Three Village Central School District ESSENTIALS of LEARNING Science Life Science Physical Science Earth Science Chemistry Biology Physics The mission of the Three Village Central School District, in concert with its families and community, is to provide an educational environment, which will enable each student to achieve a high level of academic proficiency and to become a well-rounded individual who is an involved, responsible citizen.
The mission of the Three Village Central School District, in concert with its families and community, is to provide an educational environment, which will enable each student to achieve a high level of academic proficiency and to become a well-rounded individual who is an involved, responsible citizen.
The grades 7-12 Essentials of Learning for Science are based on the New York State Math, Science and Technology Standards and are aligned with the Physical Setting and Living Environment Core Curricula. They are intended to serve as a guide for preparation of curriculum, instruction, and assessment at the secondary level in the Three Village Central School District. Our program emphasizes understanding of important relationships, processes, mechanisms, and applications of concepts. We are therefore less focused on memorization of terminology and technical details. Assessments will test students’ ability to explain, analyze, interpret scientific processes and apply the content learned to everyday life experiences. Critical to understanding science concepts is the use of scientific inquiry to develop explanations of natural phenomena. Our program provides students with the opportunity to develop their skills of analysis, inquiry, and design through active laboratory work on a regular basis. At the high school level, students must have successfully completed 1200 minutes of laboratory experience with satisfactory written reports as a prerequisite for admission to the Regents examinations in Living Environment and Physical Setting courses. It is our goal that our science program will prepare students to have a clear understanding of the dynamic processes controlling our environment and are able to explain accurately and with appropriate depth, ideas considered important in the scientific community. In attaining scientific literacy, students will be able to use the skills gained in our secondary program long after they have completed their education in the Three Village Schools.
Science 7-12 Course Sequence Three Village Central School District
Course Regents Honors Grade 7 Life and Physical Science Life and Physical Sciences Grade 8 Physical Science
AP Biology AP Environmental AP Chemistry AP Physics BC
Essentials of Learning Science Grades 7-12
ESSENTIALS of LEARNING INTERMEDIATE SCIENCE
GRADE 7
Inquiry, Skills, and Process:
• Discuss and reinforce safety in science • Reinforce the use of scientific method to develop and test hypotheses • Broaden skills of graphing, data collection, and metric measurement • Formulate higher level questions to guide scientific investigations • Examine and determine the validity of results in scientific investigations • Continue to develop communication and presentation skills • Continue to reinforce the use of scientific measurement through the use
of laboratory equipment (microscopes, scales, thermometers, scientific measuring tools, etc.)
• Develop and use a dichotomous key to classify and identify living things
• Provide opportunities for independent investigations and experimentation
• Encourage students to use critical thinking and problem solving skills to direct independent research
• Gain a greater understanding of scientific vocabulary as it relates to real word origins
Living Environment:
• Review life processes • Reinforce an understanding of the Cell Theory and its’ origins • Enhance understanding of the parts of the plant and animal cells and their function • Understand cell differentiation and organization • Review the organization and function of human organ systems • Explore structures and functions of plants and the process of photosynthesis • Understand see development and germination • Explore classifications of organisms • Study types of cell division and reproduction • Understand the process of fertilization and embryonic development • Understand the structure and relevance of DNA in living things • Reinforce understanding of mechanisms of inheritance of physical traits in offspring
through the use of Punnett squares and pedigrees • Investigate how individual organisms and species change over time (evolution) • Examine fossils as evidence of evolution
ESSENTIALS of LEARNING INTERMEDIATE SCIENCE
GRADE 7 Revised 8/03
Physical Setting:
• Continue the investigation of properties of matter and physical and chemical changes
• Explore density and buoyancy and how they can be determined through
scientific and mathematical investigation
• Understand the differences of elements, compounds, and mixtures
• Explore solutions and factors affecting solubility
• Develop a further understanding of the structure of atoms
• Enhance understanding of the Periodic Table
• Understand that interactions among atoms result in different types of chemical reactions
• Understand the Law of Conservation of Mass and balance equations
• Explore the transfer of heat and investigate phase changes
ESSENTIALS of LEARNING INTERMEDIATE SCIENCE
GRADE 8
Inquiry, Skills, and Process:
• Discuss and reinforce safety in science
• Reinforce the use of scientific method to develop and test hypotheses
