Grade: 7th

28 Feb 2021

Hydrologic Cycle

August-June

Water is ever-moving, with no beginning or end.  Streams, oceans, clouds, plants and humans are all a part of this cycle. Students will describe the movement of water within the water cycle and look for evidence in and around Greenacres.

Ohio Science Standards:

  • ESS Grade 7: The hydrologic cycle illustrates the changing states of water as it moves through the lithosphere, biosphere, hydrosphere and atmosphere.

NGSS Standards:

  • MS.LS2.1. Analyze and interpret data to provide evidence for the effects of resource availability on organisms and populations of organisms in an ecosystem.
  • MS.ESS2.4. Develop a model to describe the cycling of water through Earth’s systems driven by energy from the sun and the force of gravity.

Vocabulary:

precipitation, condensation, evaporation, watershed, point and non-point pollution

Video Introduction: CLICK HERE for a video with a Greenacres educator

28 Feb 2021

Inquiry in Nature

August-June

Scientific inquiry is a way of doing science that includes making observations, forming hypotheses, designing studies, collecting data, and drawing conclusions. Students will design and conduct a simple investigation to learn about the inquiry process.

Ohio Science Standards:

  • SWK Grade 6-8: Science is a way of knowing about the world around us based on evidence from experimentation and observations.
  • SWK Grade 6-8: Science is a continual process and the body of scientific knowledge continues to grow and change. 

NGSS  Standards:

  • MS-LS1-4. Use arguments based on empirical evidence and scientific reasoning to support an explanation for how characteristic animal behaviors and specialized plant structures affect the probability of successful reproduction of animals and plants respectively. 

Vocabulary:

observation, investigation, comparative question, data, analysis

Video Introduction: CLICK HERE for a video with a Greenacres educator

28 Feb 2021

Rocks and Minerals

August-June

While exploring rocks and minerals, students will uncover millions of years of history using simple geologic tests.  Students will view the landscape at Greenacres and, using a dichotomous key, determine what types of rocks and minerals are found in Ohio. 

Ohio Science Standards:

  • ESS Grade 6: Minerals have specific, quantifiable properties.
  • ESS Grade 6: Igneous, metamorphic and sedimentary rocks have unique characteristics that can be used for identification and/or classification.
  • ESS Grade 6: Igneous, metamorphic and sedimentary rocks form in different ways.
  • ESS Grade 6: Rocks, minerals and soils have common and practical uses.

NGSS Standards:

  • MS-ESS2-1. Develop a model to describe the cycling of Earth’s materials and the flow of energy that drives this process.
  • MS-ESS2-2. Construct an explanation based on evidence for how geoscience processes have changed Earth’s surface at varying time and spatial scales
  • MS-ESS2-3. Analyze and interpret data on the distribution of fossils and rocks, continental shapes, and seafloor structures to provide evidence of the past plate motions.

Vocabulary:

Igneous, sedimentary, metamorphic, minerals, dichotomous key, hardness

Video Introduction: CLICK HERE for a video with a Greenacres educator

28 Feb 2021

Soils in Nature

August-June

Soil is a natural resource that  provides the foundation for producing our food, shelter, fuel. It also provides the surface on which to build our buildings and cities.  Students will get a bit dirty as they compare soils in different habitats at Greenacres and examine the past environment in which they formed.

Ohio Science Standards:

  • ESS Grade 6: Soil is unconsolidated material that contains nutrient matter and weathered rock.
  • ESS Grade 6: Rocks, minerals and soils have common and practical uses.

NGSS Standards:

  • MS-ESS2-1. Develop a model to describe the cycling of Earth’s materials and the flow of energy that drives this process.
  • MS-ESS2-2. Construct an explanation based on evidence for how geoscience processes have changed Earth’s surface at varying time and spatial scales.
  • MS-ESS3-1. Construct a scientific explanation based on evidence for how the uneven distributions of Earth’s mineral, energy, and groundwater resources are the result of past and current geoscience processes.

Vocabulary:

erosion, deposition, soil, humus, inorganic, organic

Video Introduction: CLICK HERE for a video with a Greenacres educator

© Greenacres Foundation. All Right Reserved 2023.