7th & 8th Grade Science
Instructor: Jennifer Bell
Earth Science
Students finished the third quarter strong and completed our unit on Space Science. Everyone had a great time making their review posters, highlighting everything they learned during the unit, which helped prepare them for their midterm exam! The fourth quarter ushers in our Earth Science unit and students have already learned about the Earth layers and how to understand and create a topographic map. Over the next several weeks, students will participate in different learning activities about the properties of minerals, rock identification techniques, calculating the density of objects, studying Geologic Time and Fossils, and geologic hazards such as earthquakes.
Classifying Stars
Students are diving straight into learning all about our galaxy and the universe. We have learned about gravity, comets, asteroids, and meteors. This week, we are currently discovering how stars are classified through temperature and luminosity. Our next adventure will be discovering electromagnetic fields and the life cycle of stars.
All About Space
Middle school science has started the new semester with a unit focusing on Space. Students have learned about the lunar cycle and made a lunar calendar that they can use for the entire 2022 year. Last week, students learned about the different types of eclipses and created models to explore how eclipses are formed. This week students are learning more about our solar system and scale in the lab.
Pre-Final Activities
As we come to an end to the first semester, students are wrapping up their unit on The Structure of Life. Over the past few weeks, students have continued their learning and focused on topics including inherited traits, sexual and asexual reproduction, and genetics. They had fun identifying their classmates and their own inherited traits in lab activities by modeling DNA chains with twizzlers and marshmallows. In preparation for finals, students played a review board game that helped them quiz each other and get a review of the topics they have learned. Next semester, the classes will be participating in learning activities focusing on Space and Earth Science.
Mitosis and Meiosis Project
Students have completed learning about Mitosis and Meiosis. The students completed an awesome poster project that highlighted all that they learned about the topic. Students are currently learning about the differences, similarities, benefits and disadvantages between asexual and sexual reproduction.
Jenga Midterm
Last month, science fun had included a Jenga-themed midterm! Students were able to apply and utilize their great note-taking skills while playing the Jenga game. November wraps up our work, learning all about cells, and starts transitioning into our genetics unit.
