4-ESS2-1 lessons
Make observations and/or measurements to provide evidence of the effects of weathering or the rate of erosion by water, ice, wind, or vegetation.
The Next Generation Science Standards code 4-ESS2-1 asks students to: “Make observations and/or measurements to provide evidence of the effects of weathering or the rate of erosion by water, ice, wind, or vegetation.” These Fieldbook lessons teach it hands-on, with everyday materials, a printable teacher guide and a student sheet.
Rocks and Erosion: How Land Changes Shape Grade 4
- Can water carve a canyon? 50–60 min
Students build a stream table in a foil pan of damp sand, let a steady trickle of 'rain' run down a gentle slope and a steep one, and measure the channel each time. They use the measurements to explain how running water carves valleys and canyons and drops sand where it slows down.
- What protects a hillside from washing away? 55–60 min
Teams build model hillsides of soil in foil pans, some bare, some covered with leaves or mulch and some held together with string 'roots', then make it rain on each one the same way. They measure the runoff and the mud it carries, and recommend the best way to protect a real slope.
- How do rocks become sand? 50–60 min, plus a 5 min check the next day
Students shake sugar cubes in a jar for set times and measure how their sharp corners wear into rounded grains, then watch frozen water push a plug out of a sealed straw. They explain how tumbling and ice break rock into smaller and smaller pieces, all the way down to sand.
Living with Water: Salt, Rice and the Mekong Grades 4–5
- How do salt farmers turn the sea into salt? 60 min, plus a 10-minute check the next day
Science and English together, for English learners at CEFR A2–B1. Teams paint salt water on dark paper to find the salt hiding in sea water, then set out wide and narrow dishes in sun and shade to see what makes water leave fastest. They use the evidence to advise a salt farm in Khánh Hòa.
- How do rice terraces stop a mountain washing away? 60 min, or two 35-minute periods
Science and English together, for English learners at CEFR A2–B1. Teams make model hillsides from soil in trays: a bare slope, a terraced slope and a slope with plant cover. They pour the same storm of rain on each, measure the muddy water that runs off, and use the evidence to advise a mountain village in northern Vietnam.
- How can a house stay dry when the Mekong floods? 60 min, or two 35-minute periods
Science and English together, for English learners at CEFR A2–B1. Teams design and build a model house on stilts or on a floating base, then test it as the teacher raises the water in a tub and makes waves. They use their results to advise a village in the Mekong Delta.
NGSS is used as written in Arkansas, California, Connecticut, Delaware, District of Columbia, Hawaii, Illinois, Iowa, Kansas, Kentucky, Maine, Maryland, Michigan, Nevada, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New Mexico, Oregon, Rhode Island, Vermont, Washington, so the code 4-ESS2-1 matches there. Other states word and number their own versions: see curriculum alignment for your state's codes.
More NGSS standards for Grade 4
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