S.5.12.C | TEKS Guide

SCIENCE.5.12.C — Vertical Alignment

Vertical alignment shows student expectations in the same subject area at different grade levels that are related to or build upon one another.

S.5.12.C

describe a healthy ecosystem and how human activities can be beneficial or harmful to an ecosystem.

BIO.13.D

explain how environmental change, including change due to human activity, affects biodiversity and analyze how changes in biodiversity impact ecosystem stability.

AQUA.14.A

analyze the cumulative impact of human population growth on an aquatic ecosystem;

AQUA.14.B

predict effects of chemical, organic, physical, and thermal changes due to humans on the living and nonliving components of an aquatic ecosystem;

AQUA.14.C

investigate the role of humans in unbalanced systems involving phenomena such as invasive species, fish farming, cultural eutrophication, or red tides;

AQUA.14.D

analyze and discuss how human activities such as fishing, transportation, dams, and recreation influence aquatic environments;

AQUA.14.F

analyze the purpose and effectiveness of human efforts to restore aquatic ecosystems affected by human activities.

ENVIR.11.A

evaluate the negative effects of human activities on the environment, including overhunting, overfishing, ecotourism, all-terrain vehicles, and personal watercraft;

ENVIR.11.C

research the advantages and disadvantages of "going green" such as organic gardening and farming, natural methods of pest control, hydroponics, xeriscaping, energy-efficient homes and appliances, and hybrid cars.

ENVIR.12.E

argue from evidence whether or not a healthy economy and a healthy environment are mutually exclusive.

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Recurring themes and concepts — Connections to the content

Recurring themes and concepts provide a connective structure for scientific ideas across disciplines. The connection(s) below show some ways that teachers can help students understand how the content they are learning fits into the broader understanding of science. These connections do not represent all possible connections that might be made but highlight some that are appropriate for this grade level.

Cause-and-effect relationships

Cause-and-effect relationships are relationships between two or more variables or phenomena whereby one variable or event leads to a predictable response. Events have causes—sometimes simple, sometimes multi-faceted.

Human activities such as building land bridges over a highway (cause) can positively affect the environment by allowing animals to migrate across the road to reach necessary resources. Human activities such as cutting down a forest to build houses (cause) can hurt the environment by removing resources organisms need to survive.

Flow of energy and cycling of matter through systems

Matter and energy are conserved, changing forms but maintaining quantities. Energy flows within a system or between systems through transfers and transformations. Matter is cycled within systems through physical and chemical processes.

Human activities affect an ecosystem by altering the flow of energy or cycling of matter. This may be beneficial or harmful to the ecosystem.

Stability and change

Stability describes a system that does not change at the observed scale. In a stable system, a small disturbance will die out and the system will return to a stable state. Change in the system can come from modifying a factor or condition.

Healthy environments are inherently stable but can be disrupted by human activity with beneficial or harmful results.

Cross-curricular Connections

The cross-curricular connections are designed to help educators make content connections between the science TEKS and math, English language arts and reading, social studies, and technology applications. The standards below illustrate alignment between grade level content areas which may help educators develop cross-curricular lessons. These connections do not represent all possible connections that might be made.

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Math

Science.5.12.C

SCIENCE.5.12.C — Vertical Alignment

Recurring themes and concepts — Connections to the content

Cross-curricular Connections