Science Syllabus Grade 7 Vision All SPS students will participate in rigorous, standards-based science inquiry and will be prepared for college-level science coursework and competition in the global marketplace. Students will collaborate through systematic investigations to foster scientific habits of the mind. Student learning will put emphasis on group work to establish learning communities through rich, engaging, and relevant science experiences. SPS Science Program Goals Students will: Achieve at or above goal as measured by the State of Connecticut science assessments. Learn through investigation, exploration, and questioning. Experience relevant and real-world science phenomena. Practice common scientific language. Become self-directed learners. Develop critical thinking skills. Utilize technology for learning. Maintain a science notebook. Teachers will: Be knowledgeable about their science content standards and expectations. Use common scientific language. Understand and incorporate inquiry-based and student-centered instructional practices including differentiated instruction. Include research-based instructional practices that reflect a changing 21 st century global community. Identify and emphasize interdisciplinary connections. Continually assess student learning using a variety of strategies. Integrate technology to enhance instruction.
Parents will: Provide a supportive learning environment at home. Be actively involved with student learning and achievement. Establish early and open communication with teacher. Review student assignments for completion. Support and encourage extra help when necessary. Encourage good organizational skills and positive in-class behavior. Textbook and e-book Issues & Life Science, (2009). Issues & Earth Science, (2006), Unit C: Erosion & Deposition, and Unit D: Plate Tectonics. SEPUP. Lawrence Hall of Science, University of California at Berkeley. Published by Lab-Aids Inc., Ronkonkoma, NY. Every student has a user name and password to access an online version of the textbooks via the website: http://www.lab-aids.com/ebooks/ebooks.php Grading Practices Component Grade% Formal Assessment 35 40% -Consist of Quizzes and Tests Class work/participation 10 15% -Includes having all required materials (homework, supplies, and assignments) in class when needed so that the student is able to take a positive, active role in classroom discussions, completing lab work and science notebooks which should include written responses to analysis questions. Homework 7 10% -Includes daily and long term assignments from the textbook, preparation for various experiments and investigations. Alternative Assessment 40 45% -Consists of formal laboratory reports, activity extension questions, end of unit assessment tasks, and performance tasks which are assigned different values commensurate with the degree of complexity.
Units of Instruction: Studying People Scientifically o Compare the investigation of the disease pellagra to the traditional scientific method. o Identify the variables and components in an experiment. o Investigate Clinical trials o Conduct an investigation to determine the sensitivity of sensory neurons. o Investigate the Nervous system o Identify qualitative and quantitative data. o Evaluate different proposals for conducting clinical trials. Body Works o Draw and label the major body systems and the organs that comprise them. o Describe the transport function of blood in the circulatory system. o Measure heart rate and recovery times. o Explore the role of valves and pumps in the heart function. o Model how the heart pumps blood to other systems. o Label the parts of the human respiratory system and explain the function of the trachea, lungs, and alveoli. o Describe the relationship between the heart, veins, arteries and capillaries and there role in transporting material throughout the human body. o Compare mechanical and chemical digestion. o Label the parts of the human digestive system and explain the function of the mouth, esophagus, stomach, small intestine, large intestine, and rectum. o Describe how the muscles, tendons, ligaments and bones interact to support the human body and allow movement. State Embedded Task: Feel the Beat o Measure heart rate and recovery times. o Design and conduct an experiment to show how heart rate changes under different conditions. Cell Biology and Disease o Draw a diagram of a animal and bacterial cell. o Describe the structure and function of the cell membrane, cytoplasm, mitochondria and nucleus in an animal cell. o Compare mitosis and meiosis. o Investigate why cells are small.
o Describe how some specialized cells perform specialized functions in multi-cellular organisms. o Investigate the ability of cells to respire and describe the inputs and outputs of cellular respiration. Food Safety o Identify food-borne illnesses. o Describe the causes of food-borne illness: bacteria, virus and parasites. o Identify ways to reduce food-borne illness. o Investigate the role of microorganisms play in food spoilage. o Evaluate the use of different food preservation techniques. Genetics o Identify traits and describe human variation and heredity. o Germinate seeds and use the information about parent plants to predict offspring color. o Describe how genes are passed from parents to offspring by using probability. o Differentiate between sexual and asexual reproduction at the cellular level. o Model the inheritance of single-gene traits by collecting and analyzing data from coin tosses. o Use Punnett Squares to predict the approximate frequencies of traits among offspring. Erosion and Deposition/Studying Soil Scientifically o Identify evidence from contour maps that might suggest potential problems for building locations. o Identify how water flow can create different landforms. o Compare and contrast destructive and constructive forces in the formation of landforms. o Describe and analyze how different earth materials are effective erosive agents against water. o Describe patterns of erosion and deposition in the creation of various topographical features. o Assess the impact of ocean waves on a cliff. o Evaluate how earth processes affect coastal systems, such as beaches. o Explain relationships between landforms created by weathering and human activity. o Describe how diverse groups of people engage in activities of science, engineering, and related fields to contribute to construction site evaluation o Describe the properties of soil.
o Describe the physical and chemical composition of soil. o Compare and contrast the soils from different environments. o Examine the characteristics of soil layers and bedrock. State Embedded Task: Dig In! o Examine the relationship between the properties of soil and water absorption. o Design and conduct an experiment to test the permeability of different sediments. o Design and conduct an experiment to test the percolation rate of different sediments. Plate Tectonics o Draw, label, and describe the different layers of the Earth. o Develop a geological time line of the Earth o Simulate what happens when the Earth s plates move. o Review the history of the development of plate tectonics and Wegener s idea of continental drift. o Draw and plot plate boundaries using earthquake and volcano data o Describe decision making on ethical issues of storing nuclear waste. o Evaluate evidence and make a decision, involving trade-offs, about where to dispose nuclear waste. o Create models of two different types of volcanic eruptions to show formation of new landforms. o Investigate convection currents to explore the mechanism behind plate motion. o Investigate what occurs when Earth s plates collide and slide past each other. o Compare and contrast the three types of plate boundaries: sliding, spreading and colliding