Ontario · Grade 4
Science and Technology, Grade 4
Ontario’s Grade 4 science course, from STEM Skills and Connections to Rocks and Minerals.
- Units
- 5
- Lessons
- 12
- Skills
- 39
- Provincial exam
- None
- Official curriculum
- Ontario Ministry of Education
Unit by unit
Every skill in the course, with its official code.
Unit 1 · 4 skills
STEM Skills and Connections
Coding: Making Different Kinds of Output
Coding for different types of output
I can write code that produces different kinds of output.
Official code: A2.1
Coding, New Technology, and Skilled Trades
How coding and new technology affect life and skilled trades
I can describe how coding and new technology affect everyday life and skilled trades.
Official code: A2.2
Science and Technology in Jobs and Trades
Science and technology in occupations and skilled trades
I can describe how jobs and skilled trades use science and technology.
Official code: A3.1
People Who Help Science Grow
Learning about contributions from many communities
I can analyse how people from many communities help science and technology.
Official code: A3.3
The official wording · 4 outcomes
- A2.1
- write and execute code in investigations and when modelling concepts, with a focus on producing different types of output for a variety of purposes
- A2.2
- identify and describe impacts of coding and of emerging technologies on everyday life, including skilled trades
- A3.1
- describe practical applications of science and technology concepts in various occupations, including skilled trades, and how these applications address real-world problems
- A3.3
- analyse contributions to science and technology from various communities
Key ideas
Output is what code produces — a sound, a picture, text on screen, or a movement.
Coding and new technology change how people live and work.
Many occupations, including skilled trades, use science and technology in their work.
Different purposes call for different kinds of output.
Skilled trades — like electricians, plumbers, and builders — use new technology and coding too.
Watch out for
- Thinking code can only produce one kind of output.
- Thinking coding only affects office or computer jobs.
- Thinking only scientists use science.
Every skill’s key ideas, worked examples and checks are in MapleMind.Practise this unit
Unit 2 · 10 skills
Habitats and Communities
Life Systems
Humans, Habitats, and Species
How people affect habitats and communities
I can assess how human activities affect habitats and communities.
Official code: B1.1
When a species disappears
I can analyse how losing a species affects its habitat and community.
Official code: B1.2
Protecting species from disappearing
I can describe actions to prevent species from disappearing.
Official code: B1.2
Habitats, Food Webs, and Adaptations
What a habitat provides
I can describe how a habitat provides the necessities of life.
Official code: B2.1
Communities of interacting species
I can describe a community of interacting species and what affects its survival.
Official code: B2.2
Food chains: producers, consumers, decomposers
I can describe a food chain and classify producers, consumers, and decomposers.
Official code: B2.3
Food webs
I can explain a food web as connected food chains.
Official code: B2.4
Carnivores, herbivores, and omnivores
I can classify animals by their diet.
Official code: B2.5
Structural adaptations for survival
I can describe structural adaptations that help organisms survive.
Official code: B2.6
Why habitats have limits
I can explain why habitats have limits.
Official code: B2.7
The official wording · 10 outcomes
- B1.1
- assess positive and negative impacts of human activities on habitats and communities, while taking different perspectives into account
- B1.2
- analyse the impact of the depletion or extinction of a species on its habitat and community
- B1.2
- describe possible actions to prevent such depletions or extinctions
- B2.1
- describe habitats as areas that provide organisms, including plants and animals, with the necessities of life, and identify ways in which a local habitat provides these necessities
- B2.2
- describe a community as a group of interacting species sharing a common habitat, and identify factors that affect the ability of a community of plants and animals to survive in a local habitat
- B2.3
- describe the relationship of organisms in a food chain, and classify organisms as producers, consumers, or decomposers
- B2.4
- demonstrate an understanding of a food web as the interconnection of multiple food chains in a natural community
- B2.5
- describe how animals are categorized according to their diet, and categorize various animals as carnivores, herbivores, or omnivores
- B2.6
- describe structural adaptations of a variety of plants and animals and how these adaptations allow the organisms to survive in specific habitats
- B2.7
- explain why all habitats have limits to the number of plants and animals they can support
Key ideas
Human activities can affect habitats and communities in positive and negative ways.
A habitat is the area where an organism lives and gets the necessities of life.
Different people have different perspectives on these impacts.
A habitat provides food, water, shelter, and space.
If a species is depleted (reduced) or goes extinct, it affects the whole community.
Watch out for
- Thinking human impacts are only ever negative or only positive.
- Thinking a habitat is just a place, not a source of needs.
- Considering only one perspective.
Every skill’s key ideas, worked examples and checks are in MapleMind.Practise this unit
Unit 3 · 10 skills
Light and Sound
Matter and Energy
Light, Sound, and Technology
Devices that use light or sound
I can assess how devices using light or sound affect society.
