Virginia SOL PS.1.f.i

ScienceGrades 7–8Physical Science

The Standard

read scientific texts, including those adapted for classroom use, to determine the central idea and/or obtain scientific and/or technical information

Virginia Standards of Learning for Science · The student will demonstrate an understanding of scientific and engineering practices by

Teacher's field guide

What Students Need to Do: Students identify the main point of a science text and separate it from supporting details. They locate needed facts, definitions, steps, or data and explain them in their own words.
What Mastery Looks Like: A student states the central idea in one clear sentence and supports it with relevant evidence from the text. The student accurately finds technical information in paragraphs, diagrams, captions, or tables.
Common Misconceptions: Students may name the topic instead of stating the central idea. They may copy a sentence without explaining it, choose interesting but unrelated facts, or ignore information in diagrams and captions.
How to Assess It: Give students a 200-word science passage with one diagram. Ask them to write the central idea, cite two supporting details, and record one fact from the diagram.

Lesson moves

Give pairs a digital thermometer and its instruction card; students follow three steps, then highlight the wording that guided each action.
Show three possible central ideas for a short article, then have students defend the best choice with two details.
Give teams fact cards from one passage to sort into central idea, supporting detail, or unrelated detail.
Have students read a local water quality report and write a three-sentence summary for families in the community.

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A ready-to-print activity worksheet aligned to PS.1.f.i, with an answer key for the teacher on its own page. No account needed.

PDF, US Letter, prints cleanly in black and white.

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