• Develop an attitude of respect and understanding for life.
• Gain experience with the major environmental factors in terrestrial and aquatic systems.
• Conduct controlled experiments with plants to determine ranges of tolerance.
• Determine an organism’s optimum conditions and environmental preferences.
• Organize and analyze data from experiments and investigations with plants and animals.
• Observe and describe changes in complex systems over time.
• Relate laboratory studies to natural systems.
• Apply mathematics in the context of science.
• Acquire vocabulary associated with environmental biology.
• Exercise language, math, and social studies skills in the context of biology investigations.
• Use scientific thinking processes to conduct investigations and build explanations:  observing, communicating, comparing, organizing, and relating.
• Work collaboratively and use tools and scientific techniques to make better observations.
• Understand science safety and follow safe practices during investigations.

Assessments:

• Lab experiments
• Performance assessments
• Reflective journals
• Teacher created assessments
• End of unit projects
• Rubrics
• Checklists
• Homework/Class work
• Teacher observations

Environments

Full Option
Science System
Module
(FOSS)

Content:  Physical Science
Develop students’ understanding of organisms and their environments.

• The growth and survival of organisms depend on the biotic and abiotic factors in the environment.  Lack of resources and other factors limit the growth of populations of organisms.
• Organisms cause changes in their environment.
• Behavior is one kind of response and organism can make to an environmental factor or stimulus.
• For ecosystems, the major source of energy is sunlight.  Energy from the sun passes from organism to organism in food webs.

Internet Links:
FOSS.com

pde.state.pa.us/k12/lib/k12/scitech.doc

education-world.com/
standards/national/science/index.shtm

umtsd.org/Science_list

Planned Courses