Mr. Ghist's Science Page 

Platte Canyon High School
Bailey, Colorado

Science Standards

SCIENCE STANDARDS
3

 BENCHMARKS

3.1  Students know and understand the characteristics of living things, the diversity of life, and how living things interact with each other and with their environment.

• using and producing a variety of classification systems for organisms (for example, the five kingdom classification, classification based on behavior)

• predicting and describing the interactions of populations and ecosystems

• explaining how adaptations (for example, structure, behavior) of an organism determine its niche (role) in the environment

• explaining how changes in an ecosystem can affect biodiversity and how biodiversity contributes to an ecosystem's stability

• analyzing the dynamic equilibrium of ecosystems, including interactions among living and nonliving components (for example, tropical deforestation is linked to decreased global precipitation)

3.2  Students know and understand interrelationships of matter and energy in living systems

• comparing and contrasting the processes of photosynthesis and respiration (for example, in terms of energy and products)

• explaining how simple molecules can be built into larger molecules within organisms (for example, amino acids serve as building blocks of proteins; carbon dioxide and water are the basic materials for building sugars through photosynthesis)

• explaining how large molecules (for example, starch and protein) are broken down into smaller molecules, serving as an energy source or as basic building blocks in organisms

• explaining how energy is used in the maintenance, repair, growth, and development of tissues (for example, in the production of new skin cells requires energy)

• describing the cycling of matter and the movement and change of energy through the ecosystem (for example, some energy dissipates as heat as it is transferred through a food web)

3.3  Students know and understand how the human body functions, the factors that influence its structures and functions, and how these structures and functions compare with those of other organisms.

• describing cellular organelles and their function (for example, the relationship of ribosomes to protein synthesis; the relationship of mitochondria to energy transformation)

• differentiating among levels of organization (cells, tissues, and organs) and their roles within the whole organism

• explaining human body functions in terms of interacting organ systems composed of specialized structures that maintain or restore health (for example, mechanisms involved in homeostasis (balance) such as feedback in the endocrine system)

• comparing and contrasting characteristics of and treatments for various types of medical problems (for example, accidental, infectious, genetic)

• using examples to explain the relationship of structure and function in organisms

• describing the pattern and process of reproduction and development in several organisms (for example, earthworm, chick, human)

3.4  Students know and understand how organisms change over time in terms of evolution and genetics

• comparing and contrasting the purpose and process of cell division (mitosis) with the production of sex cells (meiosis)

• giving examples to show how some traits can be inherited while others are due to the interaction of genes and the environment (for example, skin cancer triggered by over-exposure to sunlight or contact with chemical carcinogens)

• describing how DNA serves as the vehicle for genetic continuity and the source of genetic diversity upon which natural selection can act

• describing how mutation, natural selection, and reproductive isolation can lead to new species and explain the planet's biodiversity

• explaining why variation within a population improves the chances that the species will survive under new environmental conditions

• describing the general structure and function of the gene (DNA) and its role in heredity and protein synthesis (for example, replication of DNA and the role of RNA in protein synthesis)

• calculating the probability that an individual will inherit a particular single gene trait (for example, calculating the probability of offspring inheriting cystic fibrosis when both parents are carriers for the disease)

Guiding questions:

· What are the characteristics of living things and how do they interact with their environment?

· What are the interrelationship of matter and energy in living systems?

· How does the human body function and how does this compare with other living things?

· In what ways are living things adapted to survive in their environment?

· How do species change over time in terms of biological evolution and genetics?

 Expectations:

understand that life processes of plants and animals depend on a variety of chemical reactions that are carried out in specialized areas of the organism's cells

use and produce a variety of classification systems for organisms

compare and contrast the purpose and process of cell division (mitosis) with the production of sex cells (meiosis)

understand that a multi-organism develops from single zygote and its phenotype depends on its genotype, which is established at fertilization

understand that genes are a set of instructions, encoded in the DNA sequence of each organism that specify the sequence of amino acids in proteins characteristic of that organism

understand the role of DNA in resolving questions of relationship and evolutionary change

understand that the genetic composition of cells can be altered by incorporation of exogenous DNA into the cells

predict and describe the interactions of populations and ecosystems

understand the concepts of mutation, natural selection, and reproductive isolation impacts on the planet’s bio-diversity

calculate the probability that an individual will inherit a particular single gene trait

compare and contrast the processes of photosynthesis and respiration

explain how large molecules are broken down into small molecules serving as an energy source or as basic building blocks in organisms

explain how energy is used in the maintenance, repair, growth, and development of tissue

describe the cycling of matter and the movement and change of energy through the ecosystem