Field Trips

Four for Fourth: Comprehensive 4th Grade Science (Every Kid Outdoors)

Grade Level:
Upper Elementary: Third Grade through Fifth Grade
Subject:
Science
State Standards:
Colorado Academic Standards (2020 CAS) in Sciences (Physical, Life, and Earth/Space); Social and Emotional Wellness; Oral Expression and Listening; Geography; and Visual Arts. CAS are aligned with Next Generation Science Standards (NGSS) for 2020.

Fourth grade students are eligible for the free Every Kid Outdoors public lands pass. This field trip offers one way for students to obtain these free passes to access public lands, including national parks like Colorado National Monument.

Topics in this Program

  • High Desert Adaptations
  • Weathering, Erosion, and Deposition
  • Structure & Function
  • Force, Energy, and Motion

For a multiple-classroom field trip:

Students will rotate in small groups between four 35-minute stations, centered at Devils Kitchen Picnic Area (Grand Junction side). There will be a 25-minute break for lunch at 11:45am, followed by a recess and clean-up before the next activities. Stations for this program include:

  1. Animals: Drawing, coloring, and labeling a local animal to identify how its adaptations support its survival, growth, behavior, and reproduction in the high desert environment.
  2. Geology: Playing a game about how water, ice, wind, living organisms, and gravity change the land through weathering, erosion, and deposition. 
  3. Plants: Investigating and sorting native plant seeds based on how their structures affect their dispersal methods (function), and then imagining and designing a possible seed with ideal structures for a specific dispersal method.
  4. Water: Identifying and discussing evidence of the effect of water on the landscape during a hike, through the lens of force, energy, and motion. Hiking to Serpents Trail & back (about 0.4 miles).

For a single-classroom field trip:

Students will get the same program but experienced along a hiking trail rather than at identified stations. The trail will either be Canyon Rim Trail near Saddlehorn or No Thoroughfare Canyon Trail near Devils Kitchen.

Essential Question

How do living and non-living things affect each other in Colorado National Monument ecosystems?

Duration

3.5 hours (10am to 1:30pm)

Tags: adaptations weathering erosion deposition structure and function human impact interdependence ecosystems colorado plateau energy school programs every kid outdoors open outdoors for kids field trip activity next generation science standards ngss

Last updated: December 4, 2024