhibition where students share their work with an audience and reflect on how their science thinking has grown.

Essential Questions

• How can one project or model show many science ideas together (matter, plants, animals, land, water, and change)?
• Why is it important to choose materials with the right properties when we build or design something?
• How do plants, animals, landforms, and water in an environment affect one another?
• How do Earth events (fast and slow) change places where plants, animals, and people live—and how can engineers help?
• How can we communicate our science learning clearly so that other people understand and learn from us?

II. Objectives and Standards

Learning Objectives — Students will be able to:

1. Review and explain key ideas from Grade 2 physical, life, Earth, and engineering units using their own words and models.
2. Select and use materials with appropriate properties to build or revise a project that shows matter, structures, or landforms (2-PS1-1–2).
3. Give examples of reversible and irreversible changes and connect at least one example to their project or demonstration (2-PS1-4).
4. Represent how plants get what they need (sunlight and water) and how animals help with seed dispersal or pollination in a model, diagram, or explanation (2-LS2-1–2).
5. Show diversity of life in at least one habitat, comparing it to another environment if possible (2-LS4-1).
6. Describe at least one fast Earth event (e.g., flood, landslide) and one slow change (e.g., erosion, layering) and how these might affect their modeled environment (2-ESS1-1).
7. Include landforms, bodies of water, and water locations (liquid/solid) in their project and explain their choices (2-ESS2-1–3).
8. Use engineering design steps (Ask, Imagine, Plan, Create, Test, Improve) to refine a solution that helps protect land, support plants or animals, or solve a local-style problem (K–2-ETS1-1–3).
9. Present their project at the STEM Exhibition, using simple data, labels, and key vocabulary to explain what it shows and how it connects to Grade 2 standards.

Standards Alignment — 2nd Grade (NGSS-Aligned)

• 2-PS1-1 — Plan and conduct an investigation to describe and classify different kinds of materials by their observable properties.
  • Example: Re-test or review materials for a final project (strong vs. weak, bendy vs. stiff, absorbent vs. not).
• 2-PS1-2 — Analyze data obtained from testing different materials to determine which have the properties best suited for an intended purpose.
  • Example: Choose the best material for a “riverbank,” “bridge,” “roof,” or “habitat shelter” in the final project.
• 2-PS1-3 — Make observations to construct an evidence-based account of how an object made of a small set of pieces can be disassembled and made into a new object.
  • Example: Revise existing models by taking structures apart and rebuilding them into improved designs.
• 2-PS1-4 — Construct an argument with evidence that some changes caused by heating or cooling can be reversed and some cannot.
  • Example: Include or explain a small demonstration or picture set showing melting/freezing vs. cooking/burning.
• 2-LS2-1 — Plan and conduct an investigation to determine if plants need sunlight and water to grow.
  • Example: Use class plant investigation data or display plant cups next to the project with labels.
• 2-LS2-2 — Develop a simple model that mimics the function of an animal in dispersing seeds or pollinating plants.
  • Example: Incorporate seed “hooks,” “stickers,” or a pollinator path into an environment or poster.
• 2-LS4-1 — Make observations of plants and animals to compare the diversity of life in different habitats.
  • Example: Show two habitats in the project and explain which has more/less variety of organisms.
• 2-ESS1-1 — Use information from several sources to provide evidence that Earth events can occur quickly or slowly.
  • Example: Label where a fast event (flood, landslide) might occur and where slow changes (erosion) happen.
• 2-ESS2-1 — Compare multiple solutions designed to slow or prevent wind or water from changing the shape of the land.
  • Example: Show or explain two possible erosion-prevention methods and which one works better.
• 2-ESS2-2 — Develop a model to represent the shapes and kinds of land and bodies of water in an area.
  • Example: Use the final project to show hills, valleys, plains, rivers, ponds, and/or oceans.
• 2-ESS2-3 — Obtain information to identify where water is found on Earth and that it can be solid or liquid.
  • Example: Label water in rivers, lakes, puddles, or snow/ice areas in the project.
• K–2-ETS1-1 — Ask questions, make observations, and gather information about a situation people want to change to define a simple problem that can be solved with a new or improved object or tool.
  • Example: Define a local-style problem (e.g., playground flooding, plant drying out) that the project’s design addresses.
• K–2-ETS1-2 — Develop a simple sketch, drawing, or physical model to illustrate how the shape of an object helps it function as needed to solve a problem.
  • Example: Show how the shape of a barrier, roof, or container helps it protect land, plants, or water.
• K–2-ETS1-3 — Analyze data from tests of two objects designed to solve the same problem to compare the strengths and weaknesses of how each performs.
  • Example: Compare two versions of a barrier or shelter and explain which tested solution works better and why.

Success Criteria — Student Language

• I can explain my project and tell which science ideas it shows (matter, plants, animals, land, water, changes, or solutions).
• I can tell why I chose certain materials and how their properties help my project work.
• I can show or explain how plants get what they need and how animals can help with seeds or pollination.
• I can describe at least one fast change and one slow change to Earth that could happen in my environment and how people might solve or reduce those problems.
• I can present my project to others using labels, data, and key science words so they understand my thinking.