Prekindergarten/Primary PK–3
Subtest 4: Science (534)

Test Competencies and Skills Worksheet

Institution Name:

Student's Name:

Advisor's Name:

Date for Next Review:

Print this worksheet to fill out offline or save a completed worksheet as a PDF. To save the worksheet as a PDF:

  1. Click the Print button.
  2. Choose "Adobe PDF" or "Save as a PDF" as the printer in the Print dialog box.
  3. Select Print/Save. In the Save As dialog box, select Save.

To save information that you enter in the text fields and any boxes that you check, select the Save button below. Your inputted changes to the worksheet will be saved to your browser’s storage, meaning that the changes will appear whenever you reopen the worksheet. If you wish to clear all the saved changes to the worksheet, you will need to delete your browsing history.

Competency 1—Knowledge of effective science instruction

  • Approximate Percentage of Total Subtest Questions: 19%
Check this box if the course listed above covers the content described by this skill
Check this box if the course listed above covers the content described by this skill
Check this box if the course listed above covers the content described by this skill
Check this box if the course listed above covers the content described by this skill
Check this box if the course listed above covers the content described by this skill
Check this box if the course listed above covers the content described by this skill
Check this box if the course listed above covers the content described by this skill
Check this box if the course listed above covers the content described by this skill
This section of the worksheet allows users to map the test competencies and skills to the curriculum by entering up to six courses in the course name fields, and checking the boxes if the content of the course covers the information described by the test skills in the rows below.
Skills Course 1:
 Course 2:
 Course 3:
 Course 4:
 Course 5:
 Course 6:
1. Analyze developmentally appropriate strategies for teaching science practices (e.g., observing, questioning, designing and carrying out investigations, developing and using models, constructing and communicating explanations).
2. Identify strategies and skills for facilitating children's experiences in ways that support their active inquiry, naturalistic exploration, talk and argument, and conceptual development.
3. Identify and analyze strategies for formal and informal learning experiences to provide science curriculum that promotes children's natural curiosity about the world (e.g., active hands-on experiences, active engagement in the physical world, student interaction).
4. Identify ways to organize and manage the early childhood classroom for safe, effective science teaching and learning (e.g., procedures, equipment, layout).
5. Identify and select developmentally appropriate formal and informal assessments to evaluate prior knowledge, to guide instruction, and to evaluate the impact of science experiences on student learning.
6. Select and analyze small- and large-group strategies to help students explain the concepts they are learning, provide opportunities to introduce formal science terms, and to clarify scientific concepts and misconceptions.
7. Select and apply safe and effective instructional strategies when using curricular and instructional tools and resources such as physical and conceptual models, scientific equipment, realia, and print and digital representations to support and enhance science instruction.
8. Apply scientifically and professionally responsible decision-making regarding the selection of socially and culturally sensitive science content and activities.
Notes on Competency 1:

Competency 2—Knowledge of the nature of science

  • Approximate Percentage of Total Subtest Questions: 19%
Check this box if the course listed above covers the content described by this skill
Check this box if the course listed above covers the content described by this skill
Check this box if the course listed above covers the content described by this skill
Check this box if the course listed above covers the content described by this skill
Check this box if the course listed above covers the content described by this skill
Check this box if the course listed above covers the content described by this skill
Check this box if the course listed above covers the content described by this skill
Check this box if the course listed above covers the content described by this skill
This section of the worksheet allows users to map the test competencies and skills to the curriculum by entering up to six courses in the course name fields, and checking the boxes if the content of the course covers the information described by the test skills in the rows below.
Skills Course 1:
 Course 2:
 Course 3:
 Course 4:
 Course 5:
 Course 6:
1. Identify and apply basic process skills (e.g., observing, inferring, classifying, measuring) and developmentally appropriate science practices (e.g., analyzing and interpreting data, constructing explanations, engaging in argument from evidence).
2. Evaluate and interpret pictorial representations, charts, tables, and graphs of authentic data from scientific investigations to make predictions, construct explanations, and support conclusions.
3. Analyze the dynamic nature of science as a way of understanding the world (e.g., tentativeness, replication, reliance on evidence).
4. Identify and select appropriate tools, including digital technologies, and units of measurement for various science tasks.
5. Evaluate the relationship between claims (e.g., including predictions), evidence (i.e., scientific knowledge, observations) and explanations (i.e., linking claims to evidence, drawing conclusions).
6. Identify and analyze attitudes and dispositions underlying scientific thinking (e.g., curiosity, openness to new ideas, appropriate skepticism, cooperation).
7. Identify and analyze ways in which science is an interdisciplinary process and interconnected to STEM disciplines (i.e., science, technology, engineering, mathematics).
8. Analyze considerations of science technology in society including cultural, ethical, economic, political, and global implications.
Notes on Competency 2:

