Grade 5: Science

Here is a comprehensive overview of the Grade 5 Science content, aligned with the British Columbia (BC) Curriculum.

The BC curriculum for Grade 5 is organized around a single, integrated “Science” course. The content is structured into four key areas that explore different aspects of the natural world, with a strong emphasis on hands-on inquiry and the First Peoples’ perspectives.

BC Grade 5 Science: At a Glance

Overarching Big Ideas (Themes for the Year)

• Machines are devices that transfer force and energy.

• The basic structures and functions of body systems are related.

• Humans use earth materials as natural resources.

• Solutions are homogeneous mixtures.

Core Content Areas

Area 1: Physics – Simple Machines and Forces

This unit answers the question: “How can we make work easier?”

• Key Concepts: Force, work, energy transfer, mechanical advantage.

• Content Details:

  • Identify the six simple machines: lever, inclined plane, wedge, screw, pulley, and wheel and axle.

  • Analyze how these machines redirect or magnify force to make work easier.

  • Understand that machines do not reduce the total amount of work; they make it easier by changing how the force is applied.

  • Examine compound machines (like a bicycle or can opener) that are made from several simple machines.

Area 2: Biology – Multicellular Organisms and Body Systems

This unit answers the question: “How do our bodies work?”

• Key Concepts: Structure and function, basic anatomy, health.

• Content Details:

  • Describe the basic structures and functions of the digestive, respiratory, and circulatory systems.

  • Understand the concept of the musculoskeletal system as the framework that supports the body and enables movement.

  • Explain how these systems are interdependent (e.g., the circulatory system carries oxygen from the respiratory system and nutrients from the digestive system to all body cells).

Area 3: Earth Science – Earth Materials as Natural Resources

This unit answers the question: “Where do the materials we use come from?”

• Key Concepts: Natural resources, extraction, sustainability, First Peoples’ knowledge.

• Content Details:

  • Identify renewable (e.g., water, forests, wind) and non-renewable (e.g., minerals, fossil fuels) resources found in BC and Canada.

  • Investigate how earth materials are extracted (e.g., mining, forestry) and processed.

  • Analyze the environmental impacts of using these resources.

  • Explore First Peoples’ knowledge and practices regarding sustainable resource use.

Area 4: Chemistry – Solutions and Mixtures

This unit answers the question: “How do substances combine?”

• Key Concepts: Mixtures, solutions, solubility, separation.

• Content Details:

  • Distinguish between heterogeneous mixtures (e.g., salad, trail mix) and homogeneous mixtures or solutions (e.g., salt water, air).

  • Understand the components of a solution: solute (the substance that dissolves) and solvent (the substance that does the dissolving).

  • Investigate factors that affect solubility (how much solute can dissolve) and the rate of dissolving (e.g., stirring, temperature).

  • Demonstrate different methods of separating mixtures (e.g., evaporation, filtration, sifting, magnetism).

Curricular Competencies in Action (The “Doing” of Science)

Throughout all units, students will develop these skills:

• Questioning and Predicting: Demonstrate a sustained curiosity about a scientific topic or problem. Make predictions based on prior knowledge.

• Planning and Conducting: With support, plan and conduct investigations to answer their questions. Observe, measure, and control variables.

• Processing and Analyzing Data and Information: Experience and interpret the local environment. Construct and use simple tables, graphs, or other models to learn about relationships.

• Evaluating: Consider social, ethical, and environmental implications of the findings from their own and others’ investigations.

• Applying and Innovating: Contribute to care for self, others, and community through personal or collaborative approaches. Transfer and apply learning to new situations.

• Communicating: Communicate ideas, explanations, and processes in multiple ways. Express and reflect on personal, shared, or others’ experiences of place.

First Peoples Perspectives and Knowledge

Integrated throughout all content areas, students will:

• Explore how First Peoples’ concepts of interconnectedness in the environment inform our understanding of body systems, resources, and solutions.

• Learn from First Peoples’ knowledge of body systems and healing practices (e.g., the use of medicinal plants).

• Investigate First Peoples’ use of natural resources and their sustainable practices over millennia.

Sample Real-World Connections

• Physics: Analyzing the simple machines used in playground equipment or traditional Indigenous tools.

• Biology: Tracking how the heart rate changes with exercise, linking the circulatory and musculoskeletal systems.

• Earth Science: Debating the pros and cons of a local resource extraction project.

• Chemistry: Designing and testing a method to clean muddy water, linking to water treatment and environmental stewardship.

This integrated approach ensures that Grade 5 students see science not as separate subjects, but as a interconnected way of understanding and interacting with the world around them.