My Science Box

Performance Tasks:

Closed Chemistry- Design and build a closed structure in which a chemical reaction can occur.  You will present your demonstration to the class providing evidence for conservation of mass.  The presentation should include a poster of the balanced chemical equation for your reaction.

Summary

In this curriculum unit designed by Konnie Schneider, students discover what happens during a chemical reactions. They discover that during ordinary physical or chemical processes matter can neither be created or destroyed.  It can only change forms.

Essential Questions

California State Science Standards Grade 7 - Evolution

Performance Tasks

• Students will be able to design an organism that could live in Pt Reyes, both today and what adaptations it would need in order to live there in one million years.

Summary

In this curriculum unit designed by middle school teacher Alison Jones, students explore evolution through the theme of "Consistecy of Change". ...

Essential Questions

What understandings or goals would be assessed through this task?

•    Students will identify the forces acting on a self-propelled vehicle and explain how the motion of the vehicle demonstrates Newton’s laws.

Through what authentic performance task will students demonstrate understanding?

Task overview:

California State Science Standards Grade 8 - Forces

Performance tasks:

• Other-worldly sports – Students create a poster illustrating how their favorite sport might look on a planet of their choosing, explaining how differences in gravity and atmosphere could affect the forces on players of the sport and sports equipment

Summary

In this unit designed by high school teacher Kim Miyasaki, students discover that all physical objects are part of an interactive system mediated by forces, which are governed by Newton’s laws. ...

Essential Questions

I used this to show my students what happens during menstruation. I have them fill out where the flow is, when ovulation happens, when the lining begins to shed, and when are the prime times to have sex for fertilization (or the prime times to avoid sex!) 

I included readings about what happens during menstrual cycles.