Competency 3—Knowledge of the earth and space sciences

  • Approximate Percentage of Total Subtest Questions: 20%
Check this box if the course listed above covers the content described by this skill
Check this box if the course listed above covers the content described by this skill
Check this box if the course listed above covers the content described by this skill
Check this box if the course listed above covers the content described by this skill
Check this box if the course listed above covers the content described by this skill
Check this box if the course listed above covers the content described by this skill
Check this box if the course listed above covers the content described by this skill
Check this box if the course listed above covers the content described by this skill
Check this box if the course listed above covers the content described by this skill
This section of the worksheet allows users to map the test competencies and skills to the curriculum by entering up to six courses in the course name fields, and checking the boxes if the content of the course covers the information described by the test skills in the rows below.
Skills Course 1:
 Course 2:
 Course 3:
 Course 4:
 Course 5:
 Course 6:
1. Identify the living and nonliving composition of the Earth's surface and the properties of the nonliving materials that make up Earth's surface (e.g., soil, minerals, rocks, water).
2. Identify the processes that change the surface of the Earth.
3. Analyze the effects of the law of gravity on objects on Earth and in space.
4. Identify and distinguish distant objects seen in the daytime and nighttime sky (e.g., Sun, stars, planets, Moon).
5. Identify and analyze the causes and effects of atmospheric processes (e.g., weather, wind, water cycle).
6. Interpret and predict the direct and indirect effects of the Sun's energy on Earth, including plants, animals, water, land, and air.
7. Identify the components and significance of space research and exploration (e.g., timelines, tools and equipment, benefits and cost to society).
8. Identify and describe repeated patterns in the Sun-Earth-Moon system (e.g., the day-night cycle, phases of the Moon, seasons).
9. Analyze the impact of human activity on renewable and nonrenewable resources and natural events, including preparation for severe weather-related events (e.g., hurricanes, tornadoes, flooding).
Notes on Competency 3:

Competency 4—Knowledge of the physical sciences

  • Approximate Percentage of Total Subtest Questions: 17%
Check this box if the course listed above covers the content described by this skill
Check this box if the course listed above covers the content described by this skill
Check this box if the course listed above covers the content described by this skill
Check this box if the course listed above covers the content described by this skill
Check this box if the course listed above covers the content described by this skill
Check this box if the course listed above covers the content described by this skill
This section of the worksheet allows users to map the test competencies and skills to the curriculum by entering up to six courses in the course name fields, and checking the boxes if the content of the course covers the information described by the test skills in the rows below.
Skills Course 1:
 Course 2:
 Course 3:
 Course 4:
 Course 5:
 Course 6:
1. Sort matter by its observable qualitative properties (e.g., shape, color, states, texture, hardness) and quantitative properties (e.g., mass, volume, temperature, weight, density).
2. Categorize matter as an element, compound, or mixture and compare the similarities and differences among them.
3. Identify and differentiate between physical and chemical changes in matter.
4. Identify and compare types, characteristics, and functions of energy.
5. Identify and analyze ways energy is transferred between objects or the surrounding air.
6. Analyze and compare the relationship between forces (e.g., push or pull) and an object's change in position, direction, and/or speed.
Notes on Competency 4:

Competency 5—Knowledge of the life sciences

  • Approximate Percentage of Total Subtest Questions: 25%
Check this box if the course listed above covers the content described by this skill
Check this box if the course listed above covers the content described by this skill
Check this box if the course listed above covers the content described by this skill
Check this box if the course listed above covers the content described by this skill
Check this box if the course listed above covers the content described by this skill
Check this box if the course listed above covers the content described by this skill
Check this box if the course listed above covers the content described by this skill
Check this box if the course listed above covers the content described by this skill
Check this box if the course listed above covers the content described by this skill
Check this box if the course listed above covers the content described by this skill
This section of the worksheet allows users to map the test competencies and skills to the curriculum by entering up to six courses in the course name fields, and checking the boxes if the content of the course covers the information described by the test skills in the rows below.
Skills Course 1:
 Course 2:
 Course 3:
 Course 4:
 Course 5:
 Course 6:
1. Identify how plants and animals respond to their environment.
2. Identify basic concepts of heredity (e.g., why offspring resemble their parents).
3. Classify plants and animals into major groups according to characteristics (e.g., physical features, behaviors, development).
4. Compare the ways living things meet their basic needs through interaction with and dependence on one another when sharing an environment (e.g., competition, predation, pollination).
5. Identify basic characteristics of living and nonliving things.
6. Identify and describe the basic structures, behaviors, and functions of plants and animals that allow them to carry out their life processes (e.g., grow, reproduce, and survive).
7. Identify and compare the structure and functions of major systems of the human body.
8. Identify and compare the predictable ways plants and animals change as they grow, develop, and age.
9. Identify and compare processes of sexual and asexual reproduction in plants, animals, and microorganisms.
10. Identify the variety of habitats within ecosystems and analyze how they meet the needs of the organisms that live there.
Notes on Competency 5:

Copyright © 2023 by the State of Florida, Department of State