Grade 2

Science Competency Descriptors with Examples

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Questioning and Predicting	Emerging (could look like anything up until these descriptors)	Developing	Proficient	Extending (could look like anything starting from to beyond descriptors)
Demonstrate curiosity and a sense of wonder about the world.	The student is interested in knowing more but pursues the interests of others.	The student is curious and actively pursues things that interest them.	The student is curious and actively pursues things that interest them. They make connections to prior knowledge or new experiences.	The student is curious and actively pursues things that interest them. They make connections across contexts and new experiences.
Example Context: In the school garden, students are exploring and looking for animals.
	“I don’t see too many animals here. I saw a squirrel in that tree one time at recess, why was it in the tree? I also saw some birds in the sky.” “Why was the squirrel on the tree?”	“I was looking for animals on the plants when I noticed something wiggling. So I started digging and I found a worm. It was so wiggly and wet and slimy and I wondered why.”	“I was looking for animals on the plants when I noticed something wiggling. So I started digging and I found a worm. It was so wiggly and slimy, I wondered why.”	“I found some worms in the wet soil and I wonder if the worms are making compost for our garden. If the worms make enough compost, will the plants grow extra tall?”

Questioning and Predicting	Emerging (could look like anything up until these descriptors)	Developing	Proficient	Extending (could look like anything starting from to beyond descriptors)
Ask questions about familiar objects and events	The student asks unrelated questions.	The student asks questions that draw from prior knowledge with the goal to understand their environment and are making connections to similar experiences.	The student asks questions that draw from prior knowledge and lived experiences, with the purpose of problem solving and/or inquiry.	The student asks questions that draw from prior knowledge, lived experiences, and asks questions that demonstrate they can transfer their understanding to novel situations.
Example Context: On a cold day:
	“Wow, I can see my breath! I wonder why my scarf is so itchy?” “Why was the squirrel on the tree?”	“I was looking for animals on the plants when I noticed something wiggling. So I started digging and I found a worm. It was so wiggly and wet and slimy and I wondered why.”	“I love days like today because I can see my breath. It reminds me of my cup of hot chocolate that is super smoky. I wonder if this is the same thing that happens in my mouth?”	“I love days like today because I can see my breath. I wonder if the same thing would happen if I had snow in my mouth and my mouth was super cold?”

Questioning and Predicting	Emerging (could look like anything up until these descriptors)	Developing	Proficient	Extending (could look like anything starting from to beyond descriptors)
Make simple predictions about familiar objects and events	The student is making a guess of what might happen by reproducing exactly what was modeled without connecting their prediction to prior knowledge.	The student is making a guess of what might happen based on the context and their prior knowledge. They are noticing connections.	The student is making a guess of what might happen in a new situation based on their prior knowledge. They are inferring how changing variables will affect the outcome.	The student is making a guess of what might happen if they change the context and variables by using their prior knowledge to infer what will happen in novel situations.
Example Context: In the forest, students are using natural materials to explore types of forces
	“When I drop the pinecone and leaf, like the teacher did, I think the pinecone will drop faster again.” “Why was the squirrel on the tree?”	“I think that when I drop a pinecone it will fall faster than a leaf, because the pinecone is heavier and the leaf is wider and will fall like a parachute.”	“I noticed that the pinecone fell faster than the leaf. I think that if I attach a leaf to the pinecone, I can slow it down because the leaf will be like a parachute.”	“I noticed that the pinecone fell faster than the leaf. If I put them in a stream, I think that it will be the opposite and the leaf will go faster because it is lighter.”

Planning and Conducting	Emerging (could look like anything up until these descriptors)	Developing	Proficient	Extending (could look like anything starting from to beyond descriptors)
Make and record observations and simple measurements using informal or non-standard methods	The student is noticing what is happening through visual observations and recording their observations without making connections.	The student is observing what is happening and records their observation by making connections that are related to familiar experiences and unrelated to the content.	The student is observing what is happening by noticing details and records their observation by transferring connections from what they have learned to lived experiences.	The student is observing what is happening while testing how different variables affect their observations and apply these connections to novel situations. They also quantify their recordings.
Example Context: During a classroom experiment to learn about physical ways of changing materials, the class created a block of ice from a set amount of liquid and are now observing the ice melt:
	Making Observations: “The cup had only ice but now there’s ice and water.” Recording Observations: “I drew two cups with the same amount of water. The water went back into the cup and the cup is full again. There is no more ice left in the cup.”	Making Observations: “I notice that there’s now water in the cup. The ice is melting.” Recording Observations: “I drew two cups and the second cup has a little bit less water. We got almost all the water back, but some of it is missing. I think that somebody bumped into it and dropped some of the water.”	Making Observations: “I notice the ice is changing. It’s melting because it’s getting wetter and smaller.” Recording Observations: “I drew two cups and the second cup has less water in it than when we put in! Where did the water go? I think the water went into the air just like in the water cycle.”	Making Observations: “I notice the ice is changing and melting. When I put the ice in my hand it melts faster because my hands are warm.” Recording Observations: “I drew two cups and the second cup has less water, so I coloured that empty space with a highlighter to show that this much water went into the air.” >

