Structure and Function

In this unit, students compare the science phenomena of bacterial, plant, and animal cells, figuring out similarities among them all as well as differences. Students then conduct an experiment into how yeast cells extract energy from food molecules. This page highlights components of this lesson. 

In this unit, students explore science phenomena related to life forms that live on Earth, analyzing the cellular structures that make up complex organisms and how different groups of cells work together to keep the organism functioning properly. In this lesson, students test the effect of sucrose concentration on the heart rate of daphnia, observing how different organ systems work together. This page provides a high-level extract of this lesson.

In this unit, students explore science phenomena including reproduction, DNA, and inherited traits. In this lesson, students investigate how mutations are a phenomena caused by structural changes to the DNA. This page highlights key components of this lesson.

In this unit, students figure out connections between genes and heredity to evolution, focusing on figuring out the phenomena of how both genetic information and the environment influence how a population develops over time. Students investigate different kinds of evidence for life’s shared ancestry and then experiment with how adaptations help some organisms survive. Students end with an investigation into artificial selection.

In this unit, students figure out the interconnectedness of genetics, heredity, and evolution. For this lesson, students create an experiment to observe the phenomenon of natural selection determining which organisms are most likely to survive and pass on their traits. This page showcases parts of key components of the lesson.

In this unit, students analyze how living things have specific structures that allow them to function in different environments. They trace how energy flows through a tropical wetland food web, and then test how temperature affects a plant’s ability to transpire through its leaves, affecting its ability to grow. This page is a high-level extract of this lesson on plant structures. 

In this unit, students apply what they know about genes and heredity to evolution, focusing on how both genetic information and the environment influence the phenomena of how a population develops over time. In this lesson, students explore the phenomena of how adaptations help some organisms survive. Students also investigate artificial selection. This page showcases key parts of this lesson.

In this unit, students focus on the organisms that live on Earth’s surface, analyzing the science phenomena of how all living things are made of cells, which have certain requirements for survival, including food, water, and energy. They explore the phenomena of structure and function by analyzing the role of the cell membrane in maintaining a balanced amount of water in the cell. This page highlights excerpts from a few sections of this lesson.

In this unit, students focus on the relationship between an organism’s cellular structure and the ability of the organism to access energy to carry out essential life functions. Students begin by examining prokaryotic and eukaryotic cells under the microscope and then compare organelles in plant and animal cells in this lesson. This page is a high-level extract of this lesson.

In this unit, students focus on the organisms that live on Earth’s surface, analyzing how living things are made of cells, which have certain requirements for survival, including food, water, and energy. In this lesson they explore the phenomena of cellular membranes. This page highlights key parts of this lesson.

In this unit, students analyze phenomena of inheritance in how living things pass along their genes to offspring. Students evaluate the role of DNA and chromosomes in heredity in this lesson. This page is a high-level extract of this lesson.

In this unit, students explore technological systems, focusing on the phenomena of how information is transmitted in a communication system. This page is a high-level extract of the first lesson in this unit.

In kindergarten, students begin to develop the practices that scientists and engineers use to help them answer questions and solve problems. This page is a high level extract from lesson 3, where students carry out an experiment to determine how heat affects water in a solid form (ice).

In this unit, students explore the properties of different kinds of waves and the relationship between waves and energy. In this lesson, students investigate how waves can be used to communicate and transmit information. This page highlights key components of this lesson.

In this first unit, students learn to differentiate between the practices of a scientist and those of an engineer. Students ask questions, make observations, and collect data as they explore weather patterns on Earth and investigate how different Earth materials are heated by the sun. During this final lesson of the unit, students act as engineers by designing a prototype that can reduce the warming effects of the sun.