Friday, 16 December, 2011

Students will be able to:
use the information from the textbook and classroom discussions to
-review photosynthesis and cellular respiration via a Jeopardy game.

Students played a Jeopardy! game to review the concepts of photosynthesis and cellular respiration.

Home learning is to complete the winter packet.

Have a Merry Christmas!

Thursday, 15 December, 2011

Students will be able to:
use the information from the textbook and classroom discussions to
-review/remediate sphysical science information.

Students received their Science Winter Packets in homeroom and the information was reviewed. Be sure to write a conclusion page, following the same format as used in lab.

Students then reviewed information on physical science. As a team, students answered questions via the CPS clicker system. The review covered chapters 7-12 of the text.

There is no separate homework. The Winter Packet is due by Thursday, 5 January.

Wednesday, 14 December, 2011

Students will be able to:
use the information from the textbook and classroom discussions to
-construct a model to show chemical reactions and conservation of mass.

Students explored the law of conservation of mass and energy by modeling the processes of photosynthesis and cellular respiration. Students used colored blocks to represent atoms of carbon, hydrogen, and oxygen.

Home learning 14 can be found on page 168. Students are to do the Do The Math problems on their own paper.

Tuesday, 13 December, 2011

This is HL 13. Answers only on your own correctly headed loose leaf paper.

Students will be able to:
use the information from the textbook and classroom discussions to
-idetermine the processes involved in the water cycle.
-explain how carbon, oxygen, and nitrogen are recycled.
-give examples of how living systems conserve matter and energy.

Students watched BrainPop movies on The Water Cycle, The Carbon Cycle, and The Nitrogen Cycle.

Students also (where necessary) completed the Science Interactives activity on the plant problem. The completed paper is to be placed in the science notebook.

Students reviewed HL 12 and received HL 13, which can be found at the top of this blog.

Students then read and took notes on Cycles of Matter. Be sure to make a Cornell notes page (include in the table of contents; Date 12/13 Benchmark: SC.8.L.18.3; Topic Cycles of Matter). Be sure to write your three Costa's leveled questions, draw or write something to remind you of the lesson (color preferable), and summarize the lesson on the bottom of the page. All notes should be done on the next page. This includes main ideas and supporting details of the information from pages 462-471.

Also be sure to place home learning handouts behind these notes.

Monday, 12 December, 2011

This is HL 12. Answers only on your own correctly headed loose leaf paper.

Students will be able to:
use the information from virtual activities, the textbook and classroom discussions to
-investigate how the levels of dissolved oxygen in pond vary throughout the day.
-learn the source of dissolved oxygen in a pond.

Students did a GIZMO entitled Pond Ecosystem, to determine how the levels of Oxygen change during a day. This ties in with the cycles of nature, including the carbon/oxygen cycle.

The activity is to be placed in the interactive notebook. Be sure that the table of contents includes: Date 12/12 Benchmark SC.8.L.18.3 Topic Pond Ecosystem and the page number.

Turn to a new page in your notebook (be sure to record this page in your table of contents). At the top of the page, write the date and the topic. Make a Cornell notes (six lines from the bottom; column on the left). The left column is to write three questions from the lab activity.
The bottom lines are to record something new you learned while doing this activity. The center box is to draw something that reinforces the lab.

Home learning 12 can be found at the top of this blog. Be sure to answer the questions on your own paper!

Thursday/Friday, 8/9 December, 2011

Students will be able to:
use the information from virtual activities, the textbook and classroom discussions to
-write a RAFT about cellular respiration or photosynthesis.
-plan and implement a controlled experiment.
-determine the conditions necessary for plant growth.

Due to technical difficulties with internet access and that Thursday was early release:
-all students will receive the same remediation, which uses the virtual lab activities from Science Plus Interactives.
-students will complete the activities on Friday, if they have not been completed on Thursday.

All classes will write a RAFT on cellular respiration. The RAFT is due prior to leaving the class.

Lab papers will all be collected on Friday.

Home learning 11, due on Monday, is answer questions 1-6 on page 475, answers only.

Wednesday, 7 December, 2011

Students will be able to:
use the information from hands on activities, the textbook and classroom discussions to
-determine the effect of sugar on the cellular respiration of yeast.

Students completed a lab which helped them understand how yeast react during cellular respiration. Students placed yeast in warm water, with and without sugar to see which would produce carbon dioxide, measured by finding the circumference of a balloon placed over the plastic bottle.

Students are reminded that their data must be compared to that of other groups. The lab is due tomorrow.

Tuesday, 6 December, 2011

Students will be able to:
use the information from the textbook and classroom discussions to
-define cellular respiration.
-compare and contrast cellular respiration and photosynthesis.
-describe the process of fermentation.

Students viewed a BrainPop movie on cellular respiration. They then previewed the lab for tomorrow, by completing information on the problem, hypothesis, etc.

Students were not assigned a home learning activity, but should read pages 456-461 to prepare for the lab.

Monday, 5 December, 2011

Students will be able to:
use the information from virtual actities, the textbook and classroom discussions to
-design controlled experiments to test hypotheses.
-discover what gases are used and produced by animals.
-discover what gases are used and produced by plants (in light and dark).

Students worked independently on a GIZMO entitled Plants and Snails. Students proposed a problem, formed a hypothesis, and listed their variables based on the things they observed in the GIZMO. Students then performed their virtual experiment and summarized the experiment in their conclusions. This activity helped them to understand the interdependence of plants and animals and how photosynthesis and cellular respiration are linked.

There was no home learning except to read section 2 of Chapter 13 (pages 451-456) on cellular respiration. Be sure to complete all the activities and questions contained in those pages.

Friday, 2 December, 2011

Students will be able to:
use the information from student presentations, online sites, and classroom discussions to
-present science fair presentations.
-review matter and changes in matter via Jeopardy game.

Students presented their science fair projects to their classmates.

Students then played a game of online Jeopardy, using the theme matter. Students were grouped and answered the questions as a team. This served as a review for matter.

Home learning, to be done on your own paper, is to write, answers only, p 473 questions 1, 2, 6, 7, 8.

Thursday, 1 December, 2011

Students will be able to:
use the information from computer sites, the textbook and classroom discussions to
-remediate benchmarks which tested not proficient.

Students were grouped for differentiated instruction. Based on the results of the fall interim assessment, students studied one of the following four topics:
-states of matter and mixtures and solutions
-the nature of science/scientific theory and scientific law
-atoms and the periodic table
-properties of matter

There was no home learning assigned, except to update the notebook.