Saturday, January 28, 2012

Week 20 (2012) School Work: What We've Been Doing in Science

My son attended the first session of a new geography club this week.  I think it is going to be both fun and a good learning experience to supplement his work at home.  I just hope more older kids show up next time they meet!

We attended a play this week, but it is hardly worth mentioning.  For the first time ever in thirteen years, we were really disappointed in the production put on by our local children's theatre.  I hope that economic difficulties are not going to squelch their creativity!

The rest of our work continues as usual, with really nothing new to report, but here's what we've been working on in our little physics class at home the past couple of weeks:

Last Week:

1) We reviewed the take home stuff they did relative to mechanical waves, then started talking about light waves and the difference between those and sound waves. I scattered cornstarch in the air into a flashlight beam and we talked about seeing beams of light and how it travels.

(Some flashcards we're going to use next week for review)
http://quizlet.com/915979/waves-worksheet-flash-cards/

(And another worksheet we're using for review)
http://www2.gi.alaska.edu/volcanoes_alive/Lessons/VA%20Unit%207/7_13Waves_We_Measure.pdf

(And more info in general on waves)
http://mrskingsbioweb.com/worksheets/Waves.pdf

2) We talked about how light can be both a wave and a particle (photons). We talked about how each color of light represents a different wavelength (purples/blues are short; greens/yellows are medium length; orange/reds are long).  We talked about sunsets and green flashes....

Rhode Island        
(More info on green and blue flashes)
http://www.exo.net/~pauld/physics/atmospheric_optics/green_flash.html

3) We talked about Einstein discovering that photons energize (create vibrations in) objects when they strike them and the wavelength at which those objects vibrate is what creates color.

(Albert Einstein for kids)
http://www.albert-einstein.org/.index6.html 


  














4) We shone a beam of light through a hole in a shoebox parallel to a wall and talked about light generally traveling in a straight line. We then used a mirror to reflect and turn the beam onto the wall that was parallel to the box. We also used white paper (diffuse light scattered onto wall) and black paper (little light because it absorbs it).

5) We played with a couple of prisms, looking at writing through them (upside down with the prism sitting on the writing) and then lifting and turning them until we could see the writing through the upper, rather than lower, surface.




6) We watched light course through a bent stream of water (because it reflects back and forth off the inside wall of the water), which is similar to how fiber optics works.



7) We looked through a fresnel lens and held it away from us until the object we were looking at flipped upside down (beyond the focal length of the lens).

 (We talked about how they are used in lighthouses, too....)

8) We talked about the primary colors of light (red, blue, and GREEN - NOT yellow). We used color paddles to combine colors (red and green light make yellow light; red and blue make purple; blue and green make a blue-green light; all three colors together make a white light.)



9) We made rainbows using the prism and talked about how it separates white light into all its components.

10) We looked through prism paper, which scatters white light into colors so every light source looks like a rainbow.



11) We talked about how an arching hose on a sunny day will make rainbows; rainbows on a sunny day while there is still water in the air, etc.


This Week:

1) We talked about the difference between transparent, translucent, and opaque.





2) We talked about how shadows are made and about eclipses.

     

   

3) We talked about how we see things because light from some source gets bounced into our eyes.





4) We did a number of experiments using a white piece of paper with a baseline drawn down one side and another, 90 degree, line drawn perpendicular to it (called the normal). The first was to look at how a mirror bounces or reflects light. We used a piece of black construction paper with a 1/16 inch slit in it for all of these, too. We shone a light through the slit at a mirror on the baseline. The light that bounced back did so at the same angle as the light that came into the mirror, and they traced these beams. Even when we moved the flashlight so that the light shone in at an angle, the reflected angle of light remained the same (not in the same spot, but the same number of degrees apart).
A basic property of optics - the law of reflection - is that the incoming, or incident beam, will be at the same angle as the outgoing, or reflected beam.




5) In another experiment we did using this same set-up, they used the prism instead of a mirror. This was to show that refraction occurs when light goes from air into a plastic or glass substance (substances of two different densities). We slowly turned the prism until a beam of light was coming out one of the sides (at an angle to the beams from the front face). They traced these. This did not work well. We could not see the refracted light well enough to do the computation of angle between a "normal" and the path of the beams. This would have given us the angles of incidence and refraction, which we could have compared to find the refractive index, which is always the same for the same two substances (air and plastic, in this case).

