Earth is made of materials that have distinct properties and provide resources for human activities. Students know smaller rocks come from the breakage and weathering of larger rocks. Students know that soil is made partly from weathered rock and partly from organic materials and that soils differ in their color, texture, capacity to retain water, and ability to support the growth of many kinds of plants. Students know that fossils provide evidence about the plants and animals that lived long ago and that scientists learn about the past history of Earth by studying fossils. Students know rock, water, plants, and soil provide many resources, including food, fuel, and building materials, that humans use.
Scientific progress is made by asking meaningful questions and conducting careful investigations.
As a basis for understanding this concept and addressing the content in the other three strands, students should develop their own questions and perform investigations. Measure length, weight, temperature, and liquid volume with appropriate tools and express those measurements in standard metric system units. Write or draw descriptions of a sequence of steps, events, and observations.