The "5" in "SOL 5.7B" pertains to students in grade five. 5.7B as a whole refers to a particular reporting category aimed at students in the fifth grade. 5.7B refers to lessons that require students to report information by organizing it on maps, charts and graphs. 5.7A, on the other hand, requires students to provide written notes using important concepts, summaries and identifications of important information sources.
Virginia SOL 5.7 B makes use of stories, videos, handouts and interactive resources to encourage students to learn through interaction and experience. Students are then asked to describe what they have learned using reporting techniques other than simple writing. Asking students to make inferences based on observations is typical of 5.7B activities.
One SOL 5.7B activity concerns Brookie (a brook trout), the state fish of Virginia. Students are asked to observe a Powerpoint presentation on Brookie while filling out a handout sheet titled "What Do I See and What Does It Mean?" After each slide in the presentation, the teacher discusses the student's observations and interpretations before moving on to the next slide. When this part of the activity is complete, students are split up into groups and asked to discuss and answer the question "Why should we care about Brookie?" The point of the activity is for students to develop their own conclusions about why we should protect wildlife.
Another SOL 5.7B activity concerns different types of grasses. Students are required to read a story about the destruction of underwater grasses which teaches them about different kinds of grasses, including grasses that filter, grasses that provide food and grasses that provide shelter. They are then asked to classify different kinds of grasses according to these criteria using an underwater grasses graphic organizer handout. They are also given a worksheet with a space provided for them to draw pictures of grasses found around the school. They are then asked to give examples of things grasses need to survive (e.g. water) and things grasses give back to the environment (e.g. oxygen).