6 and 7) We also did this using a square container of water, then a square container of cooking oil. We could see that there were definite differences in the angles, but could not see enough light to trace them well and calculate the refractive index. The cooking oil beams were closer together. Oil is lighter than water (less dense) and its refractive index is therefore lower. The refractive beams for the water had the largest angle, then glass, then the oil....

Back to reflection:

8) We used two mirrors to see the a reflection of a reflection. Look in one mirror, blink right eye (left eye blinks in mirror). Angle two mirrors so that you can see a reflection of yourself from one to the other. Blink right eye (right eye blinks in this reflection of a reflection).

9) We used this two mirror set-up to make a periscope.

10) We looked at ourselves in the convex and concave surfaces of spoons and talked more about how lenses work (which we also discussed week before last with the set of lenses I have).

11) Refraction to reflection - when light passes through one substance to another, it can be reflected rather than refracted. This is called internal reflection. It depends on the angle at which the beam hits the surface. Internal reflection is used in prisms, cameras, and binoculars. We shone a light through our slit screen at the prism and gradually twisted it. At a certain angle, the beam should have been reflected within (so we were assuming no light beam would pass out of it). This didn't work well for us. We could get it to the point where almost no light passed out, but we thought we still saw a little.... (This is what happened with the light beam caught up in the stream of water last week - it kept being reflected or bounced off one side of the internal wall of the water to the other, all the way down the stream - it could not escape.)

12) We put a mirror down into a deep bowl of water (which I had too cold for them, LOL) and angled it until we got an optical illusion created by the reflection of our finger bouncing off the underside of the water at the point where refraction became reflection. The underside of the water was acting as a second mirror, bouncing off the image....

13) We shone a light through a fiber optic strand to see the light come out the other end (also same as stream of water last week)....



14, 15, 16, 17, 18) We worked more with lenses, both convex (large and small), and concave. We were again trying to find focal length, but had trouble seeing the image disappear (which would have been the point to measure to for focal length). We made both a microscope and a telescope using these lenses in combination (the large and small convex).

19) We talked some about polarized light and looked through polarizing filters to see how they work. We also talked about polarized sunglasses, etc.

20, 21) We talked more about splitting light into colors and how we were able to do that when we were blowing bubbles earlier in the year. We tried to use our prism again, but I guess it was too dark on this day for us to get rainbows (it had been raining off and on all day)....

22) We used colored filters between our prism and a white paper, then between the light source and the prism, to see how light was able to get through (much more light when the filter was between the prism and paper, then when it was between the light source and prism, of course). 

We're still not getting any winter weather our way.  I'm afraid the mosquitoes around here are going to be the size of red-tailed hawks next summer! 

Regena

Friday, January 20, 2012

Week 19 - 2012 - Full Steam Ahead!

We're back to our regular round of classes this week.  My son's co-op started, and I'm very glad to have him back in a P.E. class.  His indoor soccer finally begins tomorrow, too.  I really, really want to get him into more physical activity, but keep running up against a brick wall in my attempts to find outlets for him....

I'm hopeful that the drawing class he's doing at co-op is going to be really good for him.  He's really not that artistic, but I've always wanted him to have a chance at some good drawing instruction and I'm hopeful this will be it!  They started off doing a value study and working with shading and light this week.  Next week they'll move into drawing basic shapes and shading those.

In science, his teacher is working in class with gases right now.  She sent home a variety of crystal growing activities that we need to get started this weekend.  At home, I began an exploration of light waves and the properties of light this week.  I'm using some of these kits for our explorations:

Light and Color - 10 hands-on experiments - this is an old kit and I don't find it listed on the internet any more.  It includes solid experiments.
( http://sciencekit.com/color-paddles/p/IG0035692/ )


Set of 6 demonstration lenses:

Lens Set

http://www.hometrainingtools.com/lens-set/p/OP-LENSET/

These are okay, except that I was given two plano convex lenses, instead of a plano concave (not used in the included activities, anyway....)


Spectroscope with info on use:

Spectroscope
http://www.hometrainingtools.com/spectroscope/p/OP-SPECTRO/

(You can use this with chemistry, too, in burning various types of mineral salts....)

