What are we learning?

We are learning about the rock cycle and how the Earth's landscape changes as a result of those forces.

What to expect in this unit?

This unit is structured around another summative project, the National Parks presentation: students will research how a particular national park's landscape and rocks were formed and how the landscape of the park became the way it is now, showing their mastery of the rock and water cycles.

Why I like this unit? Why does this unit matter?

I enjoy this unit because it is so concrete--we are able to perform labs, physically look at and touch different rocks, and use plenty of real-life examples. The unit is all about being able to understand the world around us and to be able to look at a hill or a mountain or a valley and have an idea of how it got that way; I really enjoy the final project because it gives students a sense of the incredible beauty of the land around us while also showing their mastery of the concepts.

What are we learning?

We are learning about the three methods of heat transfer (conduction, convection, and radiation) and how this relates to everyday life.

What to expect in this unit?

This unit is structured around the summative, the Ice Keeper project; students will be creating a device to minimize heat transfer, bringing materials from home and constructing the device in class. Other than that, there will be some quick labs and a lot of practical application questions, as this is really the core of the unit.

Why I like this unit? Why does this unit matter?

I enjoy this unit because it is so useful in everyday life, both understanding the world around us and simply because people regularly try to heat things up or keep them warm or keep heat from entering; I use the details of heat transfer on a daily basis, and I hope our students learn to do so as well.

What are we learning?

We are learning about the molecular model of matter and using that model to explain common phenomena.

What to expect in this unit?

This unit has many smaller labs, so most days students will need to have hair ties and proper shoes. We will be doing a lot of modeling of molecules and connecting what is going on in that microscopic, molecular level to what we see and notice in our daily lives. This tends to be a more abstract unit, but the actual information is fairly straightforward. It's about making sense of a few key principles.

Why I like this unit? Why does this unit matter?

I enjoy this unit because it is so impactful--if properly learned, students will treat the world a little bit differently.  It's all about allowing students to use that basic logic they have started to access last unit and really think through the implications of the molecular model in very practical terms, as well as being able to explain themselves well.

Here is a link to a textbook which does cover the basics of the molecular theory in a bit more detail: Textbook link 

What are we learning?

We are learning about how to write a valid scientific argument, using lab skills to observe properties of matter for our evidence.

What to expect in this unit?

This unit has two parts: creating good, valid arguments, and being able to take careful observations of properties of matter. So there will be a combination of writing arguments--short, long, about science, about things in daily life-- and practicing our lab skills. There will be some days using fire, so it would be wise to have hair ties and proper shoes available if those are at issue.

Why I like this unit? Why does this unit matter?

I enjoy this unit not only because we get into the lab regularly, but also because expressing ourselves exactly is one of the most useful and transferable skills we can ever teach. This is also a unit where students bring so much to the table from their outside lives; every year I'm blown away by students who are able to give perfect arguments about which soccer player is the best, and it's wonderful seeing them able to transfer that skill to the context of science and their lab results. 

Here is a link to a textbook which covers among other things, the properties of matter: Textbook link 

What are we learning?

We are learning about how populations in ecosystems change over time and with different factors

What to expect in this unit?

This unit is a combination of data literacy, so working with graphs, and using the powerful idea of positive and negative feedback loops to understand how populations change. We will be doing a lot of interpreting and creating population graphs, as well as trying to determine what will happen to a population when a particular factor changes. 

Why I like this unit? Why does this unit matter?

This unit is important because it is the first time we are really looking at graphs as a tool to understand data sets; so much of our world is about being able to interpret trends and patterns in data, and it is vital to be able to see those patterns and consequences. Feedback loops are at the foundation of all of our body systems and natural systems and will be used not only in Science class in future units, but they will also come up in many other classes throughout the year. Once you understand the concept well, you start to see them everywhere and it makes very complicated systems much easier to understand.

What are we learning?

We are learning about the variety of interactions different organisms in an ecosystem have, and how the structures of those organisms allow those interactions.

What to expect in this unit?

The first part of this unit centers around different possible interactions organisms can have, with a lot of exploration and working together to puzzle out interactions. The second half focuses in on the connection between structure and function, finishing with our frog dissection.

Why I like this unit? Why does this unit matter?

This unit is important because it serves as the foundation we'll use in Unit 2, Population Ecology; at the same time, we practice our skills at generating hypotheses and looking deeper at why organisms are the particular way they are. We get at the foundational principle that organisms are well adapted to their environments, and the capstone experience of the frog dissection is amazing because it connects all those dots while giving students a hands-on understanding of how an animal is truly put together.

What are we learning?

This unit is all about how to behave in a science laboratory in a safe and effective manner. We will cover how to prepare for a lab, various scenarios that can happen in lab, and how to carefully read and follow a lab procedure.

What to expect in this unit?

This unit is a combination of preparing for the safety test and performing a few practice labs to work on our procedure following, measuring, and safety skills.

Why I like this unit? Why does this unit matter?

This is the first time students are being exposed to a science lab course, and of course the students are both excited and nervous to practice lighting the bunsen burners. This unit acts as the backbone for all of our future labs and experiments throughout the year, as safety is our first concern. 

Enrichment Link: Unit 0