5th grade Science
12 units matched to the Alabama Course of Study.
Focus areas
- Matter and its changes, energy in food webs, and Earth's systems and the sun and stars
- Science and engineering practices: measuring, graphing and designing devices
- Engineering design: solving real problems in Alabama and beyond
Units
Unit 1
Solid, Liquid, Gas
Matter as anything with mass and volume, how particles are arranged in solids, liquids and gases, and why materials are chosen for their properties.
Content standard: 5.1 · matter is made of particles too small to see
Unit 2
Matter & Particles
All matter is made of tiny particles. How particles are arranged in solids, liquids and gases, and how heating and cooling cause melting, freezing, evaporation and condensation.
Content standard: 5.1 · evidence for tiny particles in solids, liquids and gases
Unit 3
Measuring Matter
Measuring mass (grams, kilograms) and volume (milliliters, liters), comparing density, why gases compress and solids do not, and how the particle model explains it.
Content standard: 5.2 · measuring and identifying materials by their properties
Unit 4
Solutions & Mixtures
Solutions versus mechanical mixtures, solutes and solvents, what affects dissolving, and ways to separate mixtures (filtering, evaporation, magnets, chromatography).
Content standard: 5.2; 5.4 · identifying materials by their properties, and testing whether mixing makes a new substance
Unit 5
Changes of State
Melting, freezing, evaporation and condensation at home and outdoors, and how matter absorbs or releases thermal energy when it changes state.
Content standard: 5.3 · matter keeps its weight when it is heated, cooled or changes state
Unit 6
Physical or Chemical?
Telling a physical change from a chemical change, spotting the signs of a new substance, and how making and throwing away everyday products affects the environment.
Content standard: 5.4 · physical and chemical changes, and when a new substance forms
Unit 7
Energy from the Sun
Practices how plants get the materials they need for growth mostly from air and water, and how the energy in animals' food was once energy from the sun.
Content standard: 5.7; 5.8 · plants grow mostly from air and water, and the energy in food once came from the sun
Unit 8
Protecting Resources
Practices designing and explaining solutions such as conservation, recycling and proper disposal that reduce the environmental impact of using natural resources like water, soil, energy and materials.
Content standard: 5.14; 5.15 · protecting natural resources, and cleaning up pollution
Unit 9
Sun, Stars & Shadows
Your child explains why the sun looks bigger and brighter than other stars and finds patterns in shadows, day and night, moon phases and the stars seen in each season.
Content standard: 5.10; 5.11 · why the sun looks bigger and brighter than other stars, and daily and seasonal patterns in the sky
Unit 10
Earth's Systems & Water
Your child models how two of Earth's systems interact to support life and how Earth's water is split between salt water and fresh water.
Content standard: 5.12; 5.13 · how Earth's systems interact and support life, and the share of fresh and salt water on Earth
Unit 11
Matter Moves in Ecosystems
Your child models how matter and energy move between living things and the environment, through food chains and decomposers.
Content standard: 5.9 · how matter and energy move between organisms and their environment
Unit 12
Gravity Pulls Down
Your child learns that Earth's gravity pulls everything toward the center of the planet, wherever you stand.
Content standard: 5.5; 5.6 · Earth's gravity pulls objects toward its center, and changing how fast things fall
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