Shiny Science book and kit, Steve Parker, Sterling Publishing - this is another old kit and I don't find it online any longer, either.  We love most books by Steve Parker!  This one covers various principles of light....

These kits from Home Science Tools seem at least somewhat similar to those I'm using:

http://www.hometrainingtools.com/science-wiz-light-kit/p/KT-SWLIGHT/

http://www.hometrainingtools.com/optical-science-art-kit/p/KT-OPTSCI/

Or here's one from Thames and Kosmos:

http://thamesandkosmos.com/products/exploration/op.html


They're also looking through the section on light at Rader's Physics 4 Kids:

http://www.physics4kids.com/files/light_intro.html

Today, we visited the Arts Center in Danville to view a traveling exhibit created by NASA on space.  They viewed planetarium shows on black holes and asteroids, as well as seeing a live performance by an interpreter doing Galileo (who was very good)!  There was lots of other info available, too, and this is going to spin into some assignments for them related to light and sound waves....

Spacebillboard

(Here are some links for all ages related to space topics from this venue):

http://www.communityartscenter.net/include/docs/cac-spaceext-lessonplan.pdf

In history, we used our various encyclopedias and atlases of the 20th century to cover events surrounding the rise of communism in China; conflicts between Japan and China; the rise of Fascism throughout Europe, as well as other forms of dictatorships following WWI; and the rise of Nazism leading up to WWII.

My son read chapters 25, 26 (second half), and 27 in Story of the World, as well as chapters 25, 26, and 27 in volume 9 of History of US.  He completed labeling of some modern maps of the countries of North America, South America, Australia, and Africa.  He began reading The Nazis, William Lace.

The Nazis


Related to last week's reading, he completed Children of the Dust Bowl, Jerry Stanley, and Kids at Work, Lewis Hine.

Children Of the Dust Bowl    Kids at Work: Lewis Hine and the Crusade Against Child Labor


In literature, he completed a paper related to his outside class.  He finished reading Murder on the Orient Express and began The Hiding Place, Ten Boom.





He did a lot more reading on his own this week because I apparently was trying to come down with some sort of virus that I had to fight off for a couple of days, so I spent a lot of time in bed.... 

I've had more problems with allergies this year than I can ever remember.  I can only guess, until I finally get to an allergist, that this is because of all the rain and warm weather we've had, and that leaf mold is the culprit. 

The store that carried a drink I've been enjoying for the past few years now says their distributor no longer handles it, so I haven't had it since the end of summer.  It contains ginseng, vitamin A and C, so I guess maybe I'm short on those vitamins, too....  SO, I keep trying to come down with illnesses this year!  It's the first time in years this has happened to me and it's really aggravating!  Thankfully, my homeopathic and other home remedies are working to help me get rid of things quickly, thus far, but I'd rather not catch things at all!

Hope everyone else is staying well this winter,

Regena

Score! ColorYourselfSmart Geography....

I found this cool resource at our local Sam's club and am planning on adding it to our world geography studies for next year:

Color Yourself Smart: Geography
(It's not significantly cheaper there than the price I see on Amazon for it, however....)

It is by Dan Cowling.

I like the way this is set up!  It comes with some Faber-Castell pencils, an eraser, and sharpener.  The same publishers (Thunder Bay Press) have one on human anatomy that I thought about adding to our health class, too, but I really didn't like the way it was set up.  It's not at all like the geography book....

Regena

Saturday, January 14, 2012

Week 18 - 2012 - First Semester's Finally Finished!

I really don't like coming back after Christmas to finish up our first semester.  Something in me likes the idea of finishing up before we break.  However, I just can't figure out how to start when we want and take off all the time that we want and still fit in 18 weeks worth of work prior to the new year, so I guess I will have to just grin and bear it....  So let's see, what sorts of things did we do this week?

We eased back into more outside classes.  My son is moving into Faber's level 5 books for his piano studies (lesson, performance, and theory) and I continue to love their music selections!  I have always appreciated that their music is very boy friendly.  He continues to work with a lot of jazz pieces.  I need to update what he's working on in my home page listing, too....  His teacher says that these level 5 books are really going to be a lot of fun - I can't wait to hear the pieces!

Piano Adventures Level 5 - Lesson Book

We finished up the B module of Videotext this week and will begin the C module next week.

