Overview

The Grade 1 Alberta Curriculum states that “Students learn about materials by using them to construct a variety of objects, including model buildings, toys, boats and vehicles. Students select materials to use and gain experience as they cut and shape, fold, pile materials on top of one another, join parts, and try different techniques to achieve the result that they intend. In the process, they learn to look at objects that are similar to what they are trying to construct and, with guidance, begin to recognize the component parts that make up the whole.”

Rationale

The rationale for the Grade 1 Science curriculum is stated as:

Children have a natural curiosity about their surroundings – a desire to explore and investigate, see inside things, find out how things work and find answers to their questions. Learning about science provides a framework for students to understand and interpret the world around them.

An elementary science program engages students in a process of inquiry and problem solving in which they develop both knowledge and skills. The purpose of the program is to encourage and stimulate children’s learning by nurturing their sense of wonderment, by developing skill and confidence in investigating their surroundings, and by building a foundation of experience and understanding upon which later learning can be based.

Elementary and secondary science programs help prepare students for life in a rapidly changing world – a world of expanding knowledge and technology in which new challenges and opportunities continually arise. Tomorrow’s citizens will live in a changing environment in which increasingly complex questions and issues will need to be addressed. The decisions and actions of future citizens need to be based on awareness and understanding of their world and on the ability to ask relevant questions, seek answers, define problems and find solutions.

To address the curriculum objectives and rational the students are presented with the following activities in the Student Zone:

Every building has some things that are alike. What things do they have that are the same?

Does a building need?

• Roof
• Walls
• Windows
• Doors

How many walls do buildings have?
Look at the pictures and see what materials they are made of.