Unit Plan 35 (Grade 3 Science): Sustainability & Stewardship

Focus: Explain and practice responsible actions that help protect habitats and reduce risks from weather-related hazards, while defining simple design problems with criteria and constraints.

Grade Level: 3

Subject Area: Science (Earth & Environmental Science • Engineering Design • Civic Responsibility)

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

I. Introduction

In this unit, students become stewards of their school and community environments. They explore what sustainability and stewardship mean, identify weather-related hazards (like flooding, ice, or extreme heat) and habitat challenges nearby, and learn how everyday choices and simple design solutions can reduce risks. Students define design problems with clear criteria and constraints, then propose and analyze actions (like planting, shade, drainage, or safe routes) that help protect habitats and people. By the end, they create a Sustainability & Stewardship Action Plan and make a claim about the merit of at least one design solution, supported by evidence, addressing 3-ESS3-1 and 3–5-ETS1-1.

Essential Questions

• What does it mean to be a steward of the environment, and how can our daily actions make habitats healthier and safer?
• What weather-related hazards (flooding, ice, heat, wind) affect our school or community, and who/what is at risk?
• How can we define a design problem that helps protect people and habitats from these hazards, with clear criteria and constraints?
• How can we make a claim about the merit of a design solution—how good it is at reducing hazard impacts—using observations and reasoning?

II. Objectives and Standards

Learning Objectives — Students will be able to:

1. Describe what sustainability and stewardship mean in age-appropriate language and give examples of responsible actions that protect habitats.
2. Identify at least one local weather-related hazard (e.g., ponding water, icy spots, strong winds, heat on playground) and describe its impacts on people, plants, or animals (3-ESS3-1).
3. Define a simple design problem related to a local hazard, including clear criteria (what the solution must do) and constraints (materials, time, safety, space) (3–5-ETS1-1).
4. Propose and sketch two or more possible design solutions (or stewardship actions) that could reduce hazard impacts or protect habitats.
5. Make a claim about the merit (how good/helpful) of one design solution or action, explaining how it reduces the impact of a weather-related hazard, using observations and reasoning (3-ESS3-1).
6. Create and share a simple Sustainability & Stewardship Action Plan for the school or class that includes at least one design solution and one daily stewardship action.

Standards Alignment — 3rd Grade (NGSS-Aligned)

• 3-ESS3-1 — Make a claim about the merit of a design solution that reduces the impacts of a weather-related hazard.
• 3–5-ETS1-1 — Define a simple design problem reflecting a need or a want that includes specified criteria for success and constraints on materials, time, or cost.

Success Criteria — Student Language

• I can explain stewardship and give at least one way students can help protect habitats.
• I can name a weather-related hazard near our school and explain who or what it affects.
• I can write or say a design problem with criteria (“must…” statements) and constraints (“can’t…” or “limited by…” statements).
• I can describe two or more solutions and say which one has better merit and why.
• I can share a Sustainability & Stewardship Action Plan that includes both a design solution and everyday responsible actions.