He finished reading The Good Earth and is about halfway through Murder on the Orient Express right now.  When he finishes we're going to talk about Christie's "Code".

Murder on the Orient Express (Hercule Poirot Series)

He began his written work for My Side of the Mountain.  He has a couple of short papers to write next week related to the book.  We continued his memory work, too....

His outside Spanish class resumed and we continued with our other daily lessons as usual.  He's just working through some Which Way, USA? books right now for fun.  I have some for western states that we had never gotten to, so we're finishing those up.... 

In history this week, we read two chapters from National Geographic's The Making of America, Robert Johnston.  We finished up the Cobblestone book on the Dust Bowl that we started last week.  My son finished up reading chapters 8-24 in Volume 9 of History of Us, which he's been working on the past couple of weeks.  He also completed the last story in the book Disaster! by Leroe.  We backtracked a little to read Lenin, by Abraham Resnick, in preparation for getting into our further study of fascism, communism, socialism, etc. in the coming weeks.

The Making Of America   Lenin


In science, we're studying mechanical waves right now.  While I am using a Prentice Hall book for some of my info, they are reading from online websites on the subject.  We'll be moving into looking at light waves and working with light and optics next.  Here are some of the websites they've used thus far:

http://www.kettering.edu/physics/drussell/Demos/waves-intro/waves-intro.html

http://www.kettering.edu/physics/drussell/Demos/waves/wavemotion.html

http://www.school-for-champions.com/science/sound.htm

http://www.physicsclassroom.com/Class/sound/u11l1c.cfm

Powerpoint all about waves (but it lumps surface waves in with the others):

www.greenville.k12.sc.us/eastside/simmons/docs/ps/Module%207.ppt

Activities to do:

http://science.k12flash.com/sound.html

They tried out one crystal radio then we built another and they tried it out.  They will continue fiddling with it this next week, too....

Here's a current version that looks very much like the one they built (I've had it a long time):

Crystal Radio Kit

This is similar to the crystal radio they tested first:



I believe his co-op physical science class resumes next week, too, so can't wait to see what they'll be doing.... 

We're finally getting snow here (had to drive home from an out of town swim meet for my older son tonight - glad we made it home okay)!  Maybe it will be cold enough next week for me to pull out some of our bubble making liquids from the beginning of the school year so we can try our hand at blowing frozen bubbles....

Regena
Sound and Light (Prentice Hall Science Explorer)

Monday, January 9, 2012

Score!!! Terrific Books for Botany Studies....

So, I've been looking around for some books to use with the botany portion of our studies next school year....  I have some texts, but I'm looking for reading material with great illustrations to use in lieu of lectures with powerpoint presentations.

We have always loved Steve Parker's books around here, but I didn't realize he had done an entire series of books covering all the different kingdoms of life.  It is called the Kingdom Classificaiton series.  Here is a link to a publisher for schools where one could purchase all six of the books related to prokaryotes, plants, fungi, and such that one might want for a botany study:

http://www.capstonepub.com/product/9780756542672

Kingdom Classification


Ferns, Mosses & Other Spore-Producing Plants  
Molds, Mushrooms & Other Fungi  
Protozoans, Algae & Other Protists    
Sunflowers, Magnolia Trees & Other Flowering Plants 
Redwoods, Hemlocks & Other Cone-Bearing Plants

And while I won't be needing these, here's another site that carries some of the other titles in this series:

http://www.perma-bound.com/SearchExact-Series/%22Animal%20Kingdom%20Classification%22

I actually found all of mine used, on Amazon.com (tried Half.com, etc. but couldn't find them anywhere else....)

I can't wait to get these in!  They look absolutely terrific!  Steve Parker never disappoints....

Hope your planning for for your classes is going well!

Regena

Saturday, January 7, 2012

Ninth Grade Biology Plans

No tomatoes, please!  I do cover evolution thoroughly.  I don't believe in skirting issues that a potential science major is going to encounter continuously once in college....

I still have some additional tweaking to do to this, but it's substantially completed at this time....

And I'm sorry about inconsistencies in font size, spacing, etc.  My new computer came with only Microsoft Works installed, and even though I've gotten Word installed and am using that now, sometimes when I transfer documents to Blogger, even though I attempt to clean up formatting, it just won't "take" for some reason....


