Standard: Science

26 Feb 2021

Ecological Inquiry

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 High School: Various science disciplines use diverse methods to obtain evidence and do not always use the same set of procedures to obtain and analyze data.
  • SHE High School: Science depends on curiosity, imagination, creativity and persistence.
  • SHE High School: Science and engineering are influenced by technological advances and society; technological advances and society are influenced by science and engineering.

NGSS Standards:

  • HS-LS4-4. Construct an explanation based on evidence for how natural selection leads to adaptation of populations.
  • HS-LS4-5. Evaluate the evidence supporting claims that changes in environmental conditions may result in (1) increases in the number of individuals of some species, (2) the emergence of new species over time, and (3) the extinction of other species.

Vocabulary:

observation, investigation, comparative question, data, analysis

Introduction: CLICK HERE for a mushroom poster from  a Greenacres educator

Introduction: CLICK HERE for a bird poster from a Greenacres educator

26 Feb 2021

Stream Health

August-June

The health of a stream can be assessed in several different ways.  Students will perform chemical, physical, and biological studies of a local Greenacres stream, and make conclusions about stream health and impacts of human activity on surface waters.

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-PS1-2. Analyze and interpret data on the properties of substances before and after the substances interact to determine if a chemical reaction has occurred.
  • 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.
  • MS-ESS3-3. Apply scientific principles to design a method for monitoring and minimizing a human impact on the environment.

Vocabulary:

biological, physical, chemical, pH, turbidity, dissolved oxygen, macroinvertebrate

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

26 Feb 2021

Energy Flow in Nature

August-June

Energy is constantly moving in and through an ecosystem.  Students will conduct a survey of stream, field, and forest habitats at Greenacres and learn about the interrelationships between the organisms that they have observed as well as the movements of matter and energy throughout the ecosystem.

Ohio Science Standards:

  • LS Grade 7: Matter is transferred continuously between one organism to another and between organisms and their physical environments.
  • LS Grade 7: Energy can be transferred through a variety of ways.
  • LS Grade 7: In any particular biome, the number, growth and survival of organisms and populations depend on biotic and abiotic factors.

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.
  • MS-LS1-6. Construct a scientific explanation based on evidence for the role of photosynthesis in the cycling of matter and flow of energy into and out of organisms
  • MS-LS2-2. Construct an explanation that predicts patterns of interactions among organisms across multiple ecosystems.
  • MS-LS2-4. Construct an argument supported by empirical evidence that changes to physical or biological components of an ecosystem affect populations.

Vocabulary:

food web, carnivore, omnivore, herbivore, ecosystem, population dynamics

Introduction: CLICK HERE for a poster from  a Greenacres educator

26 Feb 2021

Nature Exploration: Journaling

August-June

Give your students the chance to slow down and focus their attention on nature. Students will write, draw and count or measure what they see around them as they visit different ecosystems at Greenacres. This program can be used to inspire creativity and knowledge of the natural world through drawing, writing poems or story telling

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.
  • LS Grade 6: Living systems at all levels of organization demonstrate the complementary nature of structure and function.

Ohio Language Arts Standards:

  • W.6.3-Write narratives to develop real or imagined experiences or events using effective technique, relevant descriptive details, and well-structured event sequences.

Ohio Social Studies Standards:

  • SS Grade 6: Government- Different perspectives on a topic can be obtained from a variety of historic and contemporary sources. Sources can be examined for accuracy.

Vocabulary:

observation, exploration, investigation 

Introduction: CLICK HERE for a poster from a Greenacres educator

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