Life Science

Student will explore the water cycle with a focus on how the sun and gravity impact the cycle and apply it to rain gardens and the impact they can have on communities by building a prototype of a rain garden. 

Students explore the science of biofluorescence by examining its molecular and genetic foundations, comparing natural and artificial sources of glowing traits, applying probability to inheritance patterns, and considering ethical implications and ecological functions of fluorescence in living organisms. 

Students will be able to identify the major parts of the eye. Students are able to model/map the optic nerve. 

Students will explain how the brain makes decisions and compare decision-making processes in the human brain and Artificial Intelligence (AI); investigate and determine factors that increase group work success as well as indicators of failure in group dynamics, including AI. 

Students will conduct an investigation that living things are made of cells and argue from evidence for how the body is a system of interacting subsystems composed of groups of cells. 

Students will be able to explain microchip technology and use via real world engineering and design. 

Students will use their knowledge of organelles and different types of cells to justify how cell specialization facilitates better functionality for the particular cell. 

Students extract protein from soil samples and then identify the amino acids using chromatography. 

Students investigate the effect of differing temperatures on the embryonic development of a fish embryo from fertilization to birth. 

Students synthesize mud dauber saliva protein from gene and use engineering design to design and test mud dauber tunnel nests. 

Students will plan & conduct an experiment to illustrate the necessity of mechanical digestion for efficient chemical digestion and analyze the activity of digestive enzymes within different organs of the digestive tract, connecting enzyme function to environmental factors such as pH, temperature, concentration, etc.

Students will use qualitative and quantitative math skills to design and build a physical or virtual model to mimic the structural biology of at least one of the 3-dimensional movements of plants, culminating in a verbal and written presentation.

Students will identify the consequences of vaping by modeling healthy lungs versus lungs with emphysema and how it affects homeostasis between two or more systems.

Students present their research on the characteristics of genetic disorders including symptoms, causes, and treatments. 

Students design and run an experiment to test various concentrations of a toxin on the germination rate of a model organism and through analyzing the data and research literature will recommend usage/non-usage of toxins based. 

Students investigate the interaction(s) between cells and light which create the effects of bioluminescence and biofluorescence and explain how the ability to produce light may be useful to terrestrial and ocean organisms. 

Students will compare DNA fingerprints from gel electrophoresis to determine the suspect in a crime scene. 

Students will model blood sugar homeostasis and investigate the sugar concentrations in various drinks by conducting serial dilutions. 

Students will investigate how chemicals affect ecosystems through trophic cascades and biomagnification. 

Students will design, build and test a protective football helmet to reduce the severity of impact in hopes of preventing concussions. 

Students will design an experiment to test fish swimming preferences and sediment types, and relate sediment types to ecological niches and fish habitats. 

The purpose of this unit plan is to have students formulate a testable hypothesis about fish swimming preference and sediment type and relate sediment type to ecological niches and fish habitat. 

Students will investigate the watershed in which they live and compare it to other watersheds across the United States in order to understand the importance of watersheds and how they can be maintained. 

Students investigate the chemical aspects, pH, and coliform bacteria presence in water samples to determine water quality. They will design, construct, and evaluate filter apparatuses, and rank water samples from safest to most contaminated.

Students will be able to design and create prosthetic hands inspired by the Wild Robot through the engineering design process (EDP) and Artificial Intelligence (AI) and retell and explain how the story line relates to the ideas presented in the EDP and AI. 

Students will be able to determine the health of a stream by analyzing macroinvertebrates. Students will be able to design a model to demonstrate a healthy watershed.

Students explain how invasive species affect populations of other species such as native populations within ecosystems to design a solution idea to help fight these invasive species by using AI and machine learning for maintaining biodiversity and ecosystem services in fighting invasive species. 

Students will be able to understand how changes in an ecosystem's physical or biological component impact populations. 

Students will explain how the brain makes decisions and compare decision-making processes in the human brain and Artificial Intelligence (AI); investigate and determine factors that increase group work success as well as indicators of failure in group dynamics, including AI. 

Students revise one's own understanding of concepts related to drinking water contamination and regulation,  and explain and understand  the meaning of concentration (in parts per million (ppm) and parts per billion (ppb) and dilution (serial dilutions). 

Students experiment with filtering various substances from water by making their own simple water filters to understand the importance of access o clean water. 

Students will read,  analyze,  and  discuss  videos or articles  on  the  ecology  of apex  predators  and  other  endangered  wildlife from the literature, especially on population dynamics, food web relationships, habitat selection, and effects of human impact and prepare/present a presentation and poster that will showcase their knowledge. 

Students will research how the introduction or the absence of a species affects an ecosystem using a case study approach and determine, construct, and justify the best graphical representation to display data. (Bar, line, or scatter plots.) 

Students will determine which sorbents best absorb oil from fresh and saltwater, develop an algorithm that could be used on a boat drone to clean up an oil spill, and develop a sample program to monitor the water quality of different water sources. 

Students design and run an experiment to test various concentrations of a toxin on the germination rate of a model organism and through analyzing the data and research literature will recommend usage/non-usage of toxins based. 

Students will describe actions that can be taken to reduce the impact of harmful algal blooms by calculating the rate of algal growth to predict how oxygen levels will decrease after a given time and determine the best algal species to use for biofuel. 

Students measure and graph the absorbance of several samples of Kool-Aid and DI water in a variety of concentrations using a colorimeter to determine the concentration of an unknown Kool-Aid.

Students will investigate ways to clean up an oil spill and design a water filtration system to understand the issues of water pollution, the importance of access to clean water, and make informed decisions concerning environmental safety. 

Students will identify the criteria and constraints of their biodegradable plastic production and investigate the rate of decomposition between biodegradable and non-biodegradable plastic in different environments in order to study the environmental impact of petroleum-based plastic. 

Students distinguish between casual and correlational relationships between human activity and the negative environmental impact of harmful algae blooms and use this data to monitor the human impact on water quality. 

Students explore the science of biofluorescence by examining its molecular and genetic foundations, comparing natural and artificial sources of glowing traits, applying probability to inheritance patterns, and considering ethical implications and ecological functions of fluorescence in living organisms. 

Students will be able to identify the major parts of the eye. Students are able to model/map the optic nerve. 

Students demonstrate how they can implement nature-based solutions, recycling, and upcycling to contribute to a sustainable future. 

Students synthesize mud dauber saliva protein from gene and use engineering design to design and test mud dauber tunnel nests. 

Students investigate the effect of differing temperatures on the embryonic development of a fish embryo from fertilization to birth. 

Students will research possible solutions to protect threatened or endangered species and utilize Python programming to evaluate the effectiveness of their proposed solutions. 

Students investigate the interaction(s) between cells and light which create the effects of bioluminescence and biofluorescence and explain how the ability to produce light may be useful to terrestrial and ocean organisms. 

Biology: Students will use mathematical models as evidence to construct an explanation for the process of evolution. Math: Students will discuss graphs that depict the rate of resistance for bugs to determine how the data might best be mathematically modeled.