Ninth Grade Biology

 One hour, daily

 I used Quarks and Quirks’ links for many of my online investigations, as well as for many of the labs we will complete in this class.  She also generously shared her tests!  Many of the links originally provided in the online support for the Hoagland book have been broken over time, so having access to links that work was a real time saver!


Primary book, VHS, and DVD resources:

 Exploring the Way Life Works, The Science of Biology, Mahlon Hoagland, et al

The Sciences: An Integrated Approach, James Trefil, et al – biology portions only, used along with Teaching Company’s Joys of Science lectures

The World Beneath our Feet: A Guide to Life in the Soil, James B. Nardi

Nature’s Chaos, Eliot Porter and James Gleick

Darwin’s Forgotten World, Reed Books, forward by Roger Lewin

Charles Darwin’s On the Origin of Species, A Graphic Adaptation, Michael Keller

Fingerprints and Talking Bones: How Real-Life Crimes are Solved, Charlotte Foltz Jones

Your Body: How it Works: Human Development, Ted Zerucha

Your Body: How it Works, The Skeletal and Muscular Systems, Gregory Stewart

Science on the Edge: Cloning, Don Nardo

The Double Life of RNA, Howard Hughes Medical Inst. – DVD

Evolution: Constant Change and Common Threads, Howard Hughes Medical Inst. – DVD

Scanning Life’s Matrix: Genes, Proteins, and Small Molecules, Howard Hughes Medical Inst. – DVD

Ethics in Biomedical Research, HHMI – DVD

City of the Bees, Moody Science Classics – VHS

Hidden Treasures, Moody Science Classics – VHS

Standard Deviants Biology - VHS

Silent Spring, Carson

The Beak of the Finch

The Edge of Evolution, Behe

Texts for Reference:

Atlas of Human Anatomy
Helena Curtis Biology
Microbiology, Jacquelyn Black
Integrated Principles of Zoology, Cleveland Hickman, et al
Botany, Moore, Clark, Vodopich
Ecology, Concepts and Applications, Manuel Molles
Environment, Raven, Berg, Johnson

Library Books, DVD’s, etc.:

Beyond the Cosmos, Ross – no longer at library; will have to find for purchase….

The Language of God, Francis Collins

The Ages of Gaia

Avatar


Week 1

Day 1 - Read Chapter 1, Hoagland’s Exploring the Way Life Works (life from smallest to largest; cells).

Day 2 – Prepare index cards for vocabulary that is starred at end of chapter, page 20.   Use the page guides listed to formulate your definition and/or the glossary at the end of the book.  Begin work on chapter questions - pages 20-21. 

Day 3 - Complete questions, if needed, and discuss with me.  Begin readings, etc. if time allows.

Day 4 - Look at Cells Alive website re: How Big?


Look at Cell Project website re: studying cells tutorial.


Look at The Universe Within website.

http://micro.magnet.fsu.edu/primer/java/scienceopticsu/powersof10/index.html  (Choose the manual setting in order to slow down and really read the changes in slides.)

Read Beyond the Cosmos, Ross, if available.

Read Nature’s Chaos, Gleick (home).

Watch Hidden Treasures VHS (home).

Day 5 – Continue readings, etc.  Visit Biology Corner website and look at microscope lab, look at scientific method info, etc.  Do printed
microscope lab (from Living Environment).

http://www.biologycorner.com/bio1/index.html



(…and others….)


Week 2  

Day 1 and 2 - Chapter 2, sections 1-7 (16 life patterns).  You may complete vocab cards for those words starred at chapter’s end that fall within pages 23-51.  You will complete the rest and answer the questions next week.

Day 3 – Visit the Hippocampus website for Biology and view the three videos on cell structure and function. 


Label cell parts and function – use Cells Alive! website to make your own sketches.  You will be doing this in health, too….


Also here:


Day 4 – complete cell surface lab (SAS #49 – already printed) and the pre-printed Euglena Lab.

Day 5 – Study the parts of a plant and animal cell and work on memorizing these parts.  Continue with reading from last week if not finished.

Week 3

Day 1 - Complete Chapter 2. 

Days 2 – 3 - Make index cards for selected vocab; work on questions.

Day 4 - Complete questions and discuss with me.  Complete any readings, if necessary.

Day 5 – Onion Cell Lab (already printed).


