National Science Education
Content Standards

Kindergarten through Fourth Grade

• Develop abilities necessary to do scientific inquiry.
• Develop an understanding of the characteristics of organisms.
• Develop an understanding of organisms and environments.

Fifth through Eighth Grade

• Develop an understanding of regulation and behavior in animals.
• Develop an understanding of diversity and adaptations of organisms.
• Develop an understanding of structure and function in living systems.

Ninth through Twelfth

• Develop an understanding of the interdependence of organisms.
• Develop an understanding of natural and human induced hazards.
• Develop an understanding of environmental quality.

Alabama Science Course of Study
Content Standards 

Kindergarten through Second Grade

• Compare size, shape, structure and basic needs of living things. (K)
• Classify objects using the five senses. (K)
• Describe survival traits of living things, including color, shape, size, texture and covering. (1)
• Identify characteristics of animals, including behavior, size and body covering. (2)

Third through Fifth Grade

• Identify how organisms are classified in the Animalia and Plantae kingdoms. (3)
• Describe ways to sustain natural resources, including recycling, reusing, conserving and protecting the environment. (3)
• Describe the interdependence of plants and animals. (4)
• Classify animals as vertebrates or invertebrates and as endotherms or ectotherms. (4)
• Describe the relationship of populations within a habitat to various communities and ecosystems. (5)

Sixth through Eighth Grade

• Describe Earth's biomes. (6)
• Describe organisms in the six kingdom classification system by their characteristics. (7)
• Describe evidence of species variation due to climate, changing landforms, interspecies interaction and genetic mutation. (7)
• Describe biotic and abiotic factors in the environment. (7)

Ninth through Twelfth Grade

• Differentiate between the previous five kingdom and current six kingdom classification systems. (Biology)
• Describe protective adaptations of animals, including mimicry, camouflage, beak type, migration and hibernation. (Biology)
• Trace the flow of energy as it decreases through the trophic levels from producers to the quaternary level in food chains, food webs and energy pyramids. (Biology)
• Identify biomes based on environmental factors and native organisms. (Biology)
• Differentiate among freshwater, brackish water and saltwater ecosystems. (Aquascience, Marine Science)
• Describe adaptations that allow organisms to exist in specific aquatic environments. (Aquascience)
• Identify patterns and interrelationships among producers, consumers, scavengers and decomposers in a marine ecosystem. (Marine Science)
• Describe the anatomy and physiology of representative aquatic organisms. (Marine Science)
• Define basic anatomical terminology associated with the study of animals. (Zoology)

  Tennessee Science Curriculum Standards       —Accomplishments

   Kindergarten:

• K.2.2 Realize that organisms use their senses to interact with their environment.
• K.5.2 Recognize that living things have features that help them to survive in different environments. Know that different organisms tend to be found in different environments.

   First Grade:

• 1.2.2 Realize that organisms use their senses to interact with their environment.
• 1.2.3 Examine interrelationships among plants, animals and their environment.
• 1.2.4 Recognize that the environment and the organisms that live in it can be affected by pollution.
• 1.3.1 Recognize the basic requirements and basic needs of all living things.
• 1.5.1 Recognize the differences among plants and animals of the same kind.
• 1.5.2 Recognize that living things have features that help them to survive in different environments.

   Second Grade:

• 2.2.2 Realize that organisms use their senses to interact with the environment.
• 2.2.3 Examine interrelationships among plants, animals and their environment.
• 2.2.4. Recognize that the environment and the organisms that live in it can be affected by pollution.
• 2.3.1 Recognize the basic requirements of all living things.
• 2.4.3 Recognize that the appearance of plants and animals changes as they mature.
• 2.5.1 Recognize the differences among plants and animals of the same kind.
• 2.5.2 Recognize that living things have features that help them to survive in different environments.

  Tennessee Science Curriculum Standards
     —State Performance Indicators

   Third Grade—The student is able to:

• 3.1.spi.2. Identify the part that belongs to a specific plant or animal.
• 3.1.spi.3. Identify the function of specific plant and animal parts.
• 3.2.spi.1. Distinguish between living and non living things in an illustration.
• 3.2.spi.2. Select the plants and animals found in a specific environment.
• 3.2.spi.3. Identify the sense used to collect specific information.
• 3.2.spi.4. Identify the environment that has been impacted by pollutants.
• 3.3.spi.1. Identify the basic needs of plants and animals.
• 3.3.spi.2. Recognize that animals obtain their food by eating plants or other animals.
• 3.3.spi.3. Recognize that plants use sunlight, water and air for photosynthesis.
• 3.4.spi.2. Select the illustration that shows an adult organism.
• 3.4.spi.3. Select the illustration that shows how an organism changes as it matures.
• 3.5.spi.l. Identify groups of similar organisms (i.e., plants and animals).
• 3.5.spi.2. Identify an organism that belongs in a specific environment.
• 3.5.spi.3. Identify the characteristics that enable a specific plant and/or animal to survive in its environment.
• 3.10.spi.3. Identify methods for conserving natural resources.