Unit Plan 17 (Grade 4 Science): Waves & Energy Review

Focus: Interpret wave diagrams and connect waves to earlier energy learning (speed, transfer, collisions, and information signals).

Grade Level: 4

Subject Area: Science (Physical Science • Waves • Energy & Engineering Connections)

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

I. Introduction

Students synthesize what they know about energy and waves by revisiting how motion, collisions, sound, light, and signals all involve energy transfer. They read and draw wave diagrams showing amplitude and wavelength, connect these to how loudness and brightness change, and link wave models back to earlier investigations of speed and collisions. By the end of the week, students can explain how waves carry energy, how that energy can cause motion, and how we can use patterns in waves to send information.

Essential Questions

• How do waves help us understand how energy moves from place to place?
• What can wave diagrams (amplitude, wavelength) tell us about loudness, brightness, or motion?
• How are collisions, sound, light, and signals all connected through energy transfer?
• How can patterns in waves be used to encode and send information reliably?

II. Objectives and Standards

Learning Objectives — Students will be able to:

1. Interpret and create wave models that show amplitude and wavelength, and explain what these features represent.
2. Use evidence from simple investigations to explain that waves can transfer energy and cause objects to move.
3. Connect wave energy to earlier learning about speed, collisions, and energy transfer (4-PS3).
4. Describe and compare simple signal patterns (light and sound) used to transfer information.
5. Produce a brief “Waves & Energy Concept Map” or poster that links waves, energy, motion, and information transfer using labeled diagrams and explanations.

Standards Alignment — 4th Grade (NGSS-Aligned)

• 4-PS3-1 — Use evidence to construct an explanation relating the speed of an object to the energy of that object.
• 4-PS3-2 — Make observations to provide evidence that energy can be transferred from place to place by sound, light, heat, and electric currents.
• 4-PS4-1 — Develop a model of waves to describe patterns in terms of amplitude and wavelength.
• 4-PS4-2 — Develop a model to describe that waves can cause objects to move.
• 4-PS4-3 — Generate and compare multiple solutions that use patterns to transfer information.

Success Criteria — Student Language

• I can read and draw wave diagrams, showing amplitude and wavelength, and explain what they mean.
• I can describe how waves transfer energy and how that energy can make objects move.
• I can explain how sound, light, collisions, and signals all involve energy transfer.
• I can show how patterns in waves can be used to send information (for example, flashing light or sound beeps).
• I can create a clear concept map or poster that links waves, energy, motion, and information transfer with correct vocabulary.