Week 4 

Read Fingerprints and Talking Bones (home).  Work with fingerprint kit at home.  Talk some about how forensics is used.  Perhaps look at some fingerprinting websites if time allows.

Visit Diffusion and Osmosis website, viewing info on this and on different types of solutions.


Standard Deviants Biology – VHS (home)


Week 5

Read from The World Beneath our Feet - all week (end at invertebrates).

Look at samples of algae (pg. 45 in WBoF) – home.

Look for fungi and lichens; take protozoa samples from lake and look at under our microscope (or obtain live protozoa samples).
 

Week 6

Days 1-3 - Read Chapter 21,"The Sciences: An Integrated Approach" (this is the book that goes along with the Joy of Science course from the Teaching Company) - chapter 21 covers cells.

Keep a detailed record or everything you eat all week for day 5 work.

Day 4 - Watch Joy of Science lecture and take notes (if possible!  He speaks very fast!)

Day 5 - Complete some of the investigations.  Complete any vocab cards we might need to fill out those you have already started (do not duplicate).

Week 7

Days 1 and 2 - Read Chapter 22, The Sciences (Organic Molecules).  Review parts of cells; study mitosis and meiosis.

Day 3 - Watch lecture and take notes.

Day 4 – Complete investigation 3 and 4.


Day 5 - Make index cards for any vocab we don't already have in our set of cards.


Week 8

Read Chapter 3, sections 1-6 (molecular bonds; energy laws; energy flow and equilibrium; ATP; Enzymes).  You may begin work on vocab cards for any starred words found on pages 87-103.

Day 2 – Complete vocab and review all index cards completed to date.


Day 3 – Watch You Tube lecture on ionic and covalent bonds.


Day 4 – Go to Biology Corner Bio 1 and 1A and complete Diffusion Lab (already printed).

Day 5 – Continue cell parts and function memory work.  Look up info on digestive enzymes: what they are, how they work, etc.


Week 9

Day 1 and 2 - Complete Chapter 3 (macro and micro views of energy flow through life; photosynthesis; carbon; respiration; glycolysis; ways of distributing energy).  Complete selected vocab for rest of chapter.

Day 3 – Complete any remaining vocab work and answer chapter 3 questions.

Day 4 – Complete questions and discuss.

Day 5   -   Enzyme Lab (already printed) and info on enzymes from




Weeks 10 and 11
Use Kym Wright’s Botany Unit Study both weeks.

Complete any photosynthesis and leaf pigment work from that unit. 

(Already have worksheets made up for that unit on home computer.)

Visit website on Photosynthesis.


Any Glycolysis info in unit?  Or use Botany texts from home to look up info, etc.

Online glycolysis lab:


Online Cell Respiration Lab:


Complete pre-printed questions on photosynthesis and cellular respiration.


Week 12

Catch up, if needed.

Study for and take first exam. (pre-printed).

Do more botany work if time allows.
 

Week 13
Day 1 and 2 - Read Chapter 4 (genetics; DNA; fruit flies; nucleotides; genomes; DNA in forensics; DNA repair; DNA permanent changes; DNA to RNA; DNA packaging).

Day 3 – Prepare index cards on selected vocab.

Day 4 - Answer chapter 4 questions.

Day 5 – Complete questions and discuss. 

Visit Genetics links if time allows.


 

Weeks 14 and 15

Visit Genetics links if you didn’t get to that last week.

Complete DNA lab – info is online.


Watch Cells Alive mitosis.

http://www.cellsalive.com/mitosis.htm

(Watch meiosis, too, if time allows….)

Watch Blood Lily Mitosis.


Watch the Double Life of RNA – DVD home)


Read Francis Collins’s Language of God.

Week 16

Days 1 and 2 - Read Chapter 5 (proteins, enzymes, amino acids; DNA to protein translation; DNA to RNA to protein translation; cracking the genetic code).

Day 3 – Prepare index cards on selected vocab.

Day 4 – Answer chapter 5 questions and discuss.

Day 5 – Continue, if needed, or review all vocab cards and memory work.


Week 17

Days 1-3 - Read Chapter 23, The Sciences (Genetics).

Day 4 - Watch video lecture and take notes.  Complete cards for any vocab not already in stack.

Day 5 - Complete number 5 investigation (viruses).