Processing and Analyzing Data and Information	Emerging (could look like anything up until these descriptors)	Developing	Proficient	Extending (could look like anything starting from to beyond descriptors)
Experience and interpret the local environment	The student uses a combination of senses to take notice, explore and observe features and processes in the local outdoor environment. Through play and exploration, the student is only encountering the experiences already identified in the lesson without applying their understanding across contexts.	The student uses a combination of senses to take notice, explore and observe features and processes in the local outdoor environment. Through play and exploration, the student only encounters experiences that resemble those modeled in the lesson.	The student uses a combination of senses to take notice, explore and observe features and processes in the local outdoor environment. Through play and exploration, the student encounters new experiences in addition to those already identified in the lesson.	The student notices, explores and observes features and processes in the local outdoor environment. Through play and exploration, the student encounters new experiences and can connect these experiences across contexts.
Example Context: During a forest walk:
	“I saw an empty eggshell in the forest. It looked just like the chick egg that hatched in our class. Why is there an eggshell in the forest? I wonder how it got here?”	“I saw an empty eggshell and I thought a bird hatched. It looked just like the chick egg that hatched in our class. Are there chickens in this forest?”	“I saw an empty eggshell and I thought a bird hatched. It looked just like the chick egg that hatched in our class. I wonder if there’s a bird’s nest nearby, maybe some baby birds just hatched.”	“I saw an empty eggshell and I thought a bird hatched. It looked just like the chick egg that hatched in our class.Then I heard a crow and a pigeon fighting, and I wondered if the pigeon was protecting its baby from the crow, but I think the crow won and ate the baby.”

	Emerging (could look like anything up until these descriptors)	Developing	Proficient	Extending (could look like anything starting from to beyond descriptors)
Recognize First Peoples stories (including oral and written narratives), songs, and art, as ways to share knowledge	The student draws information from First Peoples art forms and makes connections to familiar contexts.	The student draws scientific information from First Peoples art forms and makes connections to prior knowledge.	The student draws scientific information from First Peoples art forms and makes connections to related scientific concepts.	The student draws scientific information from First Peoples art forms and makes connections to scientific concepts and across contexts.
Example Context: After a read aloud of the story Salmon Boy, the teacher asks the students what they learned about salmon from this story.
	“The boy wants too much salmon and keeps wasting his dinner. They will have to keep getting more salmon and it might run out.”	“The boy wasted his salmon and threw it on the ground and he went to get more. But if he keeps doing that, there won’t be any salmon left in the river. Then what will the bears eat?”	“If he keeps taking the salmon, there won’t be as much salmon going upstream to lay eggs. Then, we won’t have enough salmon for the animals and for the people.”	“If he keeps taking too much salmon, there won’t be as much salmon left in the river. Then there won’t be enough food for the eagles, the bears, and the animals in the ocean. And then, there won’t be enough salmon bones to give nutrients back into the soil.”

	Emerging (could look like anything up until these descriptors)	Developing	Proficient	Extending (could look like anything starting from to beyond descriptors)
Compare observations with predictions through discussion	The student discusses their observations and/or predictions separately, without comparing the two.	The student compares and evaluates their predictions with their observations by only explaining what happened.	The student compares their predictions with their observations and explains how the prediction relates to the observation.	The student compares their predictions with their observations and they provide an explanation of how the prediction relates to the observation across various contexts.
Example Context: The students dropped an object from a ramp and predicted the way different materials will influence the distance the object travels:
	“I thought the marble would fall down the ramp and end up far away. When I tried it, I saw that the marble went down really fast.”	“I thought the marble would go farther on the floor than on the carpet and I was right. My friend’s marble also went farther on the floor.”	“I thought the marble would go farthest on the floor and that’s what happened. I thought it would because the floor is really smooth and this ramp was really steep.”	“I thought the marble would go farthest on the floor and that’s what happened. Our group did the same thing again side-by-side but my partner’s marble went farther. I think this is because my partner threw it down the ramp and I placed it on the ramp.”

Evaluating	Emerging (could look like anything up until these descriptors)	Developing	Proficient	Extending (could look like anything starting from to beyond descriptors)
Consider some environmental consequences of their actions	The student is thinking about the consequences of their actions only in how it affects them personally.	The student thinks about the consequences of their actions in relation to their familiar environment.	The student carefully thinks about their impact and analyzes the environmental outcomes of their actions.	The student carefully thinks about their impact and is thinking about how many small actions can collectively have a larger environmental impact.
Example Context: During a class discussion about how freshwater is a limited resource, students show ways they can change their actions to improve water conservation:
	“I can drink less water. If I see the water fountain is dirty, I will tell the teacher”	“When I am washing my hands and putting on soap, I can turn the tap off.”	“Every day when I go home, I empty the water I didn’t drink at school in the sink. Instead, I could empty it in a plant so the plants can drink it instead.”	“As a class, we could have a bowl of water that everyone gets their hands wet in before they put soap on their hands. When rinsing off, we will use so much less water from the tap.”

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Competency Descriptors