The science vocabulary from a science curriculum standards document (Ministry of Education Ontario, 2007) was classified by morphological developmental level and compared to the grade level topics of the curriculum (grades 1 to 8). Descriptive statistical analyses highlight the complex nature of science vocabulary and the incompatibilities between the conceptual nature of science vocabulary and the developmental reading levels of elementary students. These findings provide implications for teachers to encourage learning in science through scaffolded vocabulary instruction with multimodal, integrated resources. As learning through multiliteracies evolves in the twenty-first century, science-specific vocabulary acquisition should garner renewed interest to ensure that discipline-based texts are reflective of content standards and are accessible to all readers.