Week 18

Visit ThinkQuest Gene School website and complete labs:


Labs are at the Interactive link….

Go on to labs for next week, if time allows….


Week 19

Transcribe and translate DNA:


What Makes a Firefly Glow?  (Protein synthesis)


Genetics of Organisms online lab:


Read through DNA from the Beginning website:


Study for and take second test.

Week 20

Days 1-2 - Read Chapter 24, The Sciences (Genetic Technology).

Day 3 - Listen to video lecture and take notes.  Complete any needed vocab.

Day 4 – Watch Ethics in Biomedical Research DVD (home).

Day 5 – Discuss cloning; DNA fingerprinting; genetically modified foods; etc.


Weeks 21 and 22

Days 1 and 2 - Read Chapter 6 (cell regulation; allostery; molecular communication; enzyme production; chemotaxis; feedback in neural circuits; cascading; ecology loops).

Day 3 - Complete index cards on select vocab.

Day 4 - Complete questions and discuss.

Day 5 – Do blood typing, etc. at home

 
Day 6 – Homeostasis in Humans and Animals:

http://www.phys.unsw.edu.au/biosnippets/  (Click on Start to move through different sections.  We have already done a version of this lab.)

Day 7 and 8 – Dragon Genetics (pre-printed info)

Day 9 – Read through Phylogeny Key:


and


Day 10 – complete all work.  Watch Scanning Life’s Matrix (genes, proteins, and small molecules) – DVD (home).


Weeks 23 and 24

Continue with Kym Wright's Botany Unit Study, using botany and other textbooks I have at home to clarify any points, if needed....

Weeks 25 and 26

Read The Ages of Gaia (It might be a good idea to read the books about this and then watch the Avatar movie and discuss!)
Read Silent Spring if time allows….

Week 27

Do experiments with bacteria all week.  Discuss antibiotic resistance, antibacterial, antiseptics, antivirals, etc.

Look at websites on Bacteria:


and



Week 28

Days 1 and 2 - Read Chapter 7 (cell patterns; from one-celled to many celled creatures; mitosis; meiosis; cascading inside a cell; embryonic development; genes as switches; specialization of cells; cloning).

Day 3 - Prepare index cards on selected vocab.

Day 4 – Answer questions and discuss.

Day 5 – Complete work; review earlier work; study mitosis and meiosis, etc.  Read from Your Body: How it Works: Human Development (home), if time allows.


Week 29

Work more this week on Kym Wright’s Botany unit study.

(I am covering the human body systems this year through health class, using primarily The Way We Work, but also other anatomy books.  Dissection work is occurring through Mary Bellamy’s marine biology class at co-op, utilizing the Apologia text.)


Week 30

Days 1 and 2 - Read Chapter 8 (pattern for creation; evolution; natural selection; origins of life; large and small changes over time; variation and selection; mutations; jumping genes; antibiotics; viruses; new species; extinction; co-evolution; inheritance; relatedness; radiometric dating; evolution of intelligence; cultural evolution).

Day 3 - Prepare index cards for selected vocab.

Day 4 - Answer questions and discuss.

D
ay 5 – Complete work, if needed; review, etc.  Complete other books or read Science on the Edge: Cloning (home).


Week 31

Read from World Beneath our Feet - begin with invertebrates (end at vertebrates).

Make and use a Baermann Funnel:

http://www.plantpath.iastate.edu/dep...tylka/node/108

Collect and keep/observe earthworms; snails; and woodlice (roly-polys).

If time allows, read from Your Body: How it Works: The Skeletal and Muscular Systems (home).

Week 32

Watch City of the Bees – VHS (home)

Watch Hippocampus video info on evolutionary biology tab:


Read Behe’s Edge of Evolution.


Week 33

Read The Beak of the Finch.

Complete the Finch labs (pre-printed).


Week 34

Days 1-3 - Read Chapter 25, The Sciences (Evolution).

Day 4 - Watch video lecture and take notes.  Complete any needed vocab cards.

Day 5 – Discuss the debate between evolution and intelligent design camps.  Complete readings from earlier weeks; review, etc.

Week 35 and 36

Read Origin of Species (home – graphic novel) and Darwin’s Forgotten World (home).


Watch Evolution DVD (home).

Review all vocab cards.


Regena
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