Key Idea 2: Many of the phenomena that we observe on Earth involve interactions among components of air, water, and land.

PERFORMANCE INDICATOR 2.1: Use the concepts of density and heat energy to explain observations of weather patterns, seasonal changes, and the movements of Earth's plates.

MAJOR UNDERSTANDING 2.1p: Landforms are the result of the interaction of tectonic forces and the processes of weathering, erosion, and deposition.

MAJOR UNDERSTANDING 2.1s: Weathering is the physical and chemical breakdown of rocks at or near Earth’s surface. Soils are the result of weathering and biological activity over long periods of time.

MAJOR UNDERSTANDING 2.1t: Natural agents of erosion, generally driven by gravity, remove, transport, and deposit weathered rock particles. Each agent of erosion produces distinctive changes in the material that it transports and creates characteristic surface features and landscapes. In certain erosional situations, loss of property, personal injury, and loss of life can be reduced by effective emergency preparedness.

MAJOR UNDERSTANDING 2.1u: The natural agents of erosion include:

• Streams (running water): Gradient, discharge, and channel shape influence a stream’s velocity and the erosion and deposition of sediments. Sediments transported by streams tend to become rounded as a result of abrasion. Stream features include V-shaped valleys, deltas, flood plains, and meanders. A watershed is the area drained by a stream and its tributaries.

MAJOR UNDERSTANDING 2.1v: Patterns of deposition result from a loss of energy within the transporting system and are influenced by the size, shape, and density of the transported particles. Sediment deposits may be sorted or unsorted.

MAJOR UNDERSTANDING 2.1w: Sediments of inorganic and organic origin often accumulate in depositional environments. Sedimentary rocks form when sediments are compacted and/or cemented after burial or as the result of chemical precipitation from seawater.

KEY IDEA 1: The central purpose of scientific inquiry is to develop explanations of natural phenomena in a continuing and creative process

PERFORMANCE INDICATOR 1.2: Hone ideas through reasoning, library research, and discussion with others, including experts

PERFORMANCE INDICATOR 1.3: Work towards reconciling competing explanations; clarify points of agreement and disagreement

KEY IDEA 3: The observations made while testing proposed explanations, when analyzed using conventional and invented methods, provide new insights into natural phenomena.

PERFORMANCE INDICATOR 3.1: Use various methods of representing and organizing observations (e.g. diagrams, tables, charts, graphs, equations matrices) and insightfully interpret the organized data

PERFORMANCE INDICATOR 3.3: Assess correspondence between the predicted result contained in the hypothesis and actual result, and reach a conclusion as to whether the explanation on which the prediction was based is supported

Relationship of Transported Particle Size to Water Velocity (p.6)

Reading: Key Ideas and Details

Follow precisely a complex multistep procedure when carrying out experiments, taking measurements, or performing technical tasks attending to special cases or exceptions defined in the text. 

Reading: Craft and Structure

Determine the meaning of symbols, key terms, and other domain-specific words and phrases as they are used in a specific scientific or technical context relevant to grades 9–10 texts and topics.

Reading: Craft and Structure

Analyze the structure of the relationships among concepts in a text, including relationships among key terms (e.g., force, friction, reaction force, energy). 

Reading: Craft and Structure

Analyze the author’s purpose in providing an explanation, describing a procedure, or discussing an experiment in a text, defining the question the author seeks to address.

Reading: Integration of Knowledge and Ideas

Translate quantitative or technical information expressed in words in a text into visual form (e.g., a table or chart) and translate information expressed visually or mathematically (e.g., in an equation) into words.

Reading: Integration of Knowledge and Ideas

Compare and contrast findings presented in a text to those from other sources (including their own experiments), noting when the findings support or contradict previous explanations or accounts.

Reading: Range of Reading and Level of Text Complexity

By the end of grade 10, read and comprehend science/technical texts in the grades 9–10 text complexity band independently and proficiently

Writing: Range of Writing

Write routinely over extended time frames (time for reflection and revision) and shorter time frames (a single sitting or a day or two) for a range of discipline-specific tasks, purposes, and audiences.