• Formulate higher level questions to guide scientific investigations
• Generate and interpret field maps including topographic and weather
maps
• Use a magnetic compass to find cardinal directions
• Measure the angular elevation of an object using appropriate instruments
• Continue to develop communication and presentation skills
• Continue to reinforce the use of scientific measurement through the use
of laboratory equipment (microscopes, scales, thermometers, scientific
measuring tools)
• Provide opportunities for independent investigations and experiments
• Encourage students to use critical thinking and problem solving skills to
direct independent research
• Gain a greater understanding of scientific vocabulary as it relates to word
origins
Physical Setting:
• Identify the importance of the Sun in the solar system • Understand that the sun is an average-sized star and that distances between stars are
vast • Review the major bodies found in the solar system such as planets, moons, comets,
and asteroids • Revisit the effect of mass and distance on gravity, and gravity’s influence on major
bodies of the solar system • Explore the effects of Earth’s motions, rotation and revolution, and their effects
(elliptical orbit, latitude/longitude, time zones, seasons, length of day) • Identify the layer’s of Earth’s atmosphere • Understand the processes that determine weather and climate • Enhance the understanding of Earth’s interior layers (crust, mantle, core) and the
theory of plate tectonics • Re-examine minerals and the rock-cycle, including the process of weathering,
erosion, deposition, metamorphism, and solidification • Understand that the motion of an object is always judged with respect to some other
object and can be described by its position, direction, and speed • Explore Newton’s three laws of motion and observe, describe, and compare the
effects of forces on the motion of objects • Investigate the relationship between work energy, and motion as demonstrated by
simple and complex machines • Understand that energy exists in many forms, and when these form change, energy is
conserved (Law of Conservation of Energy) • Describe the sources and identify the transformations of energy observed in everyday
life • Observe and describe the properties different forms of energy: sound, light,
magnetism, electricity, and static electricity • Review for Intermediate Grade 8 Assessment
ESSENTIALS of LEARNING
PHYSICAL SETTING: EARTH SCIENCE
Inquiry, Skills, and Process Physical Setting
Scientific Method and Data Analysis • Use scientific inquiry to develop explanations of natural phenomena. • Apply the scientific method to test explanations and analyze data. • Use information technology to retrieve, process and communicate
information. • Recognize the commonalities among systems and how parts of a system
interrelate. • Use models to better understand natural phenomena. • Identify patterns of change in order to make predictions. • Use the skills of mathematics, science, and technology to make informed
decisions and solve problems. • Apply a variety of skills and strategies such as gathering information,
analyzing ideas, making connections among common themes, and presenting results, in order to solve interdisciplinary problems.
Rocks & Minerals • Explain the properties of
minerals in terms of arrangement of the atoms that compose them.
• Identify minerals based on observations of physical and chemical properties
• Classify rocks by their origin, mineral content, and texture
• Infer conditions that existed when a rock formed from its characteristics
• Understand that many processes in the rock cycle are consequences of plate tectonics or the result of interaction among components of air, water, and land.
Surface Processes & Landscapes • Investigate the natural agents of
erosion, including streams, glaciers, waves, wind, and gravity, that transport and deposit weathered rock fragments.
• Understand that weathering is the physical or chemical breakdown of rocks that results in the formation of soil and sediments.
• Discover that patterns of deposition result from loss of energy, and are influenced by size, shape, and density of particles.
• Use topographic maps to interpret various types of landforms that result from the interaction of tectonic forces and surface processes.
• Learn how climate variations, geologic structures, and bedrock characteristics influence the development of landscape features
ESSENTIALS of LEARNING PHYSICAL SETTING: EARTH SCIENCE
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Dynamic Crust • Use the concepts of density and heat energy to explain the movement of earth’s
plates. • Infers the properties of earth’s internal structure by observing the behavior of
seismic waves. • Determine the location of earthquake epicenters and measures earthquake
magnitude by analyzing seismic waves. • Study the tectonic features related to various types of plate boundaries. • Understands that earthquakes and volcanoes present geologic hazards to
humans and that loss of life and property can be reduced by effective emergency preparedness.
Geologic History • Apply concepts of relative dating to determine age
relationships of rocks. • Learn how nuclear decay of radioactive isotopes can be
used to determine absolute age of materials found in some rocks.
• Discover that fossil evidence indicates that a wide variety of life forms on Earth have existed in the past and that most of these forms are now extinct.
• Appreciate that the pattern of evolution of life forms is partially preserved in the rock record.
Astronomy • Describe current theories about the origin of the universe and the solar system • Learn how stars form and differ in size, temperature, and age. • Discover that objects in our solar system are in regular and predictable motion;
these motions explain complex phenomena such as tides, eclipses, day, the year, seasons, apparent motion of the planets, and annual traverse of the constellations.
• Apply knowledge of earth’s rotation and observations of sun and stars to understand earth’s coordinate system of latitude and longitude.
• Review the components of the solar system, which include planets, moons, asteroids, comets, and meteors.
• Discover that impact events may have contributed to mass extinctions and global climate changes.
ESSENTIALS of LEARNING PHYSICAL SETTING: EARTH SCIENCE
Insolation & the Seasons • Investigate how the transfer of heat energy within
the atmosphere and hydrosphere occurs as the result of radiation, convection, and conduction.
• Explain how incoming solar radiation affects weather and climate.
• Investigate the variations of day length and the factors that affect the amount of solar insolation absorbed at earth’s surface.
• Study the effects of earth’s tilted axis and its orbit around the sun, which causes the seasons.
Weather & Atmospheric Variables • Use the concepts of density and heat energy to explain weather patterns. • Observe, measure, and record weather variables in order to recognize
relationships. • Develop an understanding that atmospheric moisture, temperature, and
pressure distributions are characteristics of air masses and that the movement of frontal boundaries and associated storms occur in observable patterns.
• Analyze weather maps to make predictions of future weather events such as the movement of air masses, cyclonic systems, and severe weather. • Identify strategies for emergency preparedness that can be used to prevent or
reduce loss of property and personal injury from severe weather.
Climate & the Water Cycle • Relate various aspects of the water cycle to climate conditions. • Investigates the processes and factors that affect how water
infiltrates into the ground. • Discover that a location’s climate is influenced by geographic
factors. • Explore how temperature and precipitation patterns have been
altered by natural events as well as human influences. • Appreciate that throughout geologic time, Earth had climate
changes, such as ice ages, that were associated with long periods of imbalances in its heat budget.
ESSENTIALS of LEARNING
LIVING ENVIRONMENT: BIOLOGY :
Inquiry • Develop explanations of natural phenomena using models and mathematical formulations • Appreciate the historical development of scientific concepts as a means of understanding
scientific inquiry and the relationship between science and society
Skills • Demonstrate safety in science
including proper procedures for dissections, handling open flames, and using biological indicators and stains
• Use conventional laboratory equipment, such as metric measuring tools, compound light microscopes, and stereomicroscopes, to determine size and characteristics of cells, unicellular organisms, and multicellular organisms
• Use data collection practices using conventional techniques as well as computer probes to determine change in factors such as pH, dissolved oxygen content, and temperature during scientific investigations
• Use modern practices such as chromatography and electrophoresis for scientific inquiry concerning biochemistry and molecular biology
Process • Conduct background research using a
variety of sources including, library research, electronic information retrieval, and discussion with others
• Develop and present research proposals including hypotheses formulation, selecting and developing techniques, acquiring and building experimental apparatuses, recording observations and interpreting data
• Recognize how proper research plans avoid bias by having large sample sizes, objective data collection techniques, and controlled variables
• Formulate appropriate conclusions or generalizations from the results of experiments
• Apply statistical techniques when appropriate to clarify the results of experiments
• Use peer review to evaluate the results of scientific investigations, followed by the development of written reports for analysis
ESSENTIALS of LEARNING LIVING ENVIRONMENT: BIOLOGY
From Cells to Systems • Explain the structure and functions of the human body at the
various organizational levels including cells, tissues, organs, and organ systems
• Determine the role of the cell in maintaining homeostasis including organelle functions and cellular transport mechanisms
• Examine the details of all the human body systems from the molecular to the organism level including the digestive, circulatory, respiratory, excretory, skeletal, nervous, and endocrine systems
Biochemistry and Energy Processes
• Identify, categorize and describe the function of the various organic and inorganic substances necessary for life including carbohydrates, proteins, lipids, and nucleic acids
• Study the role of receptor molecules in the interaction between cells
• Investigate the essential role of enzymes in biochemical processes, the mechanisms by which they work, and the factors that affect enzymes
• Investigate photosynthesis and cellular respiration in detail including adaptations of organisms to facilitate these processes and their respective biochemistries, while recognizing their inter-relatedness
Molecular Biology
• Explain how the structure and replication of genetic material results in continuity between generations including study of DNA structure, mutations, protein synthesis, and gene expression
• Investigate techniques of genetic engineering and its ability to alter genetic make-up of organisms, improve scientific research, and venture into possible new fields of health care
ESSENTIALS of LEARNING LIVING ENVIRONMENT: BIOLOGY
Evolution • Explain the mechanisms and patterns of
evolution, appreciating the contribution of the sorting of genes due to meiosis and fertilization, variations as a result of mutations, and natural selection
• Explore the theories of the origin of life, trends in evolution of various lineages, extinction causes, and the contribution of fossils to the study of evolution
Reproduction • Recognize how reproduction and
development are necessary for the continuation of all species, and compare and contrast the various strategies of asexual and sexual reproduction utilized by species
• Explore the human male and female reproductive anatomy to correlate form with function
• Determine the factors that influence human reproduction and development such as gene expression, hormones, and the environment, and the risks from faults in any of these factors
Disease and Immunity • Discuss how disease is a failure of
homeostasis caused by viruses, bacteria, fungi, or other parasites
• Determine the role of the immune system and mechanisms by which it acts against antigens associated with pathogenic organisms or foreign substances and some cancer cells. Discuss current health problems due to AIDS, allergies, cancers, and some inherited disorders
Ecology • Recognize the importance of
diversity of populations to the stability of ecosystems by examining food webs, competition, energy flow, biome composition, symbioses, ecological succession, and material cycles
• Describe the wide range of interrelationships of humans with the living and nonliving environment recognizing that humans have a profound impact. Concentrate on the impact of technological development and the growth in the human worldwide population
• Recognize how individual choices and societal actions can contribute to improving the environment and how the decisions of one generation affect subsequent generations
ESSENTIALS of LEARNING
PHYSICAL SETTING: CHEMISTRY
Periodic Table • Interpret and write isotopic notation• Determine the group of an element
given the chemical formula of a compound.
• Classify elements as metals, nonmetals, metalloids, or by noble gasses by their properties and location on the periodic table
• Compare, contrast, explain, and classify the chemical and physical properties of elements within groups 1 -2, 13 –18 and within periods on the periodic table
Atomic Concepts
• Show how the atom has evolved over history and use models to describe its structure.
• Calculate the mass of an atom as well as determining the # of p, n, e in an atom or ion
• Distinguish between the ground state and excited state when using the Bohr notation and identify an element by its bright line spectrum.
• Calculate the atomic mass of elements given the masses and ratios of naturally occurring isotopes, as well as determining the most abundant isotope
Moles/ Stoichiometry Determine molecular formula given the empirical formula and molecular mass.
• Interpret balanced equations in terms of conservation of matter and energy
• Identify chemical reaction types. • Calculate formula mass, gram
formula mass, and percent composition given a balanced equation.
• Perform simple mole-mole stoichiometry given a balanced equation.
Chemical Bonding
Distinguish ionic, molecular and metallic substances given their physical or chemical properties and intermolecular forces.
• Demonstrate bonding concepts using Lewis dot structures representing valance electrons to determine if bond is ionic (transferred e-) or covalent (sharing e-) and if it contains double or triple bonds.
• Predict polarity of a molecule using Lewis structures and symmetry, and of a bond using electronegativity difference.
• Predict the charge on an ion.
ESSENTIALS of LEARNING PHYSICAL SETTING: CHEMISTRY
Physical Behavior of Matter • Distinguish between the states and classifications of matter • Use simple particle models to differentiate their properties. • Describe the process and use of filtration, distillation, and chromatography in the separation
of a mixture • Interpret and construct solubility curves • Identify the characteristics of saturated, unsaturated, or supersaturated solutions • Calculate solution concentrations in Molarity (M), percent mass, and parts per million. • Distinguish between and explain heat energy, vapor pressure, phase changes and
temperature • Interpret heating and cooling curves in terms of molecular motion, amount of matter,
kinetic and potential energy, an intermolecular forces. • Calculate the heat involved in various processes. • Convert between Kelvin and Celsius temperatures, and know their fixed points. • Explain phase changes and gas laws in terms of Kinetic Molecular theory. • Solve gas law problems using combined gas law
Kinetics/Equilibrium • Discuss how the collision
theory works • Explain the factors that
determine the rate of chemical reactions.
• Demonstrate that at equilibrium the rate of the forward reaction equals the rate of the reverse
• Explain Le Chatelier’s principle and the effects of stress on a system.
• Identify and describe the role of each part of a potential energy diagram
• Explain entropy and its role in nature
Organic Chemistry • Describe and distinguish the
types of functional groups with regard to their physical and chemical properties, structures and names using the IUPAC system
• Explain isomers, and multiple covalent bonds (unsaturated).
ESSENTIALS of LEARNING PHYSICAL SETTING: CHEMISTRY
Oxidation-Reduction • Explain the role that electron transfer plays on oxidation and reduction half
reactions, • Explain conservation of mass and charge • Demonstrate how oxidation states are assigned to atoms and ions • Identify how the changes in oxidation numbers indicate that oxidation and
reduction have occurred • Explain the differences between electrolytic and voltaic cells with regard to
chemical and electrical energy spontaneity, and anode and cathode
Acids, Bases, and Salts Explain the behavior of acids and bases using the Arrhenius theory with regard to electrolytes, conductivity, H+(H3O+), OH-, and neutralization
• Identify alternate acid-base theories. • Demonstrate the ability to perform an
acid base titration • Calculate the concentration of each
substance being titrated • Explain the use of a pH scale with
regard to the relative level of acidity or alkalinity.
Nuclear Chemistry Categorize, describe, and identify nuclear reactions by their equations to be transmutations (artificial and natural), fission, or fusion
• Identify radioactive isotopes by their specific mode and rate of decay.
• Compare the energy released in a nuclear reaction to that in a chemical reaction.
• Explain how spontaneous decay can involve the emission of different particles and radiation.
• Show how emissions differ in mass, charge, ionizing power, and penetrating power.
• Identify the risks and benefits associated with radioactivity and its isotopes.
ESSENTIALS of LEARNING PHYSICAL SETTING: PHYSICS
Inquiry • Develop conceptual models and mathematical formulations to understand natural
phenomena • Clarify ideas through reasoning, experimentation and discussion. • Use observations of the behavior of a system to develop models. • Evaluate competing models. • Devise testing procedures for models. • Identify and overcome their misconceptions concerning natural phenomena. • Correlate conceptual models and mathematical formulations to common
everyday events. • Identify significant and negligible factors that determine the behavior of a system
Process • Practice extensive problem solving. • Define boundary conditions. • Interpret physical significance from data representations. • Design and implement a research plan for testing explanations of natural
phenomena. • Break ideas into significant functional elements. • Predict possible outcomes using mathematical and conceptual models. • Predict the effect of changing scale on the functioning of a physical system. • Choose appropriate methods for the presentation of scientific information. • Actively refine models to create a more complete representation of the
system
Skills • Use the more advanced features of word processing, spreadsheet, and database programs. • Use appropriate technology to gather experimental data. • Develop indirect measurement techniques. • Refine data gathering techniques. • Work cooperatively to gather data and develop models
ESSENTIALS of LEARNING PHYSICAL SETTING: PHYSICS
Mechanics • Concepts and relationships
between distance, displacement, time, speed, velocity, acceleration and mass.
• Introduction to basic vector mathematics.
• Forces and their effect on the motion of objects.
• Momentum and impulse and their relationships with velocity and mass.
• Rotational motion. • Gravitational force
Electricity and Magnetism • Characteristics and behavior of
electric charge. • Relationships between charge
and energy. • Characteristics and behavior of
electric currents in circuits. • Characteristics and behavior of
magnetic fields. • Relationships between electric
current and magnetic fields.
Energy • Concepts and relationships between the various forms of energy and displacement,
time, velocity, acceleration, and force. • Relationships between kinetic energy, gravitational potential energy, and elastic
potential energy.
Waves • Concepts and relationships
between amplitude, period, frequency, wavelength, and speed of waves.
• Interactions of waves with matter and with other waves. (Reflection, refraction, interference, and diffraction.)
• Basic characteristics and behavior of sound waves.
• Basic characteristics and behavior of electromagnetic waves
Modern Physics • Quantization of
electromagnetic waves and their effects.
• Atomic models and spectra. • Subatomic structure. • Fission and fusion. • Fundamental forces and their
