evaluate a design or object using criteria.

Scientific and engineering practices. The student develops evidence-based explanations and communicates findings, conclusions, and proposed solutions. The student is expected to:

develop explanations and propose solutions supported by data and models;

communicate explanations and solutions individually and collaboratively in a variety of settings and formats; and

listen actively to others' explanations to identify relevant evidence and engage respectfully in scientific discussion.

Scientific and engineering practices. The student knows the contributions of scientists and recognizes the importance of scientific research and innovation for society. The student is expected to:

explain how scientific discoveries and innovative solutions to problems impact science and society; and

research and explore resources such as museums, libraries, professional organizations, private companies, online platforms, and mentors employed in a science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) field to investigate STEM careers.

Recurring themes and concepts. The student understands that recurring themes and concepts provide a framework for making connections across disciplines. The student is expected to:

identify and use patterns to explain scientific phenomena or to design solutions;

identify and investigate cause-and-effect relationships to explain scientific phenomena or analyze problems;

use scale, proportion, and quantity to describe, compare, or model different systems;

examine and model the parts of a system and their interdependence in the function of the system;

investigate how energy flows and matter cycles through systems and how matter is conserved;

explain the relationship between the structure and function of objects, organisms, and systems; and

explain how factors or conditions impact stability and change in objects, organisms, and systems.

Matter and energy. The student knows that matter has measurable physical properties that determine how matter is identified, classified, changed, and used. The student is expected to:

classify and describe matter using observable physical properties, including temperature, mass, magnetism, relative density (the ability to sink or float in water), and physical state (solid, liquid, gas);

investigate and compare a variety of mixtures, including solutions that are composed of liquids in liquids and solids in liquids; and

demonstrate that matter is conserved when mixtures such as soil and water or oil and water are formed.

The student is expected to plan and conduct descriptive investigations to explore the patterns of forces such as gravity, friction, or magnetism in contact or at a distance on an object.

investigate and identify the transfer of energy by objects in motion, waves in water, and sound;

identify conductors and insulators of thermal and electrical energy; and

demonstrate and describe how electrical energy travels in a closed path that can produce light and thermal energy.

collect and analyze data to identify sequences and predict patterns of change in seasons such as change in temperature and length of daylight; and

collect and analyze data to identify sequences and predict patterns of change in the observable appearance of the Moon from Earth.

describe and illustrate the continuous movement of water above and on the surface of Earth through the water cycle and explain the role of the Sun as a major source of energy in this process;

model and describe slow changes to Earth's surface caused by weathering, erosion, and deposition from water, wind, and ice; and

differentiate between weather and climate.

identify and explain advantages and disadvantages of using Earth's renewable and nonrenewable natural resources such as wind, water, sunlight, plants, animals, coal, oil, and natural gas;

explain the critical role of energy resources to modern life and how conservation, disposal, and recycling of natural resources impact the environment; and

determine the physical properties of rocks that allow Earth's natural resources to be stored there.

investigate and explain how most producers can make their own food using sunlight, water, and carbon dioxide through the cycling of matter;

describe the cycling of matter and flow of energy through food webs, including the roles of the Sun, producers, consumers, and decomposers; and

identify and describe past environments based on fossil evidence, including common Texas fossils.

explore and explain how structures and functions of plants such as waxy leaves and deep roots enable them to survive in their environment; and

differentiate between inherited and acquired physical traits of organisms.

Scientific and engineering practices. The student asks questions, identifies problems, and plans and safely conducts classroom, laboratory, and field investigations to answer questions, explain phenomena, or design solutions using appropriate tools and models. The student is expected to: