Grijalva, Christina - Science, Public Service Academy / Overview

Instructor Information

Christina Grijalva

(217) 362-3250

cgrijalva@dps61.org

Room # 123

Course Description:

This course is designed to introduce students to the basic concepts in Life Science that they will encounter throughout their school career. The course is designed to help all students develop the knowledge and skills needed for success in college as well as success in the workforce. Students will learn how to ask questions, develop and use models, plan and carry out investigations, analyze and interpret data, and use mathematics and computational thinking. Students will also learn how to construct explanations and engage in debates based on evidence. This course will help students understand that science is part of everyday life. Students will be able to answer the following questions at the end of the year:

How does life work?

How does a system of living and non-living things operate to meet the needs of organisms in an ecosystem?

How do organisms obtain and use matter and energy? How do matter and energy move through an ecosystem?

How do organisms interact with other organisms in the physical environment to obtain matter and energy?

How can one explain the ways cells contribute to the function of living organisms?

How do the structures of organisms contribute to life’s functions?

How do organisms grow, develop, and reproduce?

How do organisms pass traits from one generation to the next?

How can traits vary from parent to offspring and offspring to offspring of the same parents?

How do organisms change over time in response to changes in the environment?

How does genetic variation among organisms in a species affect survival and reproduction?

How does the environment influence genetic traits in populations over multiple generations?

Course Units:

Quarter 1:

Science Safety, Scientific Inquiry, Engineering Practices & Process Skills

Fossils

Quarter 2:

Heredity and Adaptation: Ecosystems

Quarter 3:

Heredity and Adaptation: Ecosystems

Human Systems

Quarter 4:

Human Systems

Diversity of Life

Required Materials:

Charged iPad

Paper

Pen or Pencil

Science journals

Grading Policy:

Weighted Grading or Total Points, Late Work Policy in accordance with SB100.

Grading Scale

100-90% A

89-80% B

79-70% C

69-60% D

59% > F

Learning Standards:

LS1.A: Structure and Function

All living things are made up of cells, which is the smallest unit that can be said to be alive. An organism may consist of one single cell (unicellular) or many different numbers and types of cells (multicellular). (MS-LS1-1)

Within cells, special structures are responsible for particular functions, and the cell membrane forms the boundary that controls what enters and leaves the cell. (MS-LS1-2)

In multicellular organisms, the body is a system of multiple interacting subsystems. These subsystems are groups of cells that work together to form tissues and organs that are specialized for particular body functions. (MS-LS1-3)

LS1.B: Growth and Development of Organisms

Animals engage in characteristic behaviors that increase the odds of reproduction. (MS-LS1-4)

Plants reproduce in a variety of ways, sometimes depending on animal behavior and specialized features for reproduction. (MS-LS1-4)

Genetic factors as well as local conditions affect the growth of the adult plant. (MS-LS1-5)

LS1.C: Organization for Matter and Energy Flow in Organisms

Plants, algae (including phytoplankton), and many microorganisms use the energy from light to make sugars (food) from carbon dioxide from the atmosphere and water through the process of photosynthesis, which also releases oxygen. These sugars can be used immediately or stored for growth or later use. (MS-LS1-6)

Within individual organisms, food moves through a series of chemical reactions in which it is broken down and rearranged to form new molecules, to support growth, or to release energy. (MS-LS1-7)

LS1.D: Information Processing

Each sense receptor responds to different inputs (electromagnetic, mechanical, chemical), transmitting them as signals that travel along nerve cells to the brain. The signals are then processed in the brain, resulting in immediate behaviors or memories. (MS-LS1-8)

PS3.D: Energy in Chemical Processes and Everyday Life

The chemical reaction by which plants produce complex food molecules (sugars) requires an energy input (i.e., from sunlight) to occur. In this reaction, carbon dioxide and water combine to form carbon-based organic molecules and release oxygen. (secondary to MS-LS1-6)

Cellular respiration in plants and animals involve chemical reactions with oxygen that release stored energy. In these processes, complex molecules containing carbon react with oxygen to produce carbon dioxide and other materials. (secondary to MS-LS1-7)

LS2.A: Interdependent Relationships in Ecosystems

Organisms, and populations of organisms, are dependent on their environmental interactions both with other living things and with nonliving factors. (MS-LS2-1)

In any ecosystem, organisms and populations with similar requirements for food, water, oxygen, or other resources may compete with each other for limited resources, access to which consequently constrains their growth and reproduction. (MS-LS2-1)

Growth of organisms and population increases are limited by access to resources. (MS-LS2-1)

Similarly, predatory interactions may reduce the number of organisms or eliminate whole populations of organisms. Mutually beneficial interactions, in contrast, may become so interdependent that each organism requires the other for survival. Although the species involved in these competitive, predatory, and mutually beneficial interactions vary across ecosystems, the patterns of interactions of organisms with their environments, both living and nonliving, are shared. (MS-LS2-2)

LS2.B: Cycle of Matter and Energy Transfer in Ecosystems

Food webs are models that demonstrate how matter and energy is transferred between producers, consumers, and decomposers as the three groups interact within an ecosystem. Transfers of matter into and out of the physical environment occur at every level. Decomposers recycle nutrients from dead plant or animal matter back to the soil in terrestrial environments or to the water in aquatic environments. The atoms that make up the organisms in an ecosystem are cycled repeatedly between the living and nonliving parts of the ecosystem. (MS-LS2-3)

LS2.C: Ecosystem Dynamics, Functioning, and Resilience

Ecosystems are dynamic in nature; their characteristics can vary over time. Disruptions to any physical or biological component of an ecosystem can lead to shifts in all its populations. (MS-LS2-4)

Biodiversity describes the variety of species found in Earth’s terrestrial and oceanic ecosystems. The completeness or integrity of an ecosystem’s biodiversity is often used as a measure of its health. (MS-LS2-5)

LS4.D: Biodiversity and Humans

Changes in biodiversity can influence humans’ resources, such as food, energy, and medicines, as well as ecosystem services that humans rely on—for example, water purification and recycling. (secondary to MS-LS2-5)

ETS1.B: Developing Possible Solutions

There are systematic processes for evaluating solutions with respect to how well they meet the criteria and constraints of a problem. (secondary to MS-LS2-5)

LS1.B: Growth and Development of Organisms

Organisms reproduce, either sexually or asexually, and transfer their genetic information to their offspring. (secondary to MS-LS3-2)

LS3.A: Inheritance of Traits

Genes are located in the chromosomes of cells, with each chromosome pair containing two variants of each of many distinct genes. Each distinct gene chiefly controls the production of specific proteins, which in turn affects the traits of the individual. Changes (mutations) to genes can result in changes to proteins, which can affect the structures and functions of the organism and thereby change traits. (MS-LS3-1)

Variations of inherited traits between parent and offspring arise from genetic differences that result from the subset of chromosomes (and therefore genes) inherited. (MS-LS3-2)

LS3.B: Variation of Traits

In sexually reproducing organisms, each parent contributes half of the genes acquired (at random) by the offspring. Individuals have two of each chromosome and hence two alleles of each gene, one acquired from each parent. These versions may be identical or may differ from each other. (MS-LS3-2)

In addition to variations that arise from sexual reproduction, genetic information can be altered because of mutations. Though rare, mutations may result in changes to the structure and function of proteins. Some changes are beneficial, others harmful, and some neutral to the organism. (MS-LS3-1)

LS4.A: Evidence of Common Ancestry and Diversity

The collection of fossils and their placement in chronological order (e.g., through the location of the sedimentary layers in which they are found or through radioactive dating) is known as the fossil record. It documents the existence, diversity, extinction, and change of many life forms throughout the history of life on Earth. (MS-LS4-1)

Anatomical similarities and differences between various organisms living today and between them and organisms in the fossil record, enable the reconstruction of evolutionary history and the inference of lines of evolutionary descent. (MS-LS4-2)

Comparison of the embryological development of different species also reveals similarities that show relationships not evident in the fully-formed anatomy. (MS-LS4-3)

LS4.B: Natural Selection

Natural selection leads to the predominance of certain traits in a population, and the suppression of others. (MS-LS4-4)

In artificial selection, humans have the capacity to influence certain characteristics of organisms by selective breeding. One can choose desired parental traits determined by genes, which are then passed on to offspring. (MS-LS4-5)

LS4.C: Adaptation

Adaptation by natural selection acting over generations is one important process by which species change over time in response to changes in environmental conditions. Traits that support successful survival and reproduction in the new environment become more common; those that do not become less common. Thus, the distribution of traits in a population change. (MS-LS4-6)

Behavior Expectations:

Classroom Expectations per teacher

Original Work, Cheating, Plagiarism, and Paraphrasing Policy:

Please refer to DPS61 Handbook and Code of Conduct.