South Carolina
3 GRADE SCIENCE
2017-2018 Pacing Guide
rd
Unit
Major Topics/Concepts
Analyze and interpret data about the characteristics of
3.L.5A.1
environments (including salt water and freshwater,
3.L.5A.2
deserts, grasslands, forests, rainforests, and polar
lands) to describe how the environment supports a
Environments
*3.S.1A.2
variety of organisms.
*3.S.1A.4
Develop and use a food chain model to classify organisms
as producers, consumers, and decomposers and to
describe how organisms obtain energy.
Obtain and communicate information to explain how
changes in habitats (such as those that occur naturally
3.L.5B.1
or those caused by organisms) can be beneficial or
3.L.5B.2
harmful to the organisms that live there.
3.L.5B.3
Develop and use models to explain how changes in a
Habitats
habitat cause plants and animals to respond in different
*3.S.1A.2
ways (such as hibernating, migrating, responding to
*3.S.1A.7
light, death, or extinction).
*3.S.1A.8
Construct scientific arguments using evidence from fossils
of plants and animals that lived long ago to infer the
characteristics of early environments.
Environments and Habitats Unit Benchmark**
Obtain and communicate information to develop models
showing how electrical energy can be transformed into
3.P.3A.1
other forms of energy (including motion, sound, heat, or
3.P.3A.2
light).
3.P.3A.3
Develop and use models to describe the path of an electric
Electricity
current in a complete simple circuit as it accomplishes a
*3.S.1A.2
task (such as lighting a bulb or making a sound).
*3.S.1A.4
Analyze and interpret data from observations and
*3.S.1A.8
investigations to classify different materials as either an
insulator or conductor of electricity.
3.P.3B.1
Develop and use models to describe and compare the
3.P.3B.2
properties of magnets and electromagnets (including
Magnetism
polarity, attraction, repulsion, and strength).
*3.S.1A.2
Plan and conduct scientific investigations to determine the
*3.S.1A.3
factors that affect the strength of an electromagnet.
Electricity and Magnetism Unit Benchmark**
Analyze and interpret data from observations and
measurements to describe and compare different Earth
3.E.4A.1
materials (including rocks, minerals, and soil), and
Earth’s Materials
3.E.4A.2
classify each type of material based on its distinct
3.E.4A.3
physical properties.
Develop and use models to describe and classify the
pattern of distribution of land and water features on
Earth.
*3.S.1A.2
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Indicators
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Unit
Indicators
*3.S.1A.4
*3.S.1A.8
Major Topics/Concepts
Obtain and communicate information to exemplify how
humans obtain, use, and protect renewable and
nonrenewable Earth resources.
Develop and use models to describe the characteristics of
Earth’s continental landforms, and classify landforms as
volcanoes, mountains, valleys, canyons, plains, and
3.E.4B.1
islands.
3.E.4B.2
Plan and conduct scientific investigations to determine
3.E.4B.3
how natural processes (including weathering, erosion,
3.E.4B.4
and gravity) shape Earth’s surface.
Earth’s Processes
Obtain and communicate information to explain how
*3.S.1A.2
natural events (such as fires, landslides, earthquakes,
*3.S.1A.3
volcanic eruptions, or floods) and human activities (such
*3.S.1A.8
as farming, mining, or building) impact the
*3.S.1B.1
environment.
Define problems caused by a natural event or human
activity, and design devices or solutions to reduce the
impact on the environment.
Earth’s Materials and Processes Unit Benchmark**
Analyze and interpret data from observations and
3.P.2A.1
measurements to describe and compare the physical
3.P.2A.2
properties of matter (including length, mass,
Physical Properties of
temperature, and volume of liquids).
Matter
*3.S.1A.4
Construct explanations using observations and
*3.S.1A.6
measurements to describe how matter can be classified
as a solid, liquid, or gas.
Plan and conduct scientific investigations to determine
3.P.2A.3
how changes in heat (increase or decrease) change
3.P.2A.4
matter from one state to another (including melting,
3.P.2A.5
freezing, condensing, boiling, and evaporating).
Obtain and communicate information to compare how
Heat
*3.S.1A.3
different processes (including burning, friction, and
*3.S.1A.8
electricity) serve as sources of heat energy.
*3.S.1B.1
Define problems related to heat transfer and design
devices or solutions that facilitate (conductor) or inhibit
(insulator) the transfer of heat.
Properties and Changes in Matter Unit Benchmark**
OR
Districts may opt for a Final Comprehensive Benchmark***
that covers content in all four units.
*Please note that the indicators of Standard 3.S.1 address science and engineering practices that are
not intended for teaching, learning, or assessment in isolation. As stated by the SC Academic Standards
Support document, this standard describes “how students should learn and demonstrate knowledge of
the content outlined in other standards.” For this reason, the pacing guide identifies key indicators that
should be incorporated into instruction for each unit. The list provided for each unit, however, is not
exhaustive. Any and all of the science and engineering practices outlined by Standard 3.S.1 could be
incorporated into instructional methods or assessment items in each unit of study.
**There are four non-cumulative unit benchmarks which can be given in any sequence.
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***The final comprehensive benchmark tests all indicators and is an optional assessment
that replaces the last unit assessment.
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