Physical Science and Common Core

This article is by far one of the best at identifying the who, why and how of the new standards in physical science. I appreciate the sidebars, (purple boxes), that identify the “Practices ... See More

This article is by far one of the best at identifying the who, why and how of the new standards in physical science. I appreciate the sidebars, (purple boxes), that identify the “Practices for K-12 Science Curriculum”, “Crosscutting Concepts for K-12 Science Education”, “Disciplinary Core Ideas in the Physical Sciences”, “Progression of Ideas for the Structure and Properties of Matter”, and ending with “Sample Standards in Physical Science for Kindergarten, Grades, 2, 5, Middle and High School.” The progression of the standards is clearly seen in the sample standards and helps to make sense of the expectations for student learning. It takes some time to read this article, but once you get a feel for how the standards work, it is time well spent.

Common Core for Physical Science

This article is a “Must Read” for any teacher that uses Physical Science concepts in their curriculum. The article begins by listing the “Practices for K-12 Science Curriculum”, next listing... See More

This article is a “Must Read” for any teacher that uses Physical Science concepts in their curriculum. The article begins by listing the “Practices for K-12 Science Curriculum”, next listing the “Crosscutting Concepts for K-12 Science Education”, and finally listing the four “Disciplinary Core Ideas for Physical Science”. The article then clearly explains what the four core ideas for Physical Science are and how each one is important to the student. The core ideas are described as an ongoing developmental process that occurs from elementary through high school. Each of the four core ideas is clearly explained, followed by several charts showing the progression of core concepts through the K-12 curriculum. Again, I highly recommend this article to all teachers (even elementary) that teach Physical Science concepts within their curriculum.