Official code: C1.1
Light and sound energy in the environment
I can assess how light and sound energy from technologies affect the environment.
Official code: C1.2
Exploring Light and Sound
Natural and artificial light sources
I can identify natural and artificial light sources.
Official code: C2.1
Emitting light vs. reflecting light
I can tell the difference between things that emit light and things that reflect it.
Official code: C2.2
Properties of light
I can describe the properties of light.
Official code: C2.3
Properties of sound
I can describe the properties of sound.
Official code: C2.4
How vibrations make sound
I can explain how vibrations make sound.
Official code: C2.5
How objects interact with light and sound
I can describe how objects and materials interact with light and sound.
Official code: C2.6
Light sources with and without heat
I can distinguish light sources that give off heat from those that don't.
Official code: C2.7
Sensory organs and devices for light and sound
I can identify sensory organs and devices that use light and sound.
Official code: C2.8
The official wording · 10 outcomes
- C1.1
- assess the impacts on society of devices that use the properties of light or sound, or both
- C1.2
- assess the impacts on the environment of light energy and sound energy produced by various technologies, while taking different perspectives into account
- C2.1
- identify a variety of natural and artificial light sources
- C2.2
- distinguish between objects and living things that emit their own light and those that reflect light from other sources
- C2.3
- describe properties of light, including that light travels in a straight path and that light can be absorbed, reflected, and refracted
- C2.4
- describe properties of sound, including that sound travels through a medium as a wave and that sound can be absorbed or reflected and modified
- C2.5
- explain how vibrations cause sound waves
- C2.6
- describe how different objects and materials interact with light and sound energy
- C2.7
- distinguish between sources of light that emit both light and heat and those that emit light but little heat
- C2.8
- identify sensory organs and devices that make use of the properties of light and sound
Key ideas
Many devices use the properties of light and sound to help people.
Natural light sources occur in nature, like the Sun, fire, and lightning.
These devices affect society, like a hearing aid helping someone hear.
Artificial light sources are made by people, like lamps and flashlights.
Technologies produce light and sound energy that can affect the environment.
Watch out for
- Thinking light and sound devices don't really affect society.
- Thinking all light comes from electricity.
- Not connecting a device to the property of light or sound it uses.
Every skill’s key ideas, worked examples and checks are in MapleMind.Practise this unit
Unit 4 · 7 skills
Machines and Their Mechanisms
Structures and Mechanisms
How Machines Change Our World
Machines in daily life
I can assess how machines and their mechanisms affect daily life.
Official code: D1.1
Comparing machines' environmental impacts
I can assess and compare how different machines affect the environment.
Official code: D1.2
Mechanisms and Motion
Machines used in daily life
I can identify machines used in daily life and their purposes.
Official code: D2.1
The parts of a mechanism
I can identify the parts of a mechanism and what each does.
Official code: D2.2
How mechanisms transmit motion
I can describe how mechanisms transmit motion.
Official code: D2.3
How mechanisms transform motion
I can describe how mechanisms transform motion.
Official code: D2.4
How forces change in machines
I can explain how machines change forces.
Official code: D2.5
The official wording · 7 outcomes
- D1.1
- assess the impacts of machines and their mechanisms on the daily lives of people in various communities
- D1.2
- assess and compare the environmental impacts of using different machines designed for similar purposes
- D2.1
- identify machines that are used in daily life, and describe their purposes
- D2.2
- identify the parts of various mechanisms and describe the purpose of each part
- D2.3
- describe how different mechanisms transmit various types of motion, including rotary motion, from one system to another
- D2.4
- describe how mechanisms transform motion, including how they can change the geometric plane in which the motion occurs and the speed and/or direction of motion
- D2.5
- explain how forces are changed in a variety of machines
Key ideas
Machines with mechanisms (gears, pulleys) help people in daily life.
Many machines are used every day, like bikes, clocks, and can openers.
Different communities use machines in different ways.
Each machine has a purpose — a job it does.
Different machines can do similar jobs but affect the environment differently.
Watch out for
- Thinking machines are only big industrial things.
- Thinking only complex devices are machines.
- Not noticing mechanisms in everyday machines.
Every skill’s key ideas, worked examples and checks are in MapleMind.Practise this unit
Unit 5 · 8 skills
Rocks and Minerals
Earth and Space Systems
Geology, People, and the Environment
How geological processes affect us
I can analyse how geological processes affect society and the environment.
Official code: E1.1
Using rocks and minerals
I can assess the impacts of extracting, using, and disposing of rocks and minerals.
Official code: E1.2
Exploring Rocks and Minerals
The rock cycle
I can explain how the rock cycle forms the three types of rocks.
Official code: E2.1
Properties of rocks
I can describe the properties of the three rock types.
Official code: E2.2
Classifying rocks and minerals
I can classify rocks and minerals using tests and properties.
Official code: E2.3
Everyday uses of rocks and minerals
I can describe everyday uses of rocks and minerals.
Official code: E2.4
Fossils and Earth's history
I can describe how fossils form and what they tell us.
Official code: E2.5
First Nations, Métis, and Inuit geological knowledges
I can describe First Nations, Métis, and Inuit knowledge of choosing rocks and minerals.
Official code: E2.6
The official wording · 8 outcomes
- E1.1
- analyse ways in which geological processes impact society and the environment
- E1.2
- assess social and environmental impacts of extracting and refining rocks and minerals and of manufacturing, recycling, and disposing of products derived from rocks and minerals, while taking various perspectives into account
- E2.1
- explain geological processes that result in the formation of igneous, sedimentary, and metamorphic rocks, using the rock cycle
- E2.2
- describe the physical properties of igneous, sedimentary, and metamorphic rocks
- E2.3
- classify different rocks and minerals according to their composition and physical properties, using various tests and criteria
- E2.4
- describe everyday uses of rocks and minerals
- E2.5
- describe how fossils are formed and what information they can provide about Earth’s history
- E2.6
- demonstrate an understanding of First Nations, Métis, and Inuit geological knowledges that are used in the selection of different rocks and minerals for specific purposes
Key ideas
Geological processes, like erosion, earthquakes, and mountain-building, shape the Earth.
There are three types of rocks: igneous, sedimentary, and metamorphic.
These processes affect people and the environment.
The rock cycle explains how rocks form and change from one type into another over time.
We extract and refine rocks and minerals to make products, then use, recycle, or dispose of them.
Watch out for
- Thinking the Earth's surface never changes.
- Thinking rocks never change.
- Not connecting geological processes to their effects on people.
Every skill’s key ideas, worked examples and checks are in MapleMind.Practise this unit
Plan the term
Pick your term and the days you study. Each unit gets its share of the weeks and comes back a week later for a review. The last two weeks go over the whole course.
The official curriculum
This page follows Ontario’s own curriculum for Science and Technology, Grade 4.
Textbooks
The textbooks Ontario Ministry of Education lists for Science and Technology, Grade 4:
- STEM NOW Grade 4
From the Trillium List, read October 27, 2026. ontario.ca
Strands
| Strand | Outcomes | Taught in |
|---|---|---|
| ASTEM Skills and Connections | Outcomes 4 | Taught in Unit 1 |
| BLife Systems | Outcomes 9 | Taught in Unit 2Habitats and Communities |
| CMatter and Energy | Outcomes 10 | Taught in Unit 3Light and Sound |
| DStructures and Mechanisms | Outcomes 7 | Taught in Unit 4Machines and Their Mechanisms |
| EEarth and Space Systems | Outcomes 8 | Taught in Unit 5Rocks and Minerals |
Study it in MapleMind
MapleMind teaches Science and Technology, Grade 4 one skill at a time. Each skill gets a short lesson, practice as you go and a check worth up to three stars. It remembers where you stopped.
Course Companion
Your year in one workbook
A fun way to keep Science and Technology, Grade 4 organized, get to know your child better and see early when they need a hand. Fill it in on a screen, or print it.
- Pages
- 36
- Fillable fields
- 1,599
- Price
- $4.99
Questions about Science and Technology, Grade 4
What is Science and Technology, Grade 4?
Ontario’s Grade 4 science course: 5 units and 39 skills, from STEM Skills and Connections to Rocks and Minerals.
What units are in Science and Technology, Grade 4?
1. STEM Skills and Connections, 2. Habitats and Communities, 3. Light and Sound, 4. Machines and Their Mechanisms and 5. Rocks and Minerals.
Is there a provincial exam for Science and Technology, Grade 4?
No. Ontario gives no provincial exam for Science and Technology, Grade 4.
What textbook does Science and Technology, Grade 4 use?
The textbooks Ontario Ministry of Education lists for Science and Technology, Grade 4: STEM NOW Grade 4, GTK Press.
What comes after Science and Technology, Grade 4?
Science and Technology, Grade 5.
Can MapleMind help with Science and Technology, Grade 4?
Yes. MapleMind teaches every skill of Science and Technology, Grade 4, step by step, with practice and checks, and its tutor answers questions about any of them. It’s free with daily limits, on iPhone, Android and the web.
Get ready for Science and Technology, Grade 4
Practise every skill of Science and Technology, Grade 4 in MapleMind